15 comments/ 69925 views/ 60 favorites Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 01 By: Evil Alpaca This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. --------------- ------------------------------------------------- "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." --------------- ------------------------------------------------- The King of Swords scanned the fourteenth floor of the Bank of Coca Cola building for the hundredth time that night with his multi-spectral analysis scope. Annoyingly, the building had failed to change. It just stood there, mocking him with its reflective, armor-plated windows complete with low-level SigInt blockers. That familiar, dreaded red and white logo lit up half the building, staring back at him and his men like an evil eye. *King of Swords, what is your status?* He hated that voice. It sounded like the wind in the Southwestern deserts, all that remained of New Mexico, Old Mexico, and Arizona. He had been there once, and it, along with that voice, are things he really would not mind never experiencing again. He touched the comms unit on his ear. "Snafu sir. Whoever it was that was supposed to power down the SigInt blockers didn't come through. My scope isn't penetrating anything, so --" *Understood. We are implementing the contingency plan. Have your troops hold, and coordinate with the King of Coins. We are sending in the Major Arcana to retrieve the data.* "Sir, isn't that a bit . . . overkill? Sir?" Normally the King of Swords would never question The Fool, but the Major Arcana on hand were not normally used for anything so trivial as a hit like this. Besides, the Major Arcana were kind of scary. Even for Nightwalkers. *You have your orders. Keep the high ground and watch for security reinforcements. Fool out.* 'Yes sir,' the King thought, then jumped twenty feet through the air, grabbed the edge of walkway surrounding the next level. Sometimes, the Nightwalker mods were pretty handy. He had initially thought that the Department of Defense was whacked out of its collective mind for implementing the program, but so far it had been a success. The corporations that had slowly taken over the entire world over the last four centuries had found that the last Free Government, namely that of the United States, still had teeth. That thought made him extend his fangs, allowing him to run his tongue over them. The sensation had given him a sick sense of pleasure ever since he joined the program six years earlier. But his teeth would not taste blood tonight. Oh no, that sensation was reserved for more dangerous predators than he. Elsewhere, four figures stood in the shadow of the Home Depot Hotel and Casino, waiting instructions. Two of them were chatting softly but amiably, while the other two sat in grave silence on a decorative half-wall surrounding the truck entrance. They did not move. They did not make a sound. They simply waited. All of them were dressed from head to toe in black neo-plastic body armor, complete with shock-absorbing gel backing and short range personalized reflect shields. They were all also armed for bear, as each had a rifle, two side arms, a belt of grenades, and some kind of hand to hand weapon strapped to their belts. Each also had a helmet complete with force-field face-guards that allowed them to see out, but no one could see in. *Empress, Death, Strength, Tower . . . we are going with plan B. The Swords and the Coins will provide support. Retrieve the transaction files, terminate the bank manager, then rendezvous back with the Minor Arcana at the TACCP. Fool out.* "This is kind of a small mission for so many cards, isn't it?" Strength asked. True to his namesake, Strength was a monster of a man, clearing six and a half feet with shoulders like an ox. The man he had been talking to, Tower, was just as imposing, standing at just under seven feet tall. He was not as ripped as his shorter companion, but he had more overall mass. "I think we've got reviews coming up," Tower replied gruffly. He stopped and stared at the two quiet members of the group, waiting for instructions. One of the figures on the wall was another man, and he was thinner than either of his more vocal counterparts. He also was tall, at six and a half feet, but his leaner physique gave the impression of him being gaunt, but anyone who knew Death knew not to underestimate him. All of the Major Arcana had special skills that had caught the attention of the DOD and got them brought into the program. Death had been an assassin, and he had been good at his job. But as scary as Death was, it was the Empress that they were waiting on. She was an athletically built woman, and she carried herself with authority despite being the shortest of the group at just under six feet. She was known for being tenacious to a fault, to the point that she had been given the unofficial title of "The Suicide Queen." Of course, no one said this to her face. The Empress did not stop until she got what she was after, and that tended to mean that someone was going home in a body bag. After a moment of silence, the Empress got to her feet. "You all know your tasks," she said, her voice as friendly as a glacier and twice as cold. "Reconvene at the TACCP in twenty minutes from my mark . . . four of them moved towards the reinforced plaz-glass doors that surrounded the first floor of the building, giving the impression of being open while those very windows could in fact withstand a shot from an RPG. Tower and Strength pulled off and circled the building. Their job was to close up the bolt holes in case the quarry got past Death and the Empress. In other words, their job was to sit on their thumbs unless Coca Cola security showed up. Death reached the glass first, then fixed a small device to the smooth surface. The plaz-glass had tons of fibers running through it that set off an alarm if breached by a cutting tool, but the Nightwalker's device would use those same conduits to carry an EMP through the entire systems, causing an instant shut-down. A few seconds later, the entire building lost power. There was going to be hell to pay for whoever had failed to break security earlier, because these EMP bypass-bombs were hard to come by. Empress used a laser mounted onto her forearm armor to burn a circle in the glass, then pulled it out of the wall and laid it on ground. She and Death stepped into the building. He started up one staircase, she started up the other. They only had a few minutes before auxiliary power came on and the defenses rearmed. Empress started her heart beating faster, sending blood coursing through her body and giving her the energy she needed. At a pace that would only appear as a blur to any cameras that might come back on, she hurried up the stairs. Sometimes she saved some time by simply jumping up through the center of the spiraling structure to the next level, but she disliked how vulnerable that made her. When she reached the fortieth floor, she made her way into the main work area. There were cubicles everywhere, with offices ringing the outside of the floor. She made her way across the floor towards the target area, her infrared and ultraviolet vision allowing her to navigate the otherwise total darkness with ease. She heard another door open somewhere and she stopped, then got three beeps in her comms unit. It was Death's signal that he was in place. She returned with three beeps of her own, then continued. She was almost to the door when the emergency power finally came on. 'This is unfortunate,' she thought. 'They must have installed those new generators ahead of schedule. I may have to have a word with our HumInt folks about their sources.' Regardless, it was far too late. Right about now, security would know there was a breach. In 30 seconds, they would detect that the stairwell doors had been opened on this floor. In 45 seconds security guards would be dispatched. Local guards would be able to get her in about five minutes, while external guards would arrive in fifteen. All in all, they would be too late. Empress kicked in the door to find the quarry frantically pacing the room. He looked up and saw a dark figure approaching him through the bright red of the emergency lights. "Who the fuck are you and what --" He was cut off as she moved across the room faster than his eyes could follow and grabbed him by the throat. With her free hand, the empress removed her mask. It was said amongst the member of the Major Arcana that if the Empress acted as your executioner, at least you got to see an angel before you died. Empress's face was one that sculptors and painters throughout the ages would have sold their souls to capture. Pale blond hair fell in a short bob around her elvish face, her lips had a natural and decadent fullness to them, and her pale blue eyes stared out at the world like cool, clear water. "Who are you?" the man gasped. "Mr. Richard Chaney, you have been found guilty of diverting funds and financial information from this institution to that of a foreign company which has shown itself to be hostile to the American Chamber of Commerce and the Government of the United States. Furthermore, you did so knowingly and with the intent to weaken the previously mentioned bodies. Your actions put not only the economies of this nation and its protected companies at risk, and your actions have also funded those who would do us harm." "What?" the man stammered, "No! No I didn't . . . you have no proof. Let me go or you're in big trouble --" Empress was not even paying attention at that point. She had made the point that she had felt necessary. She yanked the target's head to the side, extended her fangs, and sank them into the man's neck. Thankfully, the screaming stopped quickly as the cocktail of chemicals that ran through her fangs stopped his movement, his voice, and his heart. She drew in some of his blood, filtering oxygen and nutrients and giving her that familiar rush that the Nightwalkers got when feeding. Then, she threw the hapless man through the window. Without even looking, she knew that Death had come into the room. "I'll get the data card," he said, quickly opening up the man's work station. Much to his credit, he had the hardware retrieved before the Empress's victim hit the ground. Eventually, the fang marks would be identified and the word would go out. Vampires had struck again. Empress and Death nodded to one another, then both ran towards the broken window and jumped out. For a moment, Empress relished the free fall, then remembered that she had not put her mask back on. As she descended rapidly toward the ground, she put the mask back in place and then activated the glider wings. Like a great bat, she and Death hurtled through the night sky toward the mission's end. From the roof of the Marriott New Atlanta Hotel, two more sets of eyes watched events unfold. They had seen the other onlookers, and had found their own vantage point to watch things unravel. "It's makin' a wee bit more sense now that I seen 'em," came a female's voice. "Indeed," said another woman, her voice warm and full of honey and spice. "This has gone too far. And now . . . now we have an face for our enemy. A beautiful, perfect face." The first speaker sounded amused when she said, "Don't go bein' distracted now. We got a job to be doin' and ya can't be losin' sight o' that just 'cause she's a looker." "Really, how flighty do you think I am?" "Remember Rome?" "You're never going to let that go are you?" "Ya know me well enough by now to know the answer is 'no.' Now can we get outta here? The game is almost on." "Speaking of distractions." A moment later, the roof was deserted. ---------- -------------------- The next day . . . ---------- -------------------- Empress sat under the awning outside her favorite Starbucks. Half a cup of warm beverage sat on the table in front of her next to a muffin. It was her daily fix, and one of the few pleasures she indulged in. While waiting for her companion to arrive, she touched the complimentary holovid projector and downloaded the day's news. Sure enough, on the front page of the New Atlanta Journal Constitution was a story about an employee of the Bank of Coca Cola who had been savagely attacked by a vampire before being hurled out of a window. It was the tenth reported such attack this year. She sighed. She was good at her job, but sometimes wondered about the wisdom of it. In the early 21st century, the corporations had slowly begun taking over all aspects of civilized life until there was not even the pretense of political integrity. In the United States, the corporations had slowly taken over all responsibility from state and local governments, while the federal government managed to survive by, of all things, behaving more like a corporation. Through military threat, they managed to keep taxes in place on most business transactions, and the government funneled that back into the military and into their research and development programs. But corporations had grown too powerful to be controlled completely. Companies built up security forces that were the equivalent of small armies, and "hostile takeovers" took on whole new meanings. American companies literally made war against each other for a full century, then the survivors united to deal with usurpers in Europe and Asia. The corporate mentality spread to every corner of the globe until a World Chamber of Commerce was formed to regulate commerce and bring an end to the chaos. The WCC and the United States Government were the only two non-privately owned governing bodies left in the world. In the last few decades, the US Government had begun to develop a number of black-ops programs to help deal with corporations and corporate maneuvering that were deemed dangerous to the American way of life and to its people. In many situations, these entities were acting behind the scenes or in ways that the police could not pursue with traditional means. More and more companies were beginning to feel that they should be running the show, not some antiquated political body. Government officials decided that these companies needed to be reminded of what fear is. They decided to create a covert group of elite operatives which, with their backing, was going to be scary. Many officials realized that they needed something more than your traditional men in black. They needed to create a group that not only could not be traced back to them, but one that would strike fear into the hearts of just about everyone. So using ancient legends and modern bio-enhancement techniques, they had created the Nightwalkers. The most advanced weapons in the government's arsenal were, for all intents and purposes, vampires. Each member of the squad had been improved to be a paradigm of perfection. The slowest of them could run in excess of 35 miles per hour, while the Empress could top-out at 45. They were four to five times stronger than the strongest human, and their eyes had been altered to pick up frequencies of light that were outside a human's normal range. Their blood carried a number of neuro-toxins which could be injected into a victim through Nightwalkers' modified fangs. Those fangs could also be used to draw blood from a victim. Nightwalkers could live entirely and efficiently on blood drawn in such a way, making them capable of operating anywhere that had people or even animals. Put the latest high-tech gear in their hands, and the government had a dangerous new weapon, and that weapon was doing its job: striking fear into the enemies of the state. While many companies might suspect that the government was involved, that political body had ingeniously used the Nightwalkers to attack itself, clearing out corporate moles and putting themselves on the "victim" list. No one knew exactly what the vampires' agenda was, but they seemed to be vigilantes of some sort. This made them heroes in the eyes of most people. The chair across from the Empress creaked slightly as Death settled into it. "How much do they know?" Nigel asked. "Same as usual," she replied. "Not much." She glanced over at the slim but handsome frame of the only friend she had. Nigel "Death" Edmunson had been an army sniper back in the day before the Nightwalker program and he had been good at what he did. Transition to being the Nightwalker's most deadly assassin had been easy. But what the Empress liked about him was that he respected her privacy, which in fact allowed him to get closer to her than anyone else. Heck, he was the only of her colleagues that knew her name. "For once, it might be nice to take credit for our actions," he said wistfully, then flagged down the waiter. He often wondered why his friend came to the same little coffee place every day at the same time, but he never pressed the issue, figuring that she would tell him when she was ready. Never mind that they had been engaging in this ritual for over a year. Being here had brought him his own rewards, after all. "Jenna, I have a favor to ask." She cocked an eyebrow at him. "A favor?" "Yes, it's about April." "Nigel, please don't tell me that you're going to ask for romantic advice from me." He smiled slightly. Jenna was the least romantic person that he had ever met. He did not know if she ever even dated. "Not exactly. She and I . . . well, we're getting serious." "Getting? Aren't you at her house most nights that you're not working?" "True, but she has been asking more about my family . . . my life. I've managed to avoid talking too much about it by telling her that I'm an only child who's parents are dead. But I could not convince her that I had no acquaintances whatsoever. So I told her about my friend Jenna." Jenna sighed. "So when are you going to get to the favor?" She had a bad feeling about this. "She wants to meet you." "Nigel," Jenna moaned, "Why?" "I think that she wants to know about me from an unbiased source." "I've sat within five feet of her before. You think that she would recognize me?" "Jenna, you make a habit of fading into the background." He was impressed by this fact, seeing as he was not immune to the effects of her beauty. "She wants to meet for dinner. Just this once, please?" Jenna knew this was a bad idea. She had always made sure to create no lasting ties, though she had broken that rule by making Nigel her friend. But she felt somewhat responsible for this, seeing as she had inadvertently introduced the two of them. April was a teacher in the school across the street, and she had a habit of coming over to the coffee shop every Friday. Nigel had fallen for the the woman at first sight, breaking his usual silence and introducing himself. The courtship had gone well, with the slightly plain April surprised that someone as dashing and mysterious as Nigel would take an interest in her. But she was sweet and smart, and Nigel's infatuation had steadily grown. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 01 "I told her that you were a security director for CNN Telecommunications. I figured that you know enough about the media and security operations that you could pull it off, and it's a highly classified position, so you would not need to explain much." "You already said that I would show up, didn't you?" Nigel shrugged. "I said that I saw no reason that you wouldn't be able to make it." Jenna looked away, staring across the street as the high school children got out of class and headed home or to the school transports. "I really wish you had asked me first." "If I had done that, you would have said 'no'. It's much like that old saying about forgiveness and permission." He followed her gaze, and decided to ask the other question on his mind. "Why this particular Starbucks?" She smiled, wondering how long he had wanted to ask that question. "It's as good as any other. The bakery down the street smells nice, and . . . and it's nice to see people walk by, mostly oblivious to the world around them. It must be nice to feel that safe." She sipped her coffee. "This thing with April . . . it means a lot to you, doesn't it?" "Yes. Just one dinner, complete with polite conversation. Think of it this way, you'll be able to make up stories about our friendship. That would be suitable revenge, would it not?" "Fine, fine. Just the one dinner. Then you'll have to tell her that I was killed in some bizarre industrial accident or something." "Thank you. I'll make this up to you somehow." "Don't mention it. Please." She looked away again, running her fingers through her hair. 'How bad could it be?' -------------- -------- That night . . . -------------- -------- If Nigel were not her only friend, she would have killed him. Right then and there. Over the Mu Shu pork. Apparently, he had not only told April that he had a friend, he had told her that Jenna was single. So the casual get together had turned into an ambush. The ambush's name . . . Irwin. Irwin was a nice enough man, an economics teacher at the same school April worked at, was slightly balding, above-average intelligence . . . and he made Jenna's skin crawl. Not that it was his fault. Almost everyone made her skin crawl. "So this kid claims in his paper that 'trickle down' is a weather condition," Irwin said, his laugh genuine but nasal. "I don't know where they find these kids or why the send them to me." Across the table from Jenna, Nigel was contemplating escape routes. He had not known about the blind date attempt, and would have done everything in his power to stop it. Jenna did not like people, and it was a testament to their friendship that she had shown up for this at all. And he knew she was probably plotting his death. He was fairly confident that she would not actually enact a termination solution, but not so sure that he was not going to get his ass kicked. "Jenna, you haven't touched your food," April said, breaking into the woman's homicidal reverie. "Sorry," Jenna replied stiffly. "Work has been exhausting." "You know what might get you going?" Irwin asked. "There's a karaoke bar down the street and --" Nigel did not hear about the rest of the suggestion, as it took all his concentration to avoid showing pain as Jenna dug her heel into his toe. "Excuse me," she said, her voice not betraying the supreme irritation and unease she felt. "I'm going to the lady's room." "Do you want me to go with you?" April asked. 'Why do women go in packs?' Jenna thought. "No, I think I can handle this." She got up and walked away, making sure not to touch anyone as she maneuvered through the restaurant. 'This was a huge mistake,' she thought. 'I should be at home. I should be cleaning my guns, running the course, prepping for the next mission . . . not this shuttle wreck of an evening.' She pushed her way into the restroom and stared at the mirror. She barely saw the reflection looking back at her, as was often the case. She mostly just wanted a moment to catch her breath. She hated being in a crowd, was not good at socializing, and she never ever dated. "Date can't be goin' well," came a soft, lightly accented voice from the doorway. Jenna actually jumped a little, and she quickly scolded herself for it. She had not heard anyone come in, but that was no reason to jump like a rookie who heard a snapping twig. "Excuse me?" A woman stepped out of the shadows of the doorway, and she was the kind of woman who got noticed. A lot. She was maybe five and a half feet tall, with ruby-red hair that cascaded around her shoulders in soft curls. Her curvy body, the type that young men saw depicted in the holo-vids that that they did not want their parents to see, was barely contained by what appeared to be red leather. That was impossible of course, as leather had been outlawed for a century, but it was a good facsimile. Her lips were wickedly cherry red, and her eyes twinkled green. Even her freckles seemed to conspire to make this woman drop-dead beautiful. It was about then that Jenna realized she was staring. "Your date putting you to sleep?" the woman asked innocently, but going by the quirked corners of her mouth she knew was being gaped at. "He's very nice," Jenna said, quickly composing herself. "A passionate bit of approval if I ever heard one," the newcomer said, turning and checking her lipstick in the mirror. She bent forward a little bit, letting the too-tight pants emphasize her ass. "Not your type at all." "I don't mean to be rude, but you know nothing about me or my 'type.' Do you always accost strangers in bathrooms and discuss dating habits?" "More often than you might think." The woman smiled, the lines of her lips showing her amusement. "Nice usually equals 'dull,' though there are much worse things to be. I don't see you as dull." "Again, you know nothing about me." Jenna then asked herself, 'Why am I even having this conversation?' She wanted to leave, but felt a strange desire to not give up her ground to this interloper. "You move like an athlete and you notice everything. You look at the people around you and automatically determine their strengths and weaknesses. A person like you . . . a woman like you, she doesn't go for high school economics teachers, no matter how nice." Every nerve in Jenna's body was suddenly activated and her brain was firing on all synapses. This woman had been watching her much more closely than she should have been. And to make matters worse, Jenna had not even noticed. She rapidly closed the gap between the two of them and pressed the redhead against the door of the bathroom. "This is more like it," the woman said with a throaty chuckle. She did not exactly sound afraid, though she should. "Who are you and why are you spying on me?" "Spying? Moi? I just have good hearing." "You weren't at any of the tables nearby. I would have noticed." "I have really good hearing?" This time, it sounded like a condescendingly innocent question. "Tell me who you are and why you're watching me." "The 'who' is easy. My name is Nessa, but that's all you're getting for free. As for what I want, well, let's just say that it depends on my mood. Jenna was suddenly very aware of her opponent's body and how the woman's curves were pressed against Jenna. The woman still did not look afraid, despite being held off the ground by a very angry opponent. She looked . . . entertained. Jenna knew the smart thing to do would be dispatch the woman, but she had no real cause to yet, and it would be hard to cover up. "You're strong," the woman said, running her hands up Jenna's sides. "I like that." Jenna stepped away, planning serious mayhem. No one touched her like that. No one touched her without her permission, and she didn't give permission. To anyone. "I think you should leave," she whispered heatedly. "Or what?" the woman replied. She stepped forward, causing Jenna to step back in a defensive stance. "Maybe I will go then." She opened the door and stepped through it, but before it closed behind her, she had one last thing to say. "I'd hate to make you really mad and have you toss ME out of a fortieth story window." Jenna's eyes narrowed, and she went into full combat mentality. Her identity had been compromised, but how? No one could possibly have been able to identify her last night, but somehow this woman had. Or was it just a lucky guess? 'There's no such thing as luck,' she though, grabbing the door and sliding out into the main room. The woman was gone. 'Impossible,' Jenna thought, 'No one moves that fast.' Then she saw a flash of red outside the restaurant's front window, and she quickly moved outside, ignoring the surprised looks of patrons and staff alike as she moved a bit faster than she should in public. Down the street, she saw the woman in red climbing into a stretch hover. Before the woman disappeared into the vehicle, she looked back and blew Jenna a kiss. Jenna was in a quandary. She could probably run the hover down, but to what end? Rip it apart on a crowded street in front of witnesses? Her own vehicle was in the other direction. 'How did she get down there so fast?' Jenna felt a sick realization growing in her stomach. 'She could have disappeared completely. She wanted me to see her one last time. She wants me to chase her.' She started to calm down. It was obviously a trap, and not one she was going to let herself fall into. She got the ID Tag number from the hover's rear bumper. 'We'll meet again,' she promised the vanishing redhead. 'And next time, I'll be the one doing the surprising.' The door opened behind her and Nigel stepped out. "Jenna, what's going on? You're freaking everyone out --" "Tell them that I'm not feeling well and have to leave." She looked at him. "I may have been compromised. Ditch your date and meet me at the TACCP ASAP." Nigel shifted quickly from would-be dater to Death in the blink of an eye. He asked no more questions, as he had been given his orders. It was time to go to work. Down the road, Nessa lounged in her transport, laughing giddily as her friend and relatively constant companion sighed in exasperation. "You just had to push her buttons, didn't you?" Anabella said, accompanying her words with her best glare. "Oh, she's a firecracker. I absolutely MUST play with her for a while." "Nessa, the Council be needin' some answers and needin' 'em quick. Stop lolly-gaggin' around an' get to work." "But m'lady, I have in fact made my job so much easier tonight." "Mind s'plainin' that to me?" the white-haired beauty sitting across from Nessa asked. "I have ensured that SHE will come looking for ME." Ignoring further glares from her friend, she pushed a button that rang the driver. "Avery, I'm feeling peckish. Take me somewhere that I can grab a bite. I'm in the mood for Italian. Or maybe Greek." "When ain't ya in the mood for Greek?" Anabella said, her mouth finally breaking into a smile. Nessa was so vibrant and fun-loving that it was difficult to stay mad at her. Nessa patted her firm behind. "Rarely if ever." She grabbed a glass of wine from the fridge and sipped it as the vehicle slipped through the crowded streets of New Atlanta and the night she loved so much. -------- ---------------------- A few hours later . . . -------- ---------------------- "She is not showing up in any of the databases. All we have is a description, and I think the computers are laughing at me after that last search," Jenna said irritably. Nigel was looking over her shoulder, and he knew better than to smile, especially since she was still angry at him for the unexpected social outing. "Well, you should have expected you would get results like that if you entered 'large breasts' as a search criteria." "You are on very thin ice," she said, her voice flattening out. Most people sounded angry when they were angry. Jenna sounded eerily composed. "Do not test me." "Of course not. Do you want to take this to the Fool?" "We need to. This is a breach of security. I screwed up and need to be taken out of active service." "I think that would be a mistake," Nigel said. Jenna met his eyes. "Why?" "If she were a spy or whistle-blower, we would have heard the repercussions by now. Also, why would she have approached you personally?" Jenna leaned back. "Blackmail?" "To what end? She made no demands and no threats." "She was attempting to rattle me. Again, to what end?" Jenna was talking to herself as much as Nigel. The two of them were alone in computer lab at the TACCP, with a few Minor Arcana standing guard and the Fool off doing political maneuvering. "She wanted me to know about her. Almost like she wants me to pursue her, and she was simply letting me know the hunt had begun. Unfortunately, she and whoever she represents seem to have an advantage." "I find it incredible that she, or anyone, could be so completely off the grid. Our engines should have turned up anyone who has been born in the last forty years with those physical characteristics. Of course, anyone who looks like the woman you've described has probably had any number of enhancements --" "No," Jenna said with conviction. "There was nothing fake about her." "How can you possibly know?" "Physical enhancements and cosmetics have a distinct odor. She didn't have any makeup on. Not even perfume, though --" "Though what?" Nigel asked. Whatever she said at that point, he knew better than to doubt. When the DOD took "volunteers" for the Nightwalker program, they had start bioengineering and did not stop until each participant had reached their pain threshold. The longer they could hold on, the more advanced their abilities and physical characteristics, and the higher rank they became. Out of the entire 78 cards in the combined Minor and Major Arcana only the Fool and the Hanged Man outranked the Empress. "Something from one of the sensory sample packets," she murmured, her brain processing everything that she had afflicted her sensory organs for the last decade. "Smoke," she said at last "Cigar smoke . . . and the scent of whiskey." "Cigar smoke? No one has had access to cigars since the HMO Alliance's war with the Tobacco Syndicate." "There's a black market for everything," Jenna said. "We just need to find out where she shops." ---------- ------------------- Elsewhere . . . ---------- ------------------- "Dammit woman, this is the fourth place tonight. Can't we just hit one of yers and be done with it?" "Trolling at one of my own clubs? Where's the sport in that?" Nessa threw her coat into the transport and looked at the line to get into Sanctuary, a trendy if pretentious club in the old underground district. "Nessa darlin', ain't real huntin' for you anyhow. More like jumpin' at the ground. Ain't much chance yer gonna miss." "Anabella, you really are a boost to my ego." The blonde woman smiled, her alabaster skin almost glowing under the tacky neon of the club district. "Yeah, yer ego really needs the help. I'll be sittin' at the bar if ya need me." "You could find yourself a dance partner," Nessa replied. While Annabel was shorter and just a bit stockier, she had that look of warm merriment sprinkled with a dash of potential mayhem that always managed to draw her fair share of suitors. She reminded Nessa of the quintessential barmaid. And Annabel did love the bars. "Nah. I think I'll keep my eye out for that lady you ticked off. And drink some synth-bourbon. It'd be askin' too much of this dump to think they'd have the real deal." "When we get back home, I'll let you raid my stash." Annabel gave her friend a hug. "You just made my night." "Don't I always?" The two of them linked arms and walked towards the door, ignoring the line and the indignant stares of those waiting. The bouncer, a large side of beef in a black shirt and black slacks, looked like he was considering stopping them, so she grabbed his hand and put it directly on her red-leather vest, causing his hand to squeeze her tit. She let out a pleasurable gasp, then chewed her bottom lip as she looked him in the eye. "You girls have a good night," the man stammered. Women throwing themselves at him was not uncommon. A woman like Nessa doing what she did . . . that was unusual. "Slut," Annabel muttered. "You can stop with the compliments. I already told you that you can have some of my bourbon." Nessa started her scan of the room as Annabel peeled off and made her way to the bar. She let herself experience the noise as it boomed from the speakers and bounced off of the walls. Most people barely took the time to listen, much less truly appreciate what music was. A complex interaction of instruments, voices, and sometimes of the stomping feet of the revelers combined into an electricity that recharged the spirit. And places like this, as tacky as the décor was, were the most alive on earth. 'Let the corporations and the Chamber of Commerce own their boardrooms and banks,' Nessa thought. 'I rule here, and my kingdom has value that they cannot even begin to comprehend.' Not even halfway across the floor, she was be propositioned by those who wanted attention, a dance, or often something more. The smart ones wanted all three, and those were the ones she pulled around her like a cloak. They touched her and she let them. They moved with her, and she wore them like a second living skin. They plied her with drinks and promises, hoping that she would grant them a slow song, a kiss, or a moment alone. She hated to choose . . . so many young bodies and willing minds. But there was a pair of dark-haired neo-goth boys who were lean and pretty and just to her liking. They smelled of sweat and longing, and the heady mixture made Nessa choose them. She put one finger under each of their chins and drew them from the dance floor and towards the side exit underneath that promising neon glow. On her way, she made eye contact with Annabel and they smiled at one another. Annabel had a drink in each hand and a tab at the bar. She would be just fine. "Where are we going?" one of her dark-haired escorts asked as they flowed into the human traffic of the sidewalk. "Not far," she purred. "A short trip," she added huskily, "for a long ride." Both young men grinned in response. The short trip ended at one of the few "questionable" hotels left in New Atlanta's downtown district. She actually kept a room here for just such dalliances. The hotel manager was one of her biggest fans, seeing as her monthly contribution kept the hotel in operation and he remained employed. Her only request was that he not upgrade. She wanted a place off the radar that she could go, a low-class establishment for low-class activities. One of the young men (in her mind, his name was now "One") decided to play it aggressive, pushing her head to the side and kissing her neck while she put her thumb on the entry pad. She let him play it any way he wanted, as long as he played. His hardness was clearly detectable as it was pressed against her ass and lower back, and she ground herself against it before pushing the door open. She took a few steps and then flung herself onto the bed, flipping onto her back as she watched One and Two enter her lair. "You're almost too good to be real," Two said. "Who says I'm real?" she replied huskily. She was laying it on a little thick, but that tended to work with neo-goths, who tended to go for the dramatic and eerie. "Tonight, I'm fantasy." One began to disrobe, pulling his shirt up over his lean torso, exposing the Grim Reaper tattoo juxtaposed to the black cross. 'Kinda pretty,' she thought of the skin art, 'though not really original.' She had no tattoos or piercings of her own. She loved her body just the way it was. And they seemed to like her body too, the way they were ogling her. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 01 Two took One's lead, pulling his shirt off as well. He was a little leaner, but his body art was nicer, with the goth interpretation of the Old Christians "Last Supper" myth depicted with skeletons in robes rather than Jesus and disciples. She thought it was a pretty cool interpretation. She leaned forward, her hands running up her stomach to her breasts, her nimble fingers deftly undoing the the buttons of her red silk blouse. "Let me," Two whispered, his less experienced hands moving to her chest as he knelt on the bed before her. She let him open up her shirt, revealing the large breasts barely contained by the lacy red bra. It was a front hook garment, just for partners like this, those with stumbling fingers who might need a little assistance. When he got her bra off, he gasped in pleasant surprise. Her pink nipples stood at rapt attention, and he quickly engulfed one of them in his delightfully warm mouth. "Oh baby," she crooned, cradling his head as he sucked on her tits. One was pulling his pants down, his seven inches of cock looking to get in on the action. He got on the bed next to her and grabbed her head again. "Wait," he said, logic entering into his brain for a moment. "Protection?" She smiled. "I'm immunized against just about everything. Now are you going to fuck my face with that or what?" That was apparently just what he wanted to hear, and he pushed his member between her lips, letting her tongue drag along the under flesh as he pushed it down her throat. He was encouraged when she did not gag, and pushed himself further down her throat until he was all the way in. "I had no idea how lucky I was gonna get tonight," he said as he began a rhythm of jamming his cock as far as it would go. 'And the night's just getting started,' she thought, savoring the texture of his flesh and the promise of his seed. Two pulled away from his scrumptious meal and unbuttoned Nessa's tight pants, peeling them down past her hips to expose the satin thong that was, like everything else she wore, red. She parted her legs so that he could rub her mound through the fabric with one hand while undoing his own pants with the other. He leaned in and kissed her panties, and she pushed her hips against his mouth. He quickly pulled her underwear off and replaced his fingers with his tongue. 'Goodie,' she thought. 'Tongue stud.' She liked a man (or woman for that matter) that was eager to engage in the oral arts, and Two fit that bill. He even showed some skill, though not what she would consider an "A game." A girl has to have standards. But she was sure that he was good enough to provide her at least one orgasm, so that was something. "Fucking hot," One said, "You like that, don't ya?" She moaned her agreement. She placed his balls in her hand, fondling them gently. She wrapped her legs around Two's head and pushed her sex against his mouth and tongue. His tongue had penetrated her folds, and his nose pressed against her clitoral hood. She moaned wantonly into One's cock whenever Two did something right, so One began encouraging Two to "do that again." "She's fuckin' hot!" Two said after dining at the Y for about five minutes. "Let me get a piece of that end," One said. He pulled out of Nessa's mouth and stood at the end of the bed. Two Climbed down Nessa's body, stopping as he straddled her chest. She smiled at him, pushing her breasts together around his member. "Fuck my tits," she said. They seemed to like the porn talk, so she would give it to them. His cock, a little longer than One's, poked out at the top of her substantial cleavage. "Wait, let me get it wet first." She sucked on it a few times, trying to generate enough slobber to get it good and ready. Then she put it back between her breasts and enveloped it with their warmth. One wasted no time, shoving his cock into her sex and driving up to her core. "So tight." "You say the nicest things," she said, spurring him on with heels to the ass while letting Two titty-fuck her. Her tongue sought out the head of his member when it pushed between her tits, teasing his little slit whenever she could. "I want you to cum in my mouth," she told Two. She wanted him in more ways than that, but they were just getting started. One was rubbing Nessa's clit, a little more roughly than she normally liked, but it was certainly getting the job done. "Fuck me harder," she growled. He responded by pounding his way home, finding that fine line between pleasure and pain that she loved to straddle. Two moved away from her tits and put the head of his member at the tip of her lips. More polite than his counterpart, he waited for her permission. Slowly she parted her lips and sucked on the head, drawing him in to her mouth. "Oh God," he said, her heavenly lips wrapped around his shaft. 'Not quite,' she thought. She loved sex, and she had spent a long time perfected the craft, but she was not a god. Yet. She grabbed Two's shaft and started sucking hard on the head. His body jerked a little as she worked over the most sensitive part of his body with a voracious appetite. "You're a freak," Two said in a joking and "barely able to concentrate because you are getting the blowjob of a lifetime" manner. "You have no idea," she replied, then deep throated him, going until she could feel his skin against her nose. She made a gagging noise, but mostly because it seemed to turn guys on and not from any real need or bodily reaction. She pulled all the way out to the head, replacing her mouth with her hand as she withdrew, stroking his shaft until it was time to engulf him again. He had gone down on her, so his blowjob would be extra special. "But I want to fuck you," he said, his voice temporarily betraying his age. He was probably barely old enough to get into the clubs, and that meant he had probably not even met a woman like Nessa. Not that there were many women like Nessa. "You will. Oh I promise, you will. But for now --" She stopped talking and started stroking, keeping only the head of his cock in her mouth. Her hand moved faster and faster until he let out a grunt and shot his load onto her tongue. She savored the taste, and the way his hard rod quivered in her hand as it did what millions of years of evolution had taught it to do. When he was completely spent, she let go of his cock with a soft plop, looked up at him with her mouth open to show that she had gotten every drop of his semen, then swallowed it down. One was made of slightly sterner stuff it would seem, as he was still going at her nether region. Her pussy gripped at his staff as he rammed it into her over and over again. He pulled out, flipped her over, bent her over the edge of the bed, then entered her again. His hands grabbed her hips, and he was able to fuck her with even more vigor than before. Two leaned up against the headboard, watching with lusty eyes as his friend fucked this fabulous female. "Harder!" she growled. "Fuck me like you mean it." She could hear his labored breathing and could tell he was going as fast as he could. Her eyes were drawn back to Two's shrinking member. 'Can't have that,' she thought. She pulled him towards her and began to suck again, much more gently this time. "I don't think . . . think that I can --" Two started to say, but his objection was cut off even before it finished. Slowly, she was coaxing him back to life. "That's impossible," he murmured happily. "I never get hard again that fast." "You need to hang out with a better class of lover," she told him, then sucked him in again. "I don't think there are many women in your class," he responded, stroking her gorgeous red hair. She smiled. She was beginning to like Two. One pushed all the way inside of her. "Fuck, I'm blowin'," he grunted, then shot stream after stream of his seed into her womb. "Fucking fantastic!" Nessa was vexed. Not because One had gotten off, as she rather enjoyed feeling a man cum inside her, but because SHE had not achieved release yet. It was time for more serious measures. She pulled away from One, then straddled Two's hips and lowered herself onto his now-ready cock. "Good grief," Two said as her clean shaven pussy came to rest on her young lover's body, "she's insatiable." "You're just now catching on to that? You," she said, looking at One, "come here." One stood on the bed and quickly found his cock back in Nessa's mouth. He was almost as surprised as Two when he discovered her ability to keep him from going soft. He let out several small hisses, as his rod was somewhat sensitive, but he did not seem to mind at all. In no time at all, he was stiff as a board again. "Check the nightstand," she told him as she bounced on his friend's cock. "Give me the bottle in the drawer." One looked confused, but did as he was told. He looked up and grinned, a bottle of lube in his hand. "So you've been here before?" "A time or two," she replied, wiggling her eyebrows. She looked down at Two, who was pretty much just enjoying being ridden, though his eyes seemed captivated by hers. He reached up and stroked her face, touching her lips. She sucked on his fingers, one at a time. 'This one is going to be a good lover to some lucky girl,' she thought. 'Or some guy.' She took the bottle of lube and slathered it on One's cock. "Now, do I really need to explain what you're supposed to do next?" she asked, glancing back and her heart-shaped ass. as she rode Two like a saddle. "You mean . . . Thank you God!" he said, his pseudo-cool demeanor breaking as he realized that he was about to live out a fantasy. He quickly maneuvered himself behind her. He started to push his cock hard into her ass. "Easy sugar," she said, "take it slow. You don't hurry when your parking a freighter in a narrow dock." "Got it," he said. She felt lips on her tits again, with Two unable to resist the bouncing melons dangling in front of him. "It's okay to bite," she told him. "Gentle . . . gentle," she said as his teeth slowly clamped down on her nipple, and she sighed happily when he reached the right amount of pressure. Two was a quick learner, squeezing the other nipple using his fingers with the same firmness. Nessa was pleasantly surprised when she felt One finally ease his way into her tight ass, then he celebrated with a light slap on her ass flesh. "You know how to treat a lady," she told him, encouraging him to play that game a little harder. Actually, Two was far more of a "gentleman" than One, but One had found one of her favorite things. With a cock in her pussy and ass, she let the two of them develop a rhythm all on their own. Two continued to tease her tits while One spanked her as he kicked her backdoor open. Finally, they brought her to a place of pure pleasure, and she howled like a madwoman as her climax raced through her. Neither man was able to move much as Nessa claimed the orgasm, riding it like a wave until she crashed into the shore. "About time," she whispered, letting her body rest on Two's while One plowed her ass again. The slaps to her ass continued, and it encouraged her to grind her hips, much to the delight of both men. She pushed herself back up with her arms so that Two could attend her tits again. She rubbed her chest against his mouth, teasing him with one nipple and then the other. "Fuck it," One said, his movements becoming jarred and uneven. "I'm gonna --" "Less talk, more spunk," Nessa interrupted, then thrust herself back so that he was all the way in her ass when he came. She wanted it all. "Cum for me," she whispered to Two, clenching his rod with her vaginal walls, willing him to give up his essence. He obliged almost instantly, arching his back slight and driving up into her, letting himself be milked by her sex. "Told you I'd show you a good time," One said to Two. Two had eyes only for Nessa. "I've never met anyone like you." She smiled. "There aren't many like me." "I'm not sure I can go again," he said. Nessa waited until both had pulled out of her, before pushing them both onto the bed. "I'm sure there's something else you can do for me," she said, her voice and her eyes showing her hunger for what it was. ------------------ ---------------------- Elsewhere in New Atlanta . . . ------------------ ---------------------- Jenna was tired. She and Nigel had spent all night researching the woman who had approached her, and they had not gotten far. Jenna had a few ideas that she would pursue the next evening if there were no missions, but that was hard to determine. For now, she needed sleep. Nightwalkers only required four hours of rest a day, but those hours were important. As was her norm, she checked to make sure that she was not followed home. No one she worked with, not even Nigel, had been to her personal sanctuary. She wondered what they would do if they saw it. She ascended the steps to the heavy door of the old gothic style church that sat nestled between a couple of warehouses in a district that had been reinvented several times in the last century. Most modern religions had gone on-line in the early 22nd century, so the churches themselves had become not much more than pretty scenery. She had gotten this one at a heavily discounted rate. It had a history, and the owners had been desperate to unload the land. They were surprised that she had gotten it legally designated as a residence, but had not asked questions. That was good, because she would not have answered them. She utilized the eye scanner, fingerprint scanner, then entered the 32 digit code that unlocked the front door. She quickly stepped through and sealed the door behind her. She was in a small entryway blocked on one side by the door and on the other side by another set of doors. This time, she repeated the eye and fingerprint scan, but this second line of defense also required a breathalyzer identification test. She passed the second of doors and reached the final layer of personal security. After the second door, there was a smooth circular platform surround by black, shatter-proof glass. She waited while the system did a visual identification sweep. "Identity confirmed," came her security system's synthetic voice. The entire glass tube lifted up, exposing the rest of her abode. Jenna had cleared out all the pews and religious trappings immediately after acquiring the property. Now, in the center of the room, was her living space. There was a sleeping container made of high-density, nigh indestructible alloy, a standing shower stall, a computer desk with three monitors hooked up to the central server, and a standing safe for her weapons and other personal effects. A small efficiency kitchen was nearby, consisting of stainless steel appliances. The layout was unusual enough, but the lead-in was even stranger. The living area was surrounded on all sides by a glass maze. Well, glass was a bit of a misnomer. Actually, they were ClearSteel walls, and they could withstand just about anything thrown at them. And to make matters more interesting, the walls moved on a set of rails, and the walls went all the way up to a literal glass ceiling twenty feet up. At the entrance to the maze was a pedestal with a button on it. If she were to attempt to enter the maze without hitting the button, the maze would seal off and she would be trapped in place for twenty-four hours. She walked up to the button. Once she hit it, the walls would form a unique maze and she would have five minutes to reach the center. If she dallied or backtracked or made otherwise inefficient use of her time, she would be sealed in for four hours. There was an emergency command release, but she would never use it. This was practice for her. If she was not strong enough and smart enough to make it on her own, then she deserved to be trapped and get four hours of poor sleep on a concrete floor. Jenna hit the button and waited for the countdown. Three . . .* the mechanical monotone began. Jenna stretched her neck. *Two . . .* She got down into a sprinter's stance. *One.* Jenna took off. Typical left-hand heuristics did not work on a maze where the destination was in the middle. She could afford no repetitions or unnecessary backtracks. She pushed all superfluous thoughts out of her mind, freeing up processing for spatial and navigational memory. No need to think of the clock . . . either she made it or she did not. Never slow down. Never fear the consequences. She reached the interior unscathed and hit a button that matched the one at the entrance, terminating the sequence. No mechanical voice came on to congratulate her. Only fools and cowards needed to pat themselves on the back. She did grant herself a long, deep breath, driving any tension out of her body. Well, most tension anyway. She opened up the six-foot safe and put her weapons away, then stripped off her armor and bodysuit. Finally, she stepped into the shower. This was Jenna's favorite time of the day and one of the few pleasures, besides daily coffee with Nigel, that she allowed herself. Every day, she thanked the stars and the memories of the creators of indoor plumbing for the gift of hot running water brought into the home. She stood under it far longer than was required simply to become clean, feeling every drop as it flowed over her skin. Finally, she forced herself from that watery caress, dried off, then sat herself in front of her monitors. She had some more research that she wanted to do. "Smoke and whiskey," she murmured. She started scanning the databases for arrests and confiscations of contraband. Despite Nigel's assumption, she knew the smoke was not from building fire or burning wood. It had underlying tones that were almost sweet. And the whiskey lacked the chemical odor of modern synthetics. It smelled like a punch to the gut. "How the heck did people ever bring themselves to drink that?" she asked. The computer stared back at her. After a while, she had it narrowed down to Old Five Points and downtown, or at least that was where most trafficking of banned substances occurred. But the woman obviously had wealth, so she could be off the beaten path. "No," Jenna said, speaking aloud to herself. "She came after me herself. She didn't send someone. She likes being mixed up in things, not observing." She leaned back. One of the many talents which the Nightwalkers had helped her develop was her ability to act as a cognitive chameleon, putting herself in a culprit's head. But she knew so little about this woman. Only that she had antiquated tastes, was likely to be considerably powerful, and that she was beautiful. "Not that that matters," she told herself, rubbing her eyes and laying down in her sleeping tube. The lid closed over her, depriving her senses of any stimuli. In a world of noise and pain and evil, this was her haven . . . her sanctuary. But while her eyes did not see, her mind could still imagine, and she imagined those twinkling green eyes staring down at her, promising that they were not yet done. But heavenly eyes soon gave way to much less pleasant images, as Jenna began to dream. "I thought you were ready to say Grace," He said, His voice hard and sharp. "You told me you were ready." She tried not to cry, because she knew that He disapproved of crying. He claimed that tears were proof that women were the weaker sex. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her head bowed in shame. "I did not mean to fail you." "It is not me you failed," He told her. "It is the Lord. You have a mouth so that you can praise Him, yet you let the Devil control your tongue. This shows me that your will is not strong enough and your heart is lacking in purity." "I won't let it happen again," she replied. He lifted her chin. "I know you won't. Do you love me?" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 01 "Yes. You know I love you." "Do you love your God?" "Yes sir." "Then you understand why I must do what I am going to do?" Her mind bellowed while her hands shook. Her soul wept, but her mouth moved. "Yes sir." "You know what to do." She nodded, still fighting the tears. She stood up and took off the pretty sun dress He had obtained for her, then leaned over the table. Her fifteen year old body already wore the scars of a seasoned warrior twice her age, and more was yet to come. He took His belt off while she gripped the edge. She would not scream. She would not cry. She would show Him that she was worthy of His love. Her parents had not. Her brother and sister had not. But she could love Him. And when the belt began to rain down blows and wreaked hell on the tender flesh of her young back, she told herself that He only did it because He loved her. Jenna awoke with a start, but she had learned not to sit up, even when the dreams came. They did not visit her often anymore. She did what she always did, namely pushing those memories away again. She had perfected the art of putting walls up, both in her home and in her head. When she was dreaming was the only time that either were breached. She sighed, closed her eyes, and went back to sleep. ------------ --------------------------- Elsewhere in New Atlanta . . . ------------ --------------------------- Nessa settled into the warm bubble bath that one of her employees had drawn for her in the antique, claw-foot tub. She loved being rich. She was feeling quite sated after her evening of debauchery, so she had decided to indulge herself with a good bath and a glass of Chardonnay before retiring for the day. One of the tasty-looking young maids from the service delivered her wine, and the precious young lady was blushing furiously as Nessa made no attempt to hide her nakedness or her interest. "Ain't ya had enough for one night?" Annabel asked from where she was crashed out on the couch. "Darling, you know that there is no such thing as 'enough' for me," Nessa said, eying the maid. " Carla is it?" "Yes ma'am." "I'll be turning in shortly. Please make sure the bed is turned down. And let Mrs. Caesar at the service know that I am quite pleased with the job you've done. I think I'd like you to be one of the regulars." 'Oh do I,' she thought, eying the smooth brown skin and ripe young body. Carla's breathing became a tad bit ragged. "Yes ma'am." She quickly left the room, but did send Nessa a backward glance before she exited the penthouse. "Oh yeah," Nessa said smugly, "she's going to be fun." She looked over at Annabel, who was smirking at her over the glass of bourbon she'd been working on for the last ten minutes. "What?" "You're hopeless you know. And have you given any thought to the job that you're supposed to be doin'?" "Of course. I'm not a complete slut, and I'd advise you to hold your tongue right now," she added, knowing her old friend had been prepared to make some kind of comment. She stared out through the one-way glass walls and glass ceiling that surrounded her penthouse. She loved the sense of openness provided, but anyone on the outside would not be able to see in. Come sunrise, the glass would become completely opaque, making for a restful day's sleep. But for now, she would look up at the stars in wonder. "And?" "And I want to see how good she is. Why chase the cobra into its hole where it is at its most dangerous. She will come looking for me, and then I'll get the information the Council is asking for." "You could have extracted her this evening. But nooooo, you had to turn it into a game." "Life is too precious to let it be boring. Stop being snippy." An evil grin crossed Nessa's face. "As a matter of fact, let's make a wager." She knew that Annabel could not resist a good bet, no matter how much trouble it might leave her in. "Wager?" "I'll bet you the entire case of bourbon that she finds me by the end of the week." "No chance," Annabel said. "I'll take the bet, but you can't initiate any more contact in that time. If she ain't able ta find ya, ya gotta bring 'er in and get the info that the Council's lookin' for. No more of yer damn games." "Done." Suddenly, Annabel stopped. "Wait, ya ain't said what I'm supposed to be puttin' up." "You're right," Nessa said. "I haven't." "Nessa girl, I --" "I think that you need to get out more. You know, date." Annabel's eyes opened wide. For all her toughness, she had serious problems with intimacy. "Darlin' --" "Avery has been eying you for years, and you barely speak to him." "But . . . but --" "I win, and you agree to go on one date with him. You WILL attempt to enjoy yourself. And since I know that you find him easy on the eyes, you will promise to at least entertain the notion of sleeping with him." "You are a horrible bitch!" "Not so horrible," Nessa said, her eyebrows raised. "The other option was that you had to spend a night in MY bed, doing whatever I told you to." Annabel actually took a step back. She had been a bedmate of of Nessa's once, and it had been a week before she could walk straight again. That woman could fuck or make love better than any other being on the planet when she put her mind to it. "Okay, one date with Avery," she said. "I knew you'd see it my way." "Good grief," Annabel said, but she was not really all that upset. She walked over and kissed her friend on the forehead. "Sleep well." "Don't I always?" Nessa replied, then slipped further into the warm water and waited until dawn. ---------- ------------ The next day . . . ---------- ------------ Garon Pegg sat in the passenger side of a luxury small-family transport, his eyes dark and brooding as they stared out the window as he and his cohorts hurtled along the interstate tube system from Dallas towards New Atlanta. He was already angry and he had not even arrived on site. One of his lieutenants put down the phone, which had been plastered to his ear for twenty minutes. "Sir," he said carefully, his head bowed, "the Council is not happy with your decision to become involved so quickly. The agent on the ground --" "Is a useless harlot suddenly worthy of the title of 'agent'? Nessa McGowan is a tramp who gets what she wants from the Council by batting her eyelashes and opening her thighs. This is a serious matter and requires serious attention." Even when angry, Garon's voice never wavered or went up in volume. "Yes sir. Would you like the Council's message regardless?" The lieutenant waited for a nod of agreement. "Nessa is in charge of the investigation. Due to the very nature of the problem, subtlety is the key. You are to make yourself available to --" "Enough." Garon put his hand on the sidearm underneath his jacket. "The Council has been too lenient with McGowan, and I will not allow that softness to endanger us. Who do WE have on the ground?" "Simon Glickler." "Loyalty?" "His requests to reign in control of the Atlanta region have been ignored by the Council. I think we can safely put him in your camp." "Make sure," Garon replied. "In the meantime, everyone get some sleep. We're going to be busy." "And if McGowan objects to our presence?" "Leave that to me," Garon said as he closed his eyes. ----------- -------------- That night . . . ----------- -------------- "Are you sure this is a good idea?" Death said as he and the Empress stood on top of an office building on the edge of Old Five Points. "You were the one who told me not to tell the Fool because we didn't know enough. This is how we know enough." She took a running leap and landed on another building some forty feet away. Death landed next to her, quiet as a mouse. "But why here rather than downtown?" "The confiscation rate was the same in both places, but there were more minor reports and complaints from this area. And this is more of a social hub. Our girl is a social girl," the Empress said softly. "Still, this is a large area to cover with only a physical description to go off of." "You didn't see her, Death. This is a woman that people remember." 'As are you,' he thought to himself, 'You just don't see it in yourself.' "So where to you propose to start?" "That combination of scents isn't going to occur just anywhere. Some kind of bar or club, or maybe something like an old speakeasy." "So you plan on going to every bar, club, and speakeasy in Old Five Points? Dressed like a commando from hell?" Even with the Empress's mask on, Nigel knew that his friend was glaring at him. "No. I'm going to find some of the party crowd and start asking about her. Then I'll give the witness a short-term memory wipe and move on." "You could just play the role of vampire. We're supposed to be spreading the reputation anyway." "True. We'll leave the last one's memory intact." She looked down and saw a street walker near the the entrance of an alley. "She's union," Empress said. She was checking out her handheld viewer and had already identified the hooker. "Legalizing and regulating the sex trade makes our job so much easier." "If she's union, why is she on the street?" Death asked. "Probably going for the nostalgic crowd. Some guys go for that." "Some girls too, I'd imagine. Jenna --" "Empress," she reminded him. They WERE working. "Empress, April wanted to apologize for last night," Death started. "I'm about to go interrogate a prostitute and see if she can at least point me towards the 'happening' clubs. Do we need to have this conversation now?" "Please?" Jenna sighed. How anyone as positively lethal as Death could sound so whiny was beyond her. "Okay." "She thought that the reason you left was that you were mad about the date." "That wasn't why I left. I WAS mad about the date, but --" "But if you could tell her that you just had business that came up --" Empress turned and looked right at her companion. "I will do no such thing. If I convince her of that, then she'll try again. I don't want that, understand? You roped me into that charade, so you think of something." "I tried." "And?" "I think I've convinced her that you're gay." Empress hung her head for a moment. "Death, I'm going to go interview a possible source now. Maintain radio silence. Actually, maintain complete silence. Understand?" "Empress --" "Complete . . . silence." ------------- ------------ In Nessa's lair . . . ------------- ------------ "You've got to be kidding me," Nessa said, her normal good humor being tried to the extreme. "This is a joke, right?" Avery Brooks, Nessa's chauffeur, bodyguard, and sometimes companion, nodded. "I just got word from the Council. Despite their protestations, Garon is one the way here with a retrieval pack." "What the hell . . Never mind, I don't think Garon CAN think. He's the kind of asshole who'd use a nuke to get rid of a tree squirrel." "I take it you know him." "You could say that. Crap." She started to pace around her bedroom. "Is Annabel up yet?" "No. It's actually still ten minutes to sunset." "I was wondering why I felt so cranky. Damn damn damn. Okay, tell Annabel that the bet's off and that I've gone hunting." "What bet?" "Uhm . . . never mind that. Just tell her that what's up. She'll understand." "Okay, but shouldn't you wait for backup? You could get the Mead brothers here in twenty minutes." "No, I'll do this. Do we have anyone who's seen her?" "Signal traffic has been nil. No spotting of these 'vampires' anywhere." "Crap. I need to go make myself obvious," Nessa said as she headed towards the door. "Well, you're about to succeed." She raised an eyebrow at him. "Meaning?" "You might want to put some clothes on first." She looked down at her body. "Damn. You're right. I hate to cover up perfection though." "Your modesty is only surpassed by your humility." Nessa went to one of her closets and stared. Everything she owned was hot and slutty, so the question became what color of hot-and-slutty did she want to go with? She decided on red, since that was what her quarry would be familiar with. She did grab a taser, just in case. "I think I'll start by hitting the Broken Inn. You alert all our people and allies, and keep an eye on Garon and his boys. Beep me if I need to deal with him sooner rather than later." "Yes ma'am." "Cheer up, Avery, the night is young and things are beginning to get interesting." ---------- ---------------------- A few hours later . . . ---------- ---------------------- "Empress, this if the fifth establishment we've visited. Are you sure this is the right track to be following?" "You know, you didn't have to come along. If you want to go catch a late date with April, you're more than welcome to." Empress hated how snippy she sounded, but she was beginning to wonder whether or not Death was right. She had not sensed anything that quite matched what she had smelled the previous night. On the plus side, she had found a couple of party boys a few blocks away who definitely remembered seeing "an unbelievably hot redhead" that matched the woman's description in their travels. Unfortunately, they had seen her at a number of locations, several of which she had already visited. "Don't be defensive." "I'm not being defensive. I'm serious," she added, obviously a bit dejected, "Why don't you get going? Maybe it is just looking for a needle in a haystack." "Yes, but if I leave, you'll keep looking all night by yourself without anyone to tell you that you're being pig-headed and need to stop." "So It's a win-win situation," Empress replied dryly. "Just go," she told him. "It's okay." "You'll go home soon?" "Maybe. I just want to clear my head and come up with a new plan." "You could come by --" "Death, what's our agreement?" He sighed. "We stay out of each other's homes. I don't see why . . . never mind. I'll see you at coffee tomorrow." He jumped off the building and vanished into the darkness below. Empress knew that Death wanted a slightly more traditional friendship. It was not as if it were banned by the organization. But no one knew where Empress lived. No one would ever be brought back there. Despite her earlier claims, Empress was not done following this line of pursuit. She just did not have anywhere else to go for sure. She planned to just keep wandering around. 'Maybe I should try downtown?' she thought. She ran and jumped to another rooftop, then clambered down the old fire tube to the city street. She spent so much time on the top of the world that she forgot how imposing it could look for those down below, tunnels of glass and steel and force energy gleaming down like gods in an ancient temple. She removed her mask, letting the smell of lower world and the heat of the streets overwhelm her delicate senses. Jenna moved out into the sparsely populated streets and began to walk. She actually passed someone she had interrogated not more than thirty minutes earlier, but he would not recognize her. Her fangs, while allowing to draw blood, could also inject a number of nasty chemicals, including a short-term memory disrupter. She would be deja vu for the man, nothing more. "Hey honey, how 'bout you go home with me --" "Would you like a drink --" "Free admission for lovely ladies --" She ignored most of these catcalls and invitations, though she was tempted to stop and beat some heads together just to teach them some manners. She resisted though. They were just doing their jobs, and probably would not have expected her to take them up anyway. Jenna sometimes wondered if they could sense the truth; that she was damaged. That thought made her stop and take a deep breath, and she closed her eyes to help concentrate and keep the Demon Thoughts at bay. That's how she had always seen them . . . Demons. He had made sure that she would never forget the Demons. "Breathe in, breathe out," she told herself. again letting the smells of the street invade her mind. The smell of burgers at the late night establishment that catered to college students, the smog, the trash in the nearby alley, the smoke -- "And whiskey," she whispered, her eyes opening wide. The trash had hid the smell until she was almost right on top of it, but there was no mistaking it now. Sweet smoke and whiskey. Jenna hurried to the alley and began looking through the bins, going through them one at a time until she found a glass bottle that definitely matched the whiskey smell. "Now where is the smoke?" She opened up her senses. Down the alley she heard the very faint traces of music. Her mind raced through her entire mental model of the Old Five Points, and she did not come up with any businesses that would be down here. 'Possibly a back entrance to the law firm on the other side? Janitor working late and listening to music?' she thought. She reached what she thought was the epicenter of the sound, but found a blank wall. She walked a little further, thinking she might be wrong, but she was pulled back to that spot. She looked up and down, scanning every band of light available to her. Then, about seven feet up on the wall, she spotted something that tugged at her brain. She pulled out her flashlight and looked up at a black drawing about eight feet up. It depicted a crescent moon perched on top of what she thought was a pitchfork or trident. She put her hands against the wall underneath and began to feel around. Suddenly, the wall gave way. She stumbled a bit, but caught herself quickly. This turned out to be a good thing, because she was not alone. Standing in a small antechamber between the door and a dark staircase were two enormous men. At least she thought they were men, seeing as they seemed to have red skin and curled horns jutting from the sides of their heads. Both of them were almost seven feet tall and built like they had spent their entire lives in they the gym. They were dressed in black pants and tight black shirts. One of them held a clipboard, while the other one held a club. "Who are you and what is this place?" Jenna said rapidly, just as it occurred to her that she had absolutely no legal jurisdiction at the moment. And worse yet, not even Nigel knew where she was. The two large men looked at each other, then back at her. "I don't think you belong here little lady," one of them said. His voice was low and booming, and his breath stank of brimstone. Jenna had never known anyone whose breath smelled like that. "I'm looking for someone," she said. "Ain't we all," the one with the club replied, eying her over like a prize side of meat. "What's with the horns? Halloween isn't for another month," she said. "Good job though." She shook her head. 'What are you, some cheap private investigator on her first case?' she thought angrily. 'Get past the freaks and find the girl.' "Everything about me is real," the large man replied. "Want to see my other horn?" "Kobal, put a sock in it," the guy with the clipboard said. "We can't --" He stopped as he sniffed the air. "Damn idiot, she's a human!" "No she ain't. She smells off, like no human I ever smelled. What are you honey? Some kind of succubus? I can see --" He shut up quickly as Jenna pushed him up against a wall. "I really don't have time for whatever games you guys play. I'm looking for a redheaded woman, about five and a half feet tall, with green eyes and . . . and a very curvy body." She fought an angry blush. She hated that she had not thought of a better descriptor. "I'm tellin' ya, she ain't no Night Breed," the one not known as Kobal reiterated. "Why the hell did you let her in?" "She's hot. Apparently tough too." He pushed at Jenna, but she jumped up, kicked off his chest, and landed on her feet on the other side of the room. "Okay chicky, it's time for me to show you the door." Kobal cracked his fingers in a menacing fashion, then took a step forward. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 01 "Idiot. We gotta wipe her memory first." "Oh yeah." "Just grab her and . . . wait a sec." The other man looked at his clipboard. "Hold on, I think this is the chick that Nessa is lookin' for. She left a note that if a tall, smokin' hot blond showed up that weren't Night Breed --" "You just NOW thought to mention that?" Jenna watched as the two huge men squabbled about whose fault this was and who was going to get in trouble with someone named Nessa. She considered leaving, but she saw that the wall had sealed up behind her and could not discern the mechanism to open it again. 'Wait, who said "smoking hot" again?' she thought. "Sorry miss," Kobal said. "Didn't know you were on the VIP list." "VIP list?" Jenna was confused. "Yeah. Cresil here will show you to the VIP lounge." "Lounge?" "Are you sure this is the right chick?" Jenna grabbed Kobal by the neck and lifted him off the ground. 'Damn, he's heavy,' she thought. "Yeah, it's probably her. If not . . . well, we'll let Nessa handle it." Cresil grinned. He could imagine the boss "handling" this one. Every part of Jenna's training told her that she should be calling for backup. She settled for inconspicuously activating her homing beacon. 'At least someone back at the TACCP will have a location, but that's it.' Cresil looked like he was thinking to himself, then look at Jenna. "Might as well turn that off. No signals can get out of here." She kept her face stoic. They were bluffing, or guessing, or maybe both. Cresil just shrugged and said, "Suit yourself. It's just gonna run the battery down." Jenna, despite all the good advice that her brain was still giving her, followed the large man down the stairs. The music seemed to get exponentially louder once she reached the bottom of the stairs. She did not see evidence of or sense a dampening field, but that was the effect. At the bottom of the stairs, they passed through black curtains, and what was on the other side took her breath away. There was a dance floor that seemed to stretch out for an entire city block. The floor and ceiling were glowing red, literally pulsing with an intimidating light. The music was unlike anything Jenna had ever listened to, not that she was much into it anyway. But nothing compared to what she saw between that eerie floor and ceiling. Apparently she had reached the edge of the map, because there were monsters there. She saw costumed figures everywhere. Some were fairly human looked, while other revelers had gone all out, with strange appendages, fur, tails,wings, and any number of other additions. "Welcome to Devil's Night," Cresil said, looking out over the dance floor. Several female, or at least Jenna assumed they were female, party goers rubbed up against her guide, though most of them just gave Jenna the wary eye. Cresil just waved them off, causing them to shrug and return to their rhythmic movements that, in many cases crossed the thinly veiled line between energetic and sexual. "Halloween isn't for --" "I know," Cresil shouted over the noise "Halloween and the day Devil's Night are a month away. Devil's Night is the name of the club." "There's no such business with that name registered with the local office of the Chamber of Commerce," Jenna said. She had the list memorized. "You're right. There ain't." He led her out to the center of the floor, clearing a path large enough that no one came in contact with her. There was a spiral staircase leading from the middle of the floor all the way up to a observation deck hanging from the ceiling, which was easily twenty feet above the ground. The room seemed to have black-tinted windows along all sides, so whoever was inside could see out but no one could see in. A larger man, who looked similar to Cresil and Kobal except for what looked like a mane of hair, stood guard at the bottom of the stairs. "I think this is the lady that the boss was lookin' for." The newcomer eyed her carefully. "She matches the description. Gotta say I'm impressed. We figgered she'd come a callin', but finding her way here in one night? You've got skills," he said, looking her over one more time. "Taker 'er on up." "Ipos, I need to --" "You need to take her up. I'm not leaving the Stairway to Heaven unguarded. Remember what happened the last time a bunch of these yahoos got up on the stairs and decided to go crowd diving?" "Good point." He headed up the stairs, checking to make sure Jenna was still with him. They emerged into a room that was as different from the one below as night was from day. The room was cool, a pleasant change from the inferno below. There were elegant blue and white couches that looked incredibly comfortable forming a circle around a glass tube in the middle of the room. There were also chairs overlooking the dance floor below, and a few raised platforms with long, metal poles reaching from the surface up to the ceiling. The room was also empty. "Wait here," Cresil said. "I got a feelin' she'll be along shortly." He turned around and left. Jenna was rarely dumbfounded, but she had achieve that state. 'What the hell is going on?' she thought. 'I . . . this is not how I anticipated this happening. There was supposed to be a fight and --' She paused when she realized that she really had no idea how this had happened. Her identity had been uncovered, and now she was standing in a room that looked like a winter wonderland over a dance club packed with costumed weirdos. The glass tube in the center of the room started to glow, and a disc descended from on high. Apparently, the tube was a grav-lift. There were two people on the platform, who exited into the room and looked at Jenna. She in turn took a defensive posture. "Oh calm down ya ninny," the young, short blond woman said. She looked solidly built, but not unattractively so. She had the look of someone who worked a hard job for a living and was unlikely to take guff from anyone. The man next to her was in his mid to late forties, but had the physique and eyes of a much younger man. "Nessa was right," the man said. "She is good." "Of course she was," the woman mumbled. "Just glad she called off the bet." "What bet?" "Uhm . . . never you mind. Crap," the woman said, looking at Jenna, "you got any idea how much trouble you've caused?" "I have no idea what you're talking about," Jenna replied stiffly. "I came looking for someone who is apparently not here, just to gain some information. So unless you are willing to tell me where I can find the redheaded woman, I suggest --" Jenna took a step forward, and the other two reacted. The man reacted in a way that Jenna understood, pulling a laser pistol out from behind his back and training it on the interloper. The woman, on the other hand, did something . . . new. She started to float. That, and she inhaled deeply and held it, looking as if she were getting ready to yell. "Now why don't you just have a seat," the man said, "and we'll just wait for Lady Nessa." Jenna's hands slowly moved away from her sidearms. She had no reason to hurt either of these people. She needed the other woman, and these two apparently knew her. She was going to sit down, but realized that there was no real way of doing so with her back to a wall. Everything was exposed. The man noticed how Jenna was looking around, and turned one of the chairs around and pushed it up against a section of the glass. "No one's coming through this way," he told her. "I'll stand," Jenna replied, annoyed that she had been so easily read. He shrugged, and sat in the chair himself. "My name is Avery, by the way. And the scowling lady over there --" "I can introduce my own damn self," she growled. "-- is Anabella," Avery finished. "Okay," Jenna replied. "How is she doing the floating thing?" She was scanning for wires or disturbances caused by jet propulsion or anti-grav lifts, but she was not seeing anything. "She just floats. Listen, why don't we wait for the boss to show up and --" "She's your boss," Annabel said moodily. "I just work here because of the benefits." "You work here because the option is being stuck near a well in Musselburgh for eternity." Annabel looked like she wanted to protest, but came up with nothing. She descended to the ground and sat in a chair opposite Avery. Jenna finished surveying the room and felt tactically comfortable. She was beginning to believe the doorman's warning about her beacon not being able to penetrate whatever shields this place had. It also occurred to her that it was be more strategically sound to withdraw and contact Death and the Fool. The Nightwalkers should easily be able to clear out a den of costumed weirdos. Of course, she still was not sure what anyone here had technically done wrong except run an unlicensed business that apparently dealt in contraband materials. She stood up and walked towards the door. "And where do you think you're goin'?" Annabel said, both she and Avery rising to their feet. "Away. I'm not even sure why I came here --" "You came here," Avery said, reaching behind his back and pulling his gun again, "because whatever bizarre undercover status you have as a fake vampire commando is blown and you want to know where this is all heading. Quite frankly, so am I." "I don't know what you're talking about," Jenna said calmly. Her right hand was poised to grab her laser pistol and put a blast through both her opponents' foreheads. "I was accosted by a woman in a restaurant and wanted to find out why." "Uh huh. And you came in para-military gear, armed to the teeth? Which I'm betting are pointed." Jenna opened her mouth, her fangs safely retracted. "No. Normal." "Ma'am, I'm not making the mistake of thinking you're stupid. You couldn't be dumb and have found this place. Kind of curious as to how, by-the-by." "Lucky." Jenna moved towards the door. She heard Avery's weapon start to hum. "Can't let you leave," he said, keeping her dead-to-rights while Anabella flanked. "You and your vampire wannabe friends are causing problems that we just can't have." Guns appeared in both of Jenna's hands, one trained on each opponent. "There's no such thing as vampires," she said, ready for the upcoming battle. "Au contraire," came a satiny voice from behind her, "they do. And therein lies the problem." Jenna swung around found herself face to face with the stunning redhead from the previous night. One gun pointed at the newcomer, while the other covered Avery. The woman Anabella was unarmed, therefore was the least of the threats. "She's good," Nessa purred. Jenna was a bit flustered. First, the way the redhead was looking at her was just not professional. Second, how had the woman come in completely unnoticed? Jenna had the sharpest, most honed senses of any human being walking the planet, and she had not detected a sound. "You." "Pleasure to see you again," the woman said, a saucy smile on her face. "Though I don't believe I caught your name." "Leaving," Jenna said. This woman was not armed, but Jenna would not be so foolish as to assume she was "safe." "Oh, I'm afraid not. Why don't you take that coat off and make yourself comfortable? You and I have much to discuss." There was a moment of perfect silence as everyone predicted everyone else's next move. Jenna was outnumbered three to one. In the end, that did not matter. Jenna, the civilian part of the woman, went into remission and the Empress emerged. She jumped up in the air and spun around, a kick aimed at the redhead's face while the lasers fired warning shots at the other two. Avery dodged behind a sofa and Anabella floated up to the ceiling, managing to look insanely pissed off. The redhead vanished. The Empress's kick wound up passing through a cloud of red mist that had mysteriously appeared where the woman had been standing. By the time the Empress landed, the mist had coalesced back into a beautiful woman. "That's not possible," she muttered. Nessa's mirth seemed to have diminished somewhat. "You've come into my club and fired on my friends. I find that quite rude." Faster than the interloper could blink, Nessa buried her shoulder into her opponent's chest and drove her across the room, colliding with the shatter-proof glass with a resounding "thwump." 'Fuck that hurt,' Jenna thought, but she was far from out of it. Her back against the wall, she pulled her feet up and kicked against the shorter woman. This time, she connected and the redhead went tumbling back into the room. The woman rolled backwards and then popped up to her feet. Jenna shot both lasers straight forward, but the redhead turned to mist again and that cloud of red moved forward. 'Not possible!' Jenna thought. What kind of genetic experiment had brought THAT about? The Empress jumped up and over the cloud, then made a break for the door. A pulse from a stun-gun shot past her, but she heard it coming and rolled to avoid it. "She's fast!" Avery shouted. Anabella appeared in front of the Empress before she could reach the door. "You asked for this," the woman growled. She then let out a scream . . . oh, what a scream. The sound waves blasted the Empress all the way back across the room, where she impacted the glass so hard that it actually cracked just a little bit. Jenna's head bounced against the surface, giving her a throbbing headache and taking away all sense of balance. Jenna stumbled forward again, her pistols firing blindly as she tried to buy herself some breathing space. The blast went harmlessly through the cloud, which quickly coalesced back into the redheaded woman. That woman knocked the guns from Jenna's hands, then blocked the somewhat feeble punch and kick that came her way. The Empress could scarcely believe that she had been bested so quickly and so easily. They were going to kill her and there was nothing she could do but die fighting. In her mind, there were worse things than dying. She had survived some of them already. But her worldly affairs were in order, and she could only regret that there was one person she would never see again. She took another swing, which sailed over her opponent's head, and she found herself with one arm pinned behind her back and an arm around her throat. All she could feel was the pounding of her skull, and all she could taste was her own blood as it dribbled down her throat, and all she could smell was smoke and whiskey. The Empress made one last attempt to escape, throwing her head back and catching her captor in the forehead. She took some small pleasure at the yelp of pain and surprise, but the arm around her neck stayed firm, and the Empress began to lose consciousness. She tried to spin and drive the redhead into the wall, but Avery moved forward and grabbed her feet, lifting them off the ground and denying the Empress any leverage. "Good grief," he said as Jenna's sight turned black. "She's a handful." Nessa watched as her captive went out and felt her consciousness slipping away. Even bloodied and disheveled, the girl's face rivaled that of any angel ever depicted by any artist. "She certainly is," Nessa said, releasing her grip before permanent damage was done. She kissed the woman on the forehead. "She certainly is." ------------------- ------------------ To be continued . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 02 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- Jenna awoke with a throbbing pain in her head and a crick in her neck that was going to make her life difficult. 'But I'm still alive,' she thought. 'I shouldn't be, but I am.' She steadied her breathing and kept her eyes closed, listening for any sign of life. The world outside her sight was deathly quiet except for the hum of an overhead light sources. She could feel hard, smooth ground beneath her, and she had been stripped of all her weapons and armor. The only thing she had on was her body stocking, which did not do much by way of protection, and left little to the imagination. Feeling nothing else, she ever-so-slowly inhaled through her nose. 'There it is again,' she thought. She opened her eyes, and she saw the gorgeous redheaded woman perched on top of a chair, staring down at her. "See," the woman said to someone out of Jenna's visible range, "I told you she wouldn't be out long." "Damn it, why didn' ya tie her up at least?" Jenna recognized that voice as belonging to the stocky blond woman who had "screamed" her into a wall. "I would hardly be a good host if I went tying up my guests, now would I? At least not until they ask nicely." "Why do I even bother?" Anabella shot back. "Don't ask me." Jenna noticed that her would-be captor was not looking directly at her anymore. A quickly glance around showed that she was in a pristine white room with mirror shields along all four walls and a single door in one corner. "The door has a high-yield mag lock," the redhead said without changing the direction of her gaze, "and you're not breaking through the glass." Finally she looked back down at Jenna. "And you will not win if you try and fight your way out. It is not our intention to hurt you, so instigating more violence is not necessary. What's your name?" Jenna just stared. She had no official identity anywhere. The name on deed to her home was a fake, and only the Fool and Nigel even knew her real first name. 'Give them no information,' she told herself. 'Eventually, they'll realize that you're missing.' The woman looked briefly annoyed, but that transitioned quickly over to amusement again. "Playing hard to get? I do LOVE a good challenge." "Nessa, we ain't got time to be playin' with her. You-know-who hit the station about thirty minutes ago, and he's not lookin' to play nice." "But play nice he will," Nessa said. "Because we have the only known game piece. And now, oh silent one . . . okay, give me a name or I'll make one up. Hmm, how about Cupcake? Or Sweet Cheeks? Maybe Hot Stuff?" Jenna did not rise to the bait. She just kept her breathing steady and her stare cold and formal. Again, the look of amusement on Nessa's face faded and she became deadly serious. "Listen, you can play it cool as long as you want, but you're not leaving here until I get all the information I need. I'd rather you just tell me because, if you don't, I'll rip it right out of your brain. I seriously doubt you would survive the process in full control of your faculties." Nessa detected a hint of a chin-thrust from the other woman. She intended to remain defiant. "Just get to it," Anabella said. You know that Garon is gonna be here a'fore the night is out, and he ain't gonna take his sweet time." Nessa ignored her friend for a moment. "Young woman, you have no idea what you and your weird commando buddies have stumbled into. I've been keeping an eye on you for a while and, believe it or not, I don't give a damn if you keep doing whatever it is you're trying to accomplish. The whole vampire schtick has got to stop though." The fight came back to Jenna in a flash, including this woman saying that there were actual vampires. Her mouth quirked in spite of herself. "Yeah," Nessa said, noticing the reaction, "there are such things as vampires. I happen to be one," she continued, showing a brief flash of extended fang. "As a rule, we try and stay under everyone's radar, but you and yours are reminding people that we exist, and that's bad for our collective health." She stood up and vanished into a puff of red mist, which floated around the room. It swirled around Jenna's body, sweeping over her face with it's cool red molecules. 'It's blood,' Jenna realized. 'This mist is made of blood.' The red substance coalesced back into the familiar woman that it had been created from. "Believe me now?" 'A holographic illusion,' Jenna thought. 'But I could feel it . . . no holograph can pull that off.' "For thousands of years, the human race has ignored us because it was more convenient to their peace of mind to do so. Now you people, whoever the hell you are, are managing to undo that." Nessa was becoming frustrated. Usually, she got some kind of reaction when she threatened someone, but this woman was giving her nothing. "I wish you had been willing to talk," Nessa said. "It would have hurt a lot less." She lunged. Jenna had been waiting for the woman to come close. She pushed up with her legs, sending the redhead flying overhead. The woman landed on her feet, but she was smiling again. She liked the competition. "If you don't start talking, there's going to be a nasty fight," the woman said. "I'm not the only one who was tapped to end this charade of yours. If you don't listen to me, there's other people who will just start killing and let the morgue sort it all out. I'd be happy if no one died." Jenna knew she would not win this fight. Her opponent knew too much about her, and she knew nothing about the opponent. And she had seen power that Jenna had not even known existed before. "You're serious," she said at last, her voice flat as a pond on a windless day. "You really think you're a vampire." "Baby, I KNOW what I am. I've seen nations rise and fall in my lifetime. You should realize by now that this isn't an illusion." "She a vampire too?" Jenna asked, nodding her head at the woman in the corner. "Watch yer tongue!" the woman in question yelled. "No, Anabella isn't a vampire. She's a banshee." "Yeah, right. And the other guy? A werewolf? Bogeyman?" "Avery? He's my chauffeur. Methinks that you're not taking me particularly seriously. That needs to change." "If you say so." "I saw you throw that man out of the bank window, and I've seen your people operate. You're the only face I've seen, so I followed you. I suspect the man you had dinner with . . . the dangerous looking one, not the blind date . . . I suspect he's one too. Probably the one who was with you that night. You've got to be military. Avery recognized your fighting style and some of your gear. I peg you as some weird special forces group, though you've hit the government too. You use the vampire gimmick to scare people, like telling bad stories to children to let them know what will happen if they misbehave." Jenna's breath remained steady, but her mind was racing. This woman was far too close. "Please, give me a name, even if you have to make it up. I need something to call you besides 'hey you.' I could always go back and check the credit logs from the restaurant and narrow it down --" "Jenna," Jenna said. As long as she did not give away a last name, she figured it would be safe. It was not an uncommon first name those days. "Jenna, I'm Nessa McGowan. You've already met Anabella and Avery. I need you to set up a meeting with your boss." "My boss?" "Unless you are the boss. Are you?" Jenna stared at Nessa. "I'll take that as a 'no.' Listen, the silent treatment is getting old. What's it going to take to convince you to take this seriously?" "Stop calling yourself a vampire?" Nessa raised an eyebrow. "I would say the same for you." 'Okay,' Jenna thought, 'point for her.' "Right, besides turning into mist and the ability to fly without mechanical assistance --" "I haven't seen you fly," Jenna said. "Just her." She pointed at Anabella. Nessa rolled her eyes, then she jumped up in the air and stayed there. "Some people call it graceful," she said, spinning in mid-air. "I call flight the art of throwing yourself at the ground and missing." "Yeah, that joke is still funny," Anabella grumbled. Jenna was staring intently, looking for grav-tech in her boots or possibly for wires. Nessa caught her staring. "Oh good grief," the redhead said, then started stripping off her clothes while still floating in the air. "Can you please stay clothed for just a little while?" Anabella said, trying not to smile. Nessa and the concept of shame existed completely independently of each other. "Why? I'm hot," Nessa replied absently as she tossed her blouse to the ground. Now she was floating in nothing but her thong and panties. Jenna took a deep breath. 'No one should look that beautiful,' she thought, then chastised herself for her lapse in judgment. 'Who cares what she looks like?' "That's okay," she said, still trying to stay calm. "I get the point." Nessa shirked her undergarments. "My mother told me to always finish what I start." Anabella let out a laugh. "Your mother told you to go outside and leave her the hell alone. You were annoyin' even back then." 'She's flying,' Jenna thought. 'She's actually flying. Nanotechnology? No, there's no way that even the best stuff on the market would be able to generate a potent enough field from inside a body without killing it.' "Now, are you going to help me set up a meeting with your leader or not?" About then, the alarm went off. "What the hell?!" Nessa shouted as Avery ran in. "Garon and his people came straight here," the man said. "They heard you got a prisoner and Garon plans on taking over the interrogation." "She's been awake for ten minutes!" Nessa growled and put her thong and bra back on. "You're going to face him like that?" "Why not? I move well like this." Avery held the door open for her, but Nessa turned to look at Jenna. "Stay here. You may not believe me, you may still plan on denying what I said, but you do NOT want to get in the middle of this. Just in case," she said, looking back to Avery, "give her a gun." "Nessa --" "This is not one of those times I want you to talk back to me," she said, walking out the door. Avery took a pistol from behind his back and tossed it to Jenna, who caught it in midair and then pointed it at him. He just shrugged and walked out. "Just try it," Anabella said, giving Jenna the evil eye as she made her way outside. The door closed behind them, but Jenna did not hear it lock. 'Is this a test of some kind?' she thought. She moved towards the door, testing it slowly. It opened without a fuss. Jenna wondered if she were still in the same building that she had entered earlier . . . Devil's Night. Her mind was still processing the flying woman who could turn into a mist of blood and had fangs . . . the vampire woman. In that moment, she accepted it. But vampire or not, she had to escape. She had no idea what time it was, but if it had passed time for coffee with Nigel, he would worry and alert the Fool. Jenna never missed coffee. Three-thirty in the afternoon Monday through Friday, with weekend hours somewhat flexible. She emerged into a long hallway with glass doors, each with powerful mag-locks and one-way glass. She saw costumed people in a few of them, most definitely with the general attitude of prisoners. 'They're not costumes,' she told herself. 'If vampires are real . . . what are the rest of these? Those bouncers? The people in the club? She saw a set of doors that looked like they led to a grav-lift, possibly even the same one she had seen earlier. But what really caught her attention was the end of the hallway. Instead of a wall, there was a rail. She stepped up to the rail and looked down. Way, way down. The whole floor she was on, the rooms, and the cells were all on a raised platform a hundred feet above the floor below. The only way of going up or down that she could see, besides jumping or flying, was down the lift. She returned to the lift and stepped inside. There were three buttons; one for the floor she was on, one for the floor below, and one that indicated up, but that last button had a fingerprint pad and eyescan security. 'Not bad.' She hit the button for down, and was quickly and quietly lowered to the next floor. As she suspected she emerged into the waiting room she had been in earlier, but this time it was empty. The door to the spiral staircase was open, and she was hearing voices. She went to one of the windows and looked down. The club area was empty of revelers, but it was not entirely abandoned. The two sides were easy to distinguish, with one side being twenty or so people, entirely men, in the latest corporate suits and the highest tech in guns. The other side was more of the business casual type, dressed in club clothes or, in Nessa's case, no clothes. How anyone could negotiate anything with nothing but a piece of red silk "covering" one's behind? "-- and you'll do it now," a large, dark-haired male from the suit side was saying. He was in Nessa's face, and had the unmistakable look of a man who was used to getting his way. "Ipos," Nessa started, closing her eyes and holding the bridge of her nose like she was fighting a major headache, "did I mention that Fido here has no jurisdiction here?" The maned red-skinned man who had been guarding the stairs when she arrived was popping his knuckles when he replied, "Yes you did." "And did I tell shit-for-brains that the Council told him not to come here or to interfere for at least two weeks or until I requested him?" "I recall you saying that." "How about me telling him to take his goons, his attitude, and his claim of authority, and shoving them all up his up-tight ass?" "Actually, you hadn't said that yet." "Oh." Nessa looked vexed. "Okay, Garon, I want you to take your --" "I have had enough of this," the man said. "My contacts told me that you know the whereabouts of one of the targets. Give her to me, I'll hunt the rest down, and this problem will actually go away. I refuse to waste any more time waiting for the whore of Babylon to actually do her job." "This whore's job just started yesterday," Nessa replied. She showed no irritation at the insult that had been leveled against her. "Your job doesn't start for two weeks, as mentioned earlier. Now get your ass out of my club and take your puppies with you. Most of them look like they want to hump my leg anyway, and it's kind of creepy." "You, the most pathetic slut of all the Night Breed, think you're too good for werewolves?" Garon drew himself up, sneering openly. "I've gone doggy style more than a time or two in my life," Nessa replied with great cheer, "but anyone who sniffs your ass isn't coming anywhere near mine." "Insolent --" Garon started to say as he raised his hand to strike her. Nessa's bouncers moved forward, Anabella started to float, Avery leveled his gun, and all other sorts of individuals suddenly faded into view, appearing out of shadows. Jenna had not noticed them at all, and she felt almost like a physical veil was removed from before her eyes. "Do it," Nessa said, her smile wide but her voice frigid, "and I will consider it an act of war. You, and anyone standing with you, will not leave Devil's Night alive." Garon stopped his hand. "You will give me what I want," he growled at her. "Sooner or later. The Council should never have let a bitch be in charge of an investigation, much less a city." He turned and stormed towards the door, his men in tow. Right when he was ready to exit -- "Give my regards to your wife," Nessa called after him. Anabella clapped her hand over her face, while the three bouncers snickered. "You cunt!" Garon said, turning and trying to push his way through the crowd of his own men. Garon's crew were forced to remove him from the building against his will, and several of them paid a painful price for their participation. "Ya just had to rub it in, didn' ya?" Anabella asked. "He had it coming." Nessa's face was as serious as anyone had ever seen it, though it only lasted for a second. "No one comes into my club . . . MY sanctuary . . . and challenges me. Not even Garon Pegg." She looked towards the door, but her next words drifted meaningfully upward. "You can come down now," she said, then looked up the spiral stairs toward where Jenna was hiding. Jenna put her gun away. She was not crazy enough to think that she could fight her way past those in the room below her. "Who was that?" "Garon Pegg," Nessa said, moving over to the bar and having a seat, completely oblivious to her continuing near-nudity. "Everyone, sweep the whole building. Ipos, take Cresil and Kobal on an exterior patrol. Make yourselves obvious. Once Garon calms down and pulls his paw out of his mouth, he'll back down for a bit. In the meantime, even he'd not stupid enough to attack three demons." 'Demons?' Jenna thought, taking a step back. 'Demons are real?' "It's okay, they're mostly harmless. Just don't make any deals with them for anything serious until you've had practice. And don't drink anything with rum while they're around. Apparently it leads to a menage a tois and sore thighs." "Hey, you were kind of rough," Kobal complained on his way out. "Yeah yeah, make you go for a few hours, and the big bad demon starts complaining about a cramp," Nessa replied, waving him off. Back to Jenna, "Have a seat. Drink?" "Coffee?" Jenna asked, her voice much calmer than her brain. "Demons?" "Yeah. Actually, they're pretty good folk. They just got saddled with a lot of humanity's emotional baggage. So, are you willing to take me seriously?" Jenna looked around and noticed that all of Nessa's backup was fading back into the shadows. "You have a lot of friends." "Friends, allies, employees, some indentured servants . . . yeah, I know how to pick 'em for a fight." She grabbed a glass of a red liquid from the bartender. "Should I ask?" "Red wine. I only drink blood from willing donors." "Really?" "Really. It helps that donations tend to equate with getting laid." Nessa blatantly scanned her guest's body. "You actually look kind of yummy." Jenna sat there for a moment. She felt an unusual need to change the tone of the conversation if not the topic. She did not do "sexual." "I don't understand what you want from me." Nessa's grin started to return. "What I want from you? Professionally or --" "Professionally," Jenna interjected. 'What is with this woman?' she wondered. 'Does she think about anything but sex?' The very notion of intimacy sent a wave a nausea through Jenna's body. The vampire was gauging the fake vampire's reactions. She was a bit offended when she saw an unpleasant grimace flash across that angelic face. 'Hmm, revulsion is not a normal reaction,' she thought. "Okay, here's the issue. You've seen a lot of stuff tonight, and I don't think that it's too much to ask that you extrapolate a bit. Monsters exist, though we prefer the term Night Breed. I, as we have already discussed, am a vampire. More specifically, a Blood Vampire." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 02 "There's more than one kind?" Jenna picked up her just-delivered coffee. 'This is amazing,' she thought after her first sip. "Oh yeah. I'm not gonna go into all the different races, but I need you to accept that they exist. And for the most part, they stay out of humanity's way. For a while it was becoming difficult, but now you humans . . . well, even you kind-of humans, you've basically cut yourselves off from each other. Everything is on-line. Between CGI overlays on personal computers and advances in cosmetic surgery, anyone can look like anything. The Night Breeds can, in most cases, live out in the open without fear. That is, until someone or someone made them afraid of us again." Jenna started to say something to the effect of "What does that have to do with me?" but realized she was past trying to fool anyone. "Until someone started making them afraid." Nessa nodded, relieved that they were past the game-playing stage. "What's weird is I actually respect the concept. You guys do covert ops, you strike fear into the hearts of evil-doers everywhere, and . . . well, I don't know what your mission statement is, so I don't know if its getting accomplished. And I don't need to know what it is," Nessa assured Jenna. "I don't need to know the inner-workings of whatever organization you belong to, though I AM curious --" "Please continue," Jenna said, finishing her coffee and then looking around for the bartender. "Samuel, another Irish Coffee!" Nessa shouted. "What's an Irish Coffee anyway? The cream on top was a nice touch." "You . . . you've never heard of an Irish Coffee? That is what you asked for, right?" "No, I just said coffee. Why?" Nessa grinned. "Irish Coffee is an alcoholic drink." Jenna actually looked momentarily panicked. "Alcohol? I can't --" "Sorry," Nessa interjected. "I didn't know. Is it a health issue? A religious one?" For a moment, Jenna's mind went away, and she was back in that place. "Sins of the flesh and spirit are numerous," He told her. "They are your enemy, and you must be ever vigilant. You must fight them with all your heart and what is left of your soul." He had a bottle of some hazy brown liquid in his hand. "Are you ready to fight?" There was not much she could do. Her ankles, wrists, waist, and neck were all tied directly to the heavy wooden table where she had been confined for two days. But she would fight as much as she could, because that was what He demanded. He demanded it in exchange for His love. She nodded. When He started to pour the liquid down her throat, she tried to twist her head or close her mouth, but he managed to get the neck of the bottle in her throat after breaking one of her teeth. The liquid burned as it went down, and it made her want to cry. But she did not cry. After the first two weeks, she had been broken of that habit forever. "You fought," He said, "but not hard enough. No mortal bonds should stand in your way." "I am sorry," she responded. She felt so much shame that she wanted to die. She had failed Him. Again. "Do not be sorry. Be strong." He put His hands on each of her knees, preparing to push them apart. "Are you ready to fight again?" "Jenna?" Nessa was asking when the other woman phased out for a moment. "You okay?" "Fine. Actually, I'm not really thirsty after all," she said. "So back to the issue at hand. There are these Night Breeds who don't want attention drawn to them. I understand that. You believe that I am a covert operative that is at least partly responsible," she said, making it plain with her eyes and tone that she was not actually denying anything but would not admit it either. "Sounds right so far. And I need to find a way to get them to stop what they're doing, or at least do it in a different way. Seriously, why not just be mysterious commandos? Guys down at the federal genetics labs just want to test out their new techniques?" Jenna did not take the bait. She was not going to acknowledge the government's involvement one way or the other. She liked the attempt though. "If a meeting were to be set up, what would be the end goal?" "A change in methods or stopping what you're doing completely. You're good at this vague negotiation thing, did you know that?" "Thank you. What do you bring to the table?" "What do you mean?" Nessa replied, leaning back against the bar and thrusting her breasts out a bit. 'C'mon, give me SOME kind of reaction,' she thought. Jenna did not even blink. She could control every bodily reaction down to her heartbeat. "I mean, what would you offer to get this group to stop their activities? You yourself mentioned that it has been successful, and since the concept of a vampire is hardly something you could copyright --" She stopped and just let the sentence trail off. Nessa leaned forward and put one hand on Jenna's knee. Finally, she got a flinch, but it was not an excited flinch. It was a "don't touch me" flinch. "Okay," she said, "here's our offer. Stop what you're doing and I promise not to kill you, everyone you work with, and everyone you work for." Jenna pulled her leg away. 'No one touches me,' she thought angrily. 'Especially not someone beautiful. No one can want me.' "Not much of an offer. Why would you do that?" "Because we can't afford to be found out." Nessa's eyes darkened a bit, and her smile lost some of its luster. "I remember the days when we were hunted by superstitious humans. Some of my less-swift brethren were burned alive, tortured, and had things done to them that you couldn't even imagine." "Don't presume to tell me what I can and cannot imagine." As the words left her angry mouth, Jenna realized that her control had slipped. "Jenna, I am over two thousand years old. I have seen everything that humans could possibly do to one another. I will not allow for my people to become the targets of that savagery again. If these false vampires continue to attract attention, then it is me and mine that shall bear the brunt of it. Do you understand now that I mean what I say? I have nothing against you personally, but I will kill you if I have to. I will kill everyone you work with and whoever made you, and I will salt the ground so that no more of you are grown." Jenna's hand crept towards the gun she had been given. "I will defend myself as necessary." "I wouldn't expect otherwise." There was a moment of tense silence as the two women measured each other, then Nessa broke the silence again. "And anything I threaten you with, what Garon and his people would actually do is worse. They wouldn't just silence you. Oh no, they'd make an example out of you." Jenna retracted her hand from the weapon. "He really doesn't like you." "No," Nessa said, smiling broadly again, "No he doesn't." "What was the crack about his wife?" "I slept with her." Jenna looked confused. "Why?" "If you'd ever met his wife, you'd know." Nessa looked over at Avery. "Tell her how hot the woman was." Avery, normally a bit stoic, said, "She was very attractive." "And that's all it takes for you?" Jenna asked, slightly annoyed. She was not sure why. "No, but it helps. Okay, Garon is a werewolf --" "I got that part." "Well, werewolves are pretty patriarchal to begin with, but Garon is a misogynistic asshole on top of that. To him, women are for breeding and cleaning up after him and that's it." Part of Jenna's heart fell down to her stomach. That was a line of thought she had heard before, and knew all too well. "So you fucked his wife to prove a point?" She was getting angry. She never got angry. "No, I fucked his wife because she was beautiful and lonely and needed someone to treat her like a living being rather than a servant. She'd been his punching bag one too many times, and I couldn't deal with it. Our territories butted up against each other at the time, so I ran into him pretty often. I saw her and knew that I had to get her out of that situation. He had claimed her when she was just a young wolf, so she didn't know that she did have the right to refuse a pack leader." "She didn't know?" "Werewolves are supposed to be told Pack Law when they are created. Garon never did that. He just saw a beautiful young woman and decided to take her for himself. So I found her at a sort of conference that the Night Breed has every year. He had instructed her to wait in their room and only appear at social functions and the like. Well, I brought her back to my room and let her be in charge for a while. I must say," Nessa continued, her voice warm and her eyes sparkling with fond memories, "she took to being on top pretty well." Jenna took a slow, deep breath. "What happened to her?" "Garon had threatened the entire pack if anyone were to tell her her rights or to help her. So I told her, and I showed her what life could be like if she let passion into it. Garon lost a lot of face with his people after that., and he's still a bit pissed at me about it. His now-ex wife currently living in Amsterdam with a new pack and a total stud of a boyfriend. I got to do a threesome with them once. Oh, a werewolf who can use his tongue! Where was I?" "Braggin' 'bout yer sexual exploits again," Anabella said from nearby. "Listen Nessa, it's gettin' close to time." "Time?" "Sunrise," Nessa said. "So the part about you bursting into flames in the sunlight is true?" "No. We blister and turn to ash after a few minutes. But outside of direct sunlight, we just get sleepy during the day." She stood up and stepped closer to Jenna. "I need a response tonight as to whether or not you're going to help me. You know where I live," she continued, her eyes half closed. "Of course, if you'd like to think about it over a nightcap --" "You're going to just let me leave?" "You know how important the stakes are now. Even if you went and got all your friends and brought them back here, this place is hardly undefended. You would all die or, if by some miracle you didn't, you'd be hunted down by the Breeds. I can only keep Garon at bay for so long. The longer it takes to work this out, the more credence his claims will have. You'd much rather deal with me than him." Jenna walked towards the door, and no one moved to stop her. She actually was met by Avery, who was holding a bag of all her gear. "Thought you'd want this back," he told her. "Thank you," she said. "I'll give you a lift home," he told her. "No you won't," she replied. "We can't have you seen by anyone who might still be watching the place," Nessa said. "Let Avery --" "You don't get to know where I live. If it makes you feel better, take me to the edge of Downtown, and I'll find my own way." "Fine," Nessa said. "Please, think about my offer. We don't have much time." "I'll be back here tonight. Tell your demons to be expecting me." "I will, and Jenna?" "Yes." "How DID you find this place?" For the first time, Jenna actually smiled. She did not answer, but she smiled, then let Avery lead the way to the garage. "You impressed her," he told her as the long black hover started up. "That means the world to me," Jenna replied, her voice betraying just a hint of sarcasm. "Hey, it's a lot easier than having her as an enemy." "I suppose." He glanced back through the window separating the driver area from the passenger compartment. "Not much phases you, does it? I knew some guys in Omni Force that were that cool, but I never managed." "You were Army?" she asked. The United States Armed Forces had actually combined into a single unit twenty years earlier, including all the newer units that had been invented to try and revitalize national defense. "Yep." Without looking back, he added, "Not many people knew about Omni Force. Outside of the DoD at any rate." While outwardly she stayed calm, inwardly Jenna was kicking herself. She had walked right into that. She was distracted, and that was not acceptable. "What do you get out of this?" she asked. "A long life. My family has served her for almost a thousand years. In return, we get a long life, good health, lots of perks, and life is always interesting." "Medical and dental?" "Yep. Optical too, but these peepers are 20/20." "Damn," she replied. Those did sound like good benefits. "And she's been a good friend. There was a time my whole family tree might have been wiped out if she hadn't gotten them out of Poland during World War II." "So you were a soldier and then straight to being a chauffeur?" Avery shook his head. "I went to college and worked as a federal cop for a while. Honestly though, working for Nessa is probably a lot more dangerous." "You see a lot of monsters." "I saw monsters as a cop. Now, I just see weird looking people with powers." "I believe you." "So, you always this chatty?" Jenna smiled a bit in spite of herself. "What can I say? I'm a social butterfly." They rode in silence for a while. Jenna could not remember the last time she was in a vehicle for any length of time, and certainly nothing ever this comfortable. When he stopped to let her out, he stepped out into the street as well. "She's a good woman," he told his former passenger. "If you don't mind taking a word of advice, I'd work with her. She means you no harm, and I can't say the same for option number two." Jenna thought back to the kind of person that Garon was reported to be. "I'll think it over." She waited for him to leave, then climbed to a rooftop and started checking her gear. She found three tracers and a couple of recording device in her investigations, and she smiled a bit. They were pretty smart, but not smart enough. She put her gear back on, extended her glider wings, then took to the night sky and headed for home. Avery got back to Devil's Night and found that Nessa was still awake. "So, what do you think?" "I think she's a very intelligent, determined, and cautious woman. You could have done worse." "True. I'm really curious to find out how she found us." "I doubt she'll give that up easily. She seems to play things close to the vest. And like I said, she's smart. She disabled the tracking devices by the time I was halfway back." "But do you think she found our other surprise?" "She's not familiar with magic, so I doubt it. I don't think she'll appreciate you doing that. She's a private person." "She found us, so we get to find her. Thems the rules." Nessa stretched. "There's somethin' wrong inside her," Anabella said softly. Nessa raised an eyebrow. Her banshee friend had special insights into the nature of people, so she took her at her word when she voiced an opinion. "What do you mean? She's sick or --" "I barely felt her soul. It's there, but faint. Like it's being muffled." Banshees were the harbingers of change in the spirit world. A shout from them could inflict pain, but it was their song you wanted to be wary of. A banshee could "smell" the souls of those around her and, if they smelled sick, the Banshee sang the Song of Ending. The only ones who could hear it were those in danger of death. "You think she's dangerous?" Avery asked. It always made him uncomfortable when the ancient spirit spoke like this. It was the sort of think that reminded him that behind that sexy barmaid visage was an old spirit. Almost as old as Nessa. "I think she's wounded, and any wounded animal is dangerous. She's fenced part of herself off. Built walls so high that even she can't scale 'em. Just . . . just watch where you put your feet with that one. I know she's beautiful, but so's a snake, and they'll bite ya as soon as look at ya." Across town, Jenna was lying on the stone floor of her maze. She had been distracted and unable to make it through her timed maze. It had closed off the corridors so that only air could pass through. Jenna was angry at herself. The whole time she had been attempted to navigate, she had been thinking of vampires and werewolves and demons. More importantly, she had been thinking of the woman in the red lingerie who had commanded such power. She was sexy and strong. Nessa McGowan was everything that He would have despised. She was everything that Jenna herself, once upon a broken dream, would have wanted to be. Jenna curled up on the hard stone and settled in for four hours of restless sleep. She would still be able to make coffee with Nigel and hopefully he would be able to help her decide on a course of action. ---------- --------------------- That afternoon . . . ---------- --------------------- "I have no idea," Nigel said. "I can barely wrap my head around what you're saying, much less provide you advice." "You," Jenna said glumly as she kept her eyes on the schoolchildren out on the street, heading for home, "are less than useful." "But real vampires? Are you sure?" He blanched a bit under her withering glare. "If I'm convinced, you should be as well. Don't you think I considered every possible alternative? You didn't see what I saw or experience what I did. There are creatures out there that are more amazing than anything we could have imagined, and now I've seen some of them. And we may be putting them in danger and, by process of cause and effect, ourselves as well." "But . . . vampires?" "Yes. Can we move past that to figuring out what to do?" "The Fool will never believe you." "Why not?" she replied irritably. "Because its crazy. You know that I have faith in you, but I'm the only Nightwalker who knows you. You've distanced yourself from everyone else, and most of them think you're some kind of freak." Jenna noticeable blanched. She had not known that. "Really?" "Well, freak is a strong word. They --" "Straight talk," Jenna requested. "Yes, they think that you're a freak. You don't socialize with anyone besides me, you don't tell anyone about yourself. I don't want you to take this the wrong or that I'm propositioning you or anything, but you're a beautiful woman. Probably one of the most attractive women that I've ever seen. Yet you don't date or even show interest, as I have seen all too recently." Jenna was squirming a bit in her chair. She was not attractive. She knew that. Was Nigel just trying to freak her out? "What does that have to do with anything?" Nigel hated that he was making Jenna uncomfortable. He never understood why she was unable to look at herself the way others looked at her. "It means that some people think that you've gone too far into this image. You're aloof and apart, and some of the other Major Arcana are wondering if you're losing it." "I've always been 'apart' from other people," she told him defensively. "It's just who I am." "I know that now. I don't understand the 'why' of it, but I get that you're just quiet. But the Fool doesn't know that. Our bosses at the DoD don't know that. The Major Arcana cards don't know that. Only the fact that your field performance has been exemplary has kept you from getting a psych review." "What?!" "You don't pay any attention to the water-cooler talk at the TACCP, so you don't know what people are saying these days." "That's not my job!" she muttered angrily. This was twice in less than twenty-four hours that she had lost her temper, and she did not like the feeling. "You're part of a unit," he told her. "An organization. I'm not the most talkative guy either, but I still stop and say hello to people when I'm around. Now you want to walk into the base and tell a bunch of people who you've given no reason to trust you and tell them that you've found vampires? Or that you've blown your cover and want them to meet with someone you claim is a vampire? How do you expect them to respond?" She wanted to say that they would respond with the respect due her, but after what Nigel had just said, she was not so sure. "This is going to happen fast," she said. "Either Nessa's people or this other guy Garon's people are going to need to answer to this Council of theirs." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 02 "For which you have only their word. What if there is no greater threat? What if they're bluffing?" "Why would they do this for a bluff? Even if they're lying about their numbers, which I doubt, I don't think they're lying about the threat to their people. That alone warrants consideration. I don't have time to rebuild my social image just so that people might want to believe me. And you're telling me that I'll probably be put in the brig for my cover being blown and for even talking with Nessa, which would probably mean no meeting would occur. I'm screwed," she said, staring across the street again. Then something occurred to her. "Unless I get a source that the Fool might actually believe. You!" "Jenna, are you asking me to jeopardize MY cover as well?" "You could leave the mask on," she said. "Just --" "That would still be acknowledging our existence to an unauthorized source." "They already know about us though. Are you really going to just let me hang out here on my own?" Nigel had been a good soldier, but he was also a good man. He had just reminded Jenna that he was her only friend, and then had told her that there was nothing he could or would do for her. So he was being forced to choose between duty and friendship. "Jenna --" The tone and pause in Nigel's voice was all that Jenna needed to hear. Her eyes narrowed and her heart hardened, and she stood up. "Sorry for bothering you. I'll deal with this." "Jenna, don't do this. I just need time to think --" "Time I don't have. At least don't go telling the Fool about how the crazy Empress has gone off the deep end for another twenty-four hours." "That's not what I --" But Nigel was cut off when Jenna stormed out of the coffee shop. He had never seen her mad before, at least not like this. Getting set up on a blind date was nothing by comparison. She was more than angry, she was wounded. And to add insult to injury, she had stuck him with the check. By the time he was done paying, Jenna had vanished. "Well done," he said, speaking mostly to himself and a nearby, uncaring parking meter. "You handled that perfectly." --------- ------------------- Elsewhere . . . --------- ------------------- Avery pulled his much less conspicuous single-person hover around to the location that had been relayed to him. The bag that he had given Jenna to keep her stuff in had a rune of ownership stitched into it, which allowed one of the local witches to cast a tracking spell on it. The bag had stayed in this location for five hours, so unless she had chucked it -- "Oh fuck," he said when an imposing stone church came into view. "Not here. Not this." He knew this place far better than he ever wanted to. Back when he was a cop, it was a place that gave him nightmares so bad that he quit and finally took Nessa up on her job offer. "She can't possibly live here? I thought this place was supposed to be condemned." 'Condemned or not,' he thought, 'it was certainly damned.' He took a quick look around. He saw some external security cameras, but the front door itself was mostly bare. 'No, he thought,' just disguised to look that way. He used his surface-level x-ray goggles and saw that behind a little plaque next to the door was a keypad and fingerprint recognition pad. He was willing to bet that there were other security measures too. This was no ordinary home security. This is exactly how he thought that someone like Jenna would guard herself. So the question became, why would she live here? This was the Messenger's church, one of the darkest figures in American history for the last century. That's when it hit him. He knew who Jenna was. She had even used her real name, something he never would have expected. Not only that, he had met her before, in what seemed like a lifetime ago. For Jenna, maybe it was. "Anabella said that you were hurt inside . . . that your soul was faint. She was more right than she knew, wasn't she?" He turned the vehicle around and headed away from the cursed place. He had a few friends back in the force who could help him find the info that he wanted, but he already felt the truth sinking in. Nessa needed to know this as soon as she woke up. This did not change the mission, but it might have to change the methods. ------------- ------------- That night . . . --------- ----------------- 'Of all the nights to have gotten called out on a stupid retrieval mission, why tonight?' Jenna thought. She had shown up at the command post, still unsure as to what she was going to do, and the Empress was immediately tasked to retrieve a former CEO who was supposed to testify before the Chamber of Commerce as to his company's questionable business practices. He had decided to risk flight to China, but Empress had picked him up outside the transit center. She had not set an official time to meet with Nessa before leaving, but she was pretty sure that she was late. She was grateful to have at least avoided Death that evening. Nigel had laid a lot on her before putting their friendship into perspective, and she did not want to deal with him. She was unused to emotional turmoil, so she was not sure what she would have said to him even if she HAD desired to do so. It occurred to her on the way that if Devil's Night was still being watched, she should probably not simply walk in looking like the very thing that Garon and his men were expecting. So she had gone back to the church and gotten the one set of casual clothes that she still owned, namely a pair of throwback jeans, denim jacket, and a black tee-shirt. Not exactly trendy, but fashion was not something that Jenna had ever subscribed to or even understood. She walked down the alley while attempting to convey the feeling that she belonged there. She found the hidden door easily enough, and it opened before her. Cresil and Kobal were waiting for her. "Boss is expecting you," Cresil said. "Just head to the Stairway." She nodded, trying to remain cool. She headed downstairs and was once again almost overwhelmed the the pulsating sound of music. The crowd was even thicker that night than it had been the last time she was there, and many people, male and female, tried to draw her into movement with them as she made her way across the dance floor. 'This is such a bad idea,' she thought. 'I hate being touched.' She thankfully arrived at the Stairway to Heaven, where the guard Ipos waved her up. When she got to the VIP lounge, things were . . . different . . . than they had been before. First of all, there were people up there this time. Second, most of them were naked and engaged in some kind of sex. Instantly, Jenna's heart-rate shot up, her skin felt clammy, and her hands began to tremble. She was on the verge of bolting when Avery appeared. He looked around, then a look of alarm crossed over his face. He grabbed Jenna by the arm and pulled her towards the lift, and for once she did not fight. "I'm sorry about that," he said. "Nessa didn't have a chance to order VIP area cleared for the night." Jenna fought to get her body rhythm back under control. "No problem. Just surprised is all." Was it her imagination, or was Avery looking at her strangely? Almost sympathetically? "Hope you have some good ideas, because Garon has been bringing in more werewolves and has been bugging the Council like hell. I don't think it's helping though. He's such a pompous pain in the ass that the Council may wind up giving Nessa more time just to spite him." "Some people simply have no mind for politics," Jenna replied absently. "Are they any different for the Night Breed than they are for humans?" "Just a lot more ceremonial. Well, more brutal I suppose, but humanity is catching up with them in that regard." "Hooray for us," Jenna said. Avery glanced out of the corner of his eye. 'She's changed so much,' he realized. 'But the hair, and those eyes . . . how did I not notice those earlier?' "What?" she asked when she caught him staring. "Just thinking that you remind me of someone," he said, focusing his gaze forward. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." "I'm glad someone is thinking that way," she muttered. "Pardon me?" "Never mind." The doors opened and she stepped out into as luxurious an apartment as she had ever seen. It took up the entire floor, and every exterior wall consisted of one-way glass, giving the impression that they were sitting out in the open on the top of the building. The floors were warm hardwood and the furniture looked like genuine leather. The entire area was open, with a spacious kitchen, living room, a holoprojector normally reserved for high-priced cinemas, and a bed -- "That bed is big enough to have its own area code," she muttered. "And believe it or not, I've had it filled to capacity on at least three occasions," Nessa said, once again appearing from out of nowhere. "Mostly, I just like to lounge." Nessa was dressed in a trendy business suit, completely unlike what Jenna had seen her in up until that point. She was still too attractive for words, but now she looked slightly more reserved. "You look . . . nice," Jenna said. 'Why do I find myself wishing I hadn't dressed down?' "You look a little more relaxed." "I didn't think wearing my uniform would be wise." Nessa grinned. "At least you're admitting it was a uniform." Jenna rolled her eyes. "What else would it be? The worlds most complicated bathrobe?" "A joke! I'm impressed. Would you like a drink? I promise, I can get you something with no alcohol." "A coffee please," she said. 'See,' she told the non-present Nigel, 'I can be sociable.' Did she really want to be? Nessa waved to Avery, who headed to the kitchen, then she sat down on a luxurious sofa and invited Jenna to do the same. "So, what have you decided?" Jenna tried to make her mouth move, but the words didn't come easy. "I believe you," she said, "and I want to help. I discussed the issue with a colleague of mine, hoping he would help." "And will he?" "No. The problem is that if I approach my employer and try to arrange a meeting, I might well be charged with creating a security breech. If I did that, I could be found guilty of treason." "You're not serious?" Avery stood by with the coffee. "Nessa, treason can still be punished by death. It's a serious charge." Jenna looked at her hands. "If you give me some kind of tangible evidence to help me support my case, I'll approach my boss on my own. No reason to expose you until there's no other choice. He might imprison me for a bit while he examines the evidence, but if it is something that science cannot explain --" "Jenna," Nessa interrupted, "you have already said that your involvement could lead to your death, yet you are willing to help us? Why? You barely know me. You could just walk away and pretend you never met me." "Even if I hadn't told my colleague, what would happen next? Either you find someone else, which could take a while, or you go to war. As powerful as you and the Night Breed are, you don't want that. That would probably actually get the companies to stop with all the infighting and unite against something." "You've given this a lot of thought," Nessa said appreciatively. "Thank you." The woman's demeanor was so calm and professional that it was making Jenna uneasy. "Okay, was yesterday the act or is today the act?" "Come again?" "Yesterday you're traipsing around in your unmentionables threatening to fight or fuck anything you see --" "I hardly see an offer of a good shag from me as a threat, but go on." "Now you're doing the power suit? I want to know who I'm dealing with." "Do you really? Because I would expect the same from you." Nessa statement sounded less like a threat and more like an offer. "I can't provide you with any information about my operation without --" "I mean that I want to get to know you. You might understand me being a bit suspicious of someone who is willing to help a monster like me." "You're not a monster," Jenna said, glancing at Avery, "you're a person with powers." "You might not think that in a minute," Nessa said softly. "Why?" "We cast a spell to track you to your home. I figured that since you knew where I was that I should be able to find you. The bag --" Jenna was on her feet. "You've been in my home?!" "No, Avery simply knows where it is. And what it is. And . . . and he knows your name." "You know nothing," Jenna said coldly. She had been foolish to trust them. "You hunt me down in my home and that's fair, but me doing the same breaks some rule?" Nessa sat there as poised as could be. "Does us knowing where you live change the issues at hand?" Avery leaned back in his chair. "I didn't go inside. Not because I was afraid of your security, but because I never want to go inside that place again." "Again?" "Jenna, I was one of the officers that stormed the building the day that you were rescued --" "It's just a house," she started say. "It's just a place --" "I went back and looked at the news vids right after. Your hair is the same color, but I recognized your eyes more than anything. You didn't happen into that place by accident. No realtor on the planet would have been able to sell that place considering what happened there, especially not with full disclosure." "Okay," Anabella said, looking confused, "I'm missin' somethin' here." "How could you move in there?" Avery said, his voice and face reflecting just how shocked he was. "The other officers and I had nightmares for months after going in there --" Jenna let out a short, humorless laugh. "Months? I've had nightmares every day of my life since then. You have no right to go there. I'm here in good faith to try and stop a slaughter, and that's the only thing that matters. One more word about that . . . that time, and I walk and you can find your own damn solutions." She was so much more than angry that there were not words for it. And the parts of herself that she kept walled up screamed and railed against their bindings. She needed peace. She needed space. "If you need a moment, you can step out on the balcony," Nessa said, not wanting to push Jenna any further than she already had. She had to accept that she was working with a time bomb now. Jenna quickly walked outside and put her hands on the rail, gasping for breath and trying to drown out the ghosts wailing in her head. Anabella sat down next to Avery, looking between the dashing man and her boss. "Okay, what the hell is goin' on? Her spirit energy just went haywire, like nothin' I ever seen before." Avery covered his eyes with his hands and rubbed them. "She . . . you were right when you said she's wounded. Do you remember the news about fifteen years ago? The Messenger case?" "I remember the name. Weirdest mother fucker since Manson, wasn't he?" "He was way worse than Manson. Some priest went nuts and started kidnapping families and taking them back to this church here in New Atlanta. Thought the world was going to hell and he was going to start seeing who was going to Heaven. He was a total old-school Old Christianity kinda guy. He decided that these families, every man, woman, and child, needed to be stripped of everything to make them 'worthy.' He tortured them, raped the women and girls, sodomized the men and boys with broomsticks, gouged out the eyes --" "Okay, I think I get the picture. Really wish I didn't." "Well, he always ended by taking the family's bodies somewhere and crucifying them on a hill, and always on Sunday. All except the last family. For some reason, he kept them longer than the usual week. Cops finally tracked him down because of some neighbor who heard and smelled bad things coming out of this abandoned church. Well, the Messenger had killed all the girl's family but he had kept her alive. He'd kept her for himself." Anabella gulped a breath of air. "How long?" "Two months. Her family's corpses were still sitting in chairs around a dining table, and she . . . she was so broken. She fought against the officers and the medics who tried to take her away. Said that she loved him." "Good grief," the banshee whispered. "What made her different? Why'd he spare her?" "I don't think he did spare her. I think that the ones who died were the lucky ones. She was only fifteen years old when it happened. I tried checking up on her with some boys from the force, but there aren't any records of Jenna Owens after that. Her records were sealed, then they vanished about three years later. I'll bet that's when she joined the service, looking for some meaning." "Did she at least get help?" "I don't know. I suspect the authorities tried, but I can't say that they were too successful. She lives in a place where over forty people were killed in the most horrible ways. She sleeps in the same room where she was tortured and raped. Does that sound right to you?" The door to the balcony opened, so they all shut up as a more composed Jenna returned. But Anabella saw past the facade to the freezing rage underneath. Jenna sat down. "I need proof. I'll take it to my boss tomorrow. Can you get me something?" Nessa looked thoughtful. "Hmm, how about a dancing sword?" "Seriously? That's the best you can come up with?" Jenna was looking to criticize. Actually, she wanted to rip the throats out of everyone in the room, but that really would not accomplish much. "It's a sword that would show up as completely normal to every scan you could imagine, but it moves and does whatever its controller wants, as long as the controller stays within fifty feet. No, I don't know why fifty is the magic number, it just is." "Your bosses won't be able to pick up any kind of radio control or other transmissions. And the sword is able to cut through things that it should not be able to. It should be enough to get them interested." "Okay, we'll do that." Nessa looked at Avery. "Could you get a sword please? Try --" "I'll help 'im," Anabella said. "Don't want him givin' away one of yer kitchen knives by mistake." The two wandered to the lift and went . . . somewhere." There was a period of absolute silence as the two remaining women stared each other down. "I don't want you coming near my home," Jenna said at last. "Give me a way of getting in touch with you," Nessa replied. Jenna rattled off her communication number for her civilian line. Exactly two people had that number now, and she did not want to speak to either of them. "May I ask you a question?" Nessa asked. "I can't stop you." "Are you happy? In your life?" Jenna let her confusion show. "What do you mean?" "You just don't seem happy is all. You do your job, but you don't seem to enjoy it. You're trying to help stop a bad situation, but you don't seem excited at all." "Getting excited never solved anything." "I disagree," Nessa replied, "Getting excited is what life is all about. I want you to know that I mean this when I say it, but if you ever want to get back into the game of actually living, you can come to me." "Not everyone has time for fun and games." Jenna knew that for a fact. They were childish things, and she had lost that part of herself fifteen years ago. "Which is why we must sometimes make time." Nessa smiled, and it was a warm, compassionate smile. "I know you did not want me to say anything else about it, but I must. Please, wait," she added as Jenna started to stand. "I cannot imagine what you went through. I don't know what your mind was like afterward. I just would hate to think that you survived it all just to give up on life. It's too precious to be discarded." Jenna stopped. She had not spoken to anyone about the events of those two months since the counselors had given up on her after a couple of years. "He made me decide," she whispered. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 02 Every one of Nessa's nerves was firing as she waited. "Decide?" "My family. He tortured them, but he would not kill them. Not until I told him to. He made me choose been them suffering and me losing them. I let them suffer for so long . . . so long." Jenna wanted to scream, but she would not. She wanted to cry, but could not. "They suffered because I was afraid of being alone. I'm not afraid of being alone anymore." Avery and Anabella returned with the sword. They could tell that something had transpired, but had no idea what. Avery handed the sword to Jenna, while Anabella chanted a few words. Jenna looked at the sword, then imagined it flying around the room. It did exactly as she imagined. She would have marveled at it in other circumstance, but right then she just wanted to kill something. She knew she had to leave before she did just that. "If you haven't heard from me within 48 hours, assume that all bets are off and that you're on your own." With that, Jenna got into the lift. She looked at Avery. "I'll find my own way this time," she said somewhat coldly. Then she vanished. "Sometimes you need help to find your way," Nessa said softly. ----- ------------------------------ Shortly before sunrise . . . ----- ------------------------------ "This is not a good idea," Death said as the Empress strode towards the boss's office. She had not returned his calls all evening and was in the process of ignoring him some more. "Empress, talk to me. Why are you marching into the office of a high-ranking military officer wielding a sword?" She turned and faced him. "Go away. Go out on a mission, forget you ever talked to me, and then I'm the only one who's ass is on the line." He stood between her and her destination. "Do not make me out to be the bad guy. Just because I don't want you to commit career and possibly literal suicide does not mean I'm not your friend." "How many times have I ever actually asked for you help? Ever? The one time I need someone to stand by me, you back off." "The one time you ever ask, you're wanting me to potentially commit treason. That's kind of a big 'first time' if you ask me." She shook her head in disgust and tried to walk past, but he moved to get in her way. She stepped the other way, and he mirrored her again. "Death, either get out of my way right now or we find out who's better, once and for all." Death looked at the woman who he had tried so hard to befriend, a woman of beauty and mystery. He believed that she had a good heart, but he also believed that she meant what she said. The Empress was in a hurting mood, and he was right in front of her. He made a decision. "You want me to be your friend? Then I'm going to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life." Empress knew that he was not budging. That was why she did not hesitate to send a fist flying at the side of his face. It was an eerie fight to watch, if anyone had been around to do so. Neither of them uttered a word, and the only sound was the muffled noises of blocked kicks and punches, and the movement of feet on concrete. Death had a reach advantage, strength advantage, and was more experienced. Empress had two things going for her. She was faster, and she was homicidally angry. She took to the air, performing a triple spin kick, but none of them got through. Death retaliated by grabbing her leg and hurling her at a wall, but she braced herself with her feet and launched backwards. She landed on her feet and rolled forward, then leapt forward with both hands extended, burying them in Death's gut. Death smashed down on his "friend's" back with an elbow, but she dropped to her knees and swing a leg around, taking his legs out from under him. No sooner than he hit the floor, he rolled back onto his shoulders and launched himself back to his feet with nothing but momentum and a strong set of core muscles. "Stop this madness," he told her, his voice still even. She sent a couple of quick kicks to his knees, but he blocked one and dodged the other, then Empress was forced to defend against a number of elbow shots. She responded with a knee to the cut and managed to land a roundhouse punch to the side of his face, but he pushed her to gain some separation and landed a breath-stealing front kick to her stomach. "All you had to do was trust me," she gasped. She managed to dodge three of the next four punches, but the 25 percent that got through was painful. She bought some time by putting her heel into his toe, and she was pretty sure she heard something crack. "I do trust you," he replied, ignoring the pain of his broken toe and landing an uppercut into the Empress's ribs. "I don't trust the rest of them. I don't trust the DoD to make the right decision if you tell them. I don't trust this woman you've been talking to. I don't trust those other guys that the woman was talking about. How is it that you're willing to stick your neck of for the monsters when you won't even let those around you into your life?" With blinding speed, the Empress whipped out a gun and pistol-whipped Death in the side of the head, dropping him like a rock. He was still conscious, but incredibly woozy. "Don't like monsters?" she asked, her voice oddly sad. "Then stay away from me. Make a life with April. Make friends with the other Tarot. Because I am a monster, I promise you." She stepped past him, feeling a knife slide between the ribs of their friendship. The only question was, who had been the one truly holding the hilt? "I'm sorry," she said, turning to face him one more time. "You deserve a better person to be friends with." ----------- ------------ An hour later . . . ----------- ------------ The Fool was sitting behind his desk, staring with great fascination as the sword danced and twirled around his head. Empress had gotten the hang of it and was making it do tricks. Somehow, the thing still held little fascination for her outside of basic physics. She thought back to her last words to Death. She thought of her words with Nessa, about how she was not afraid to be alone. She had lied about wanting it. She just knew she deserved it. "Fascinating. A whole race . . . I'm sorry if I still seem skeptical, but this is a lot." "I understand." She had only told him that she had been made and approached by a vampire representative. She had not mentioned any names, Death's involvement (or lack thereof), Devil's Night, or even any of the races she had seen besides vampires. "It was hard to believe. This is an incredible opportunity, sir." "I absolutely agree. All the things that we could learn from such a group. Why strive as strenuously to maintain a technological advantage when we could supplement our tactics with magic." "I do not believe it was their intention to give up all their secrets. They are nervous about their way of life being disrupted by undue attention that WE are creating. I'm sure that they would be willing to negotiate something if we could just change our tactics. Let the vampire gimmick die off." "Die off? Empress, the Nightwalker campaign has been highly successful, and the DoD is scheduling an entire new batch of bioengineering. Imagine if we could incorporate their DNA." "Sir, they are not likely to give that up. I have seen their power, and there are an unknown number of them. I believe that number to be far greater than ours. Why pick a fight if we can create an alliance? Or at least a truce." "Truce? We are not at war with them, so a truce makes no sense." "If we don't desist, I believe we may have a war," she told him honestly. "And I do not believe that we will win." She had seen demons, werewolves, vampires, a banshee, and a host of other creatures at the club. The Nightwalkers would be wiped out in a straight up fight, and that was just the creatures she had seen in one building. She was sure that such beings populated the entire world. "The United States Government is one of the last free governing bodies on Earth. We will not be held captive by bogeymen. We would call in the Armed Forces if needed." "But it is so unnecessary! They do not want to fight us. They just want to live in peace." "Monsters do not live in peace, Empress. Did you know that the Oil Conglomerate is making noise about dissolving the government again and granting all of its powers to the Chamber of Commerce. We need more weapons and we need them soon. There is no way the Nightwalker program will be scrapped --" "Then why not meet with them and try and form some kind of alliance?" "Have you forgotten the Cola Wars? Alliances are easily broken. No, I will need to consult the DoD, but it will help if I have a sample." Empress did not like the sound of that. "Sample?" "Yes. I will need one of these vampires for study. I expect your full cooperation in securing one so that --" "No." For a moment, even Jenna was shocked by that one word. She had already put her career in jeopardy by allowing her identity to be exposed and by consorting with an unknown entity. She had just effectively refused an order from a commanding officer. "Empress, I strongly advise that you retract that statement. You have been under a great deal of pressure, so I will give some leeway, but I will not tolerate insubordination." She nodded. "I understand sir." "Excellent. So as I was saying --" "But my answer is still no." He stared at her. "Empress --" "I will not be party to this. This world has been brought low and made vulnerable to the corporations due to unnecessary wars. This . . . this is madness. And madness is something I understand, sir. As do you." The Fool stood up, towering over her at six and a half feet tall of solid muscle. He was almost fifty, but he was easily the most dangerous Nightwalker in the deck. "Empress, I find you guilty of disobeying an order from a superior officer. For your sake, I ask that you lay down your arms and surrender to me at once." The Empress took unusual glee at the fact that the Fool flinched when she stood up. One by one, she put every gun, knife, and grenade in her arsenal onto the table. She even remembered to float the sword back down and lay it to rest. Then, she was stripped of her armor. The Fool had summoned the Rods Corp to escort her to the brig. They all looked confused, as did the few other members of the Major Arcana who showed up for their morning debriefing. She never saw Death, and she was glad. He had been right. ---------- -------------------- At Devil's Night . . . ---------- -------------------- Nessa had needed the feeling of someone underneath her after her conversation earlier. Dealing with Jenna had been disconnecting, and she needed to feel close to someone. Anyone. So she had gotten Ipos to come upstairs and provide a donation, but this time no blood would be involved. She was straddling the demon's strong thighs, his foot of pure manhood rubbing up against her stomach as she stroked it. There was no way her hand could completely encircle it, but she loved trying. Demons tended to be hung like horses, which is why their legendary encounters with mortal women tended not to end well. Nessa had not been a mortal woman for a very long time. Also, she liked a little pain with her sex from time to time. And the best thing about sex with demons . . . no pillow talk. If she wanted someone to talk to about her problems, she would talk to Anabella. "You're really not into it tonight, are ya?" Ipos asked. "I'm in it enough to make sure you leave her a happy man." "Never a question of that. Of course you could always take a sip of this demon blood to get your motor going." She grinned at him. "You know that ain't gonna happen every again. That stuff hits like a freight train." Demon blood was incredibly potent, acting to lower a blood vampires inhibitions, give them a serious boost of adrenaline, and give them a god complex. "They still tell stories of that time back . . . when was it?" "1958." "I heard you were in rare form." She rolled her eyes. "I slept with the entire Northern Ireland National Football team to celebrate their performance in the World Football Cup, and then I tried to invade Belgium. I was naked and the only weapon I had was a badminton racket. I still think I could've taken 'em." "Why didn't you?" "Anabella ko'd me with a pry-bar and then locked me in the castle dungeon until I came down." "She always has looked after you." "Everyone needs a friend like that. Now are we gonna do this or what?" "Waiting on you," he told her. She scooted back to his knees, then leaned over and took the mushroom head between her lips. Even on her best day, she would never be able to deep-throat this monster, but she loved how it stretched her mouth. Dirty sex, the kind that that hurt so good when she woke up, was her favorite thing. Her hands gripped the base of his cock, giving it a double-fisted handjob while she worked the crown. She wanted to get the precum flowing, since demon ejaculate was fairly potent as well. Not that it sent her on a power trip. It was just kind of spicy. Ipos bucked his hips, thrusting himself up into her mouth, causing her to let out a cough and bit of drool. He and his fellow demons had all been bed mates often enough to know how Nessa liked it. Kobal had once thought it strange that their boss liked to be "taken" in certain respects, but Ipos had reminded him that their boss was always in control, especially when it seemed that she was not. She grunted happily as he grabbed her head and shoved himself up into her mouth over and over, using her hands to tantalize his shaft and testicles. There had been any number of hotties at the club in the last few days, but he had not had an opportunity to entertain them. He had a good load saved up, and she was going to get it all. "That's it," he said, her mouth straining grotesquely as she made it a third of the way down his rod. "I don't know how you can go back to those puny little human cocks when you could ride this every night." She pulled her mouth off with a plop. "You demons are kind of like unicycles. You're a lot of fun to ride, but you're not the most practical form of transportation for day to day use." "You're such a sweet talker," he replied, grabbing her head and pushing it back down onto his throbbing member. "You really are the best." "I should be," she said between downings of his cock head, "I've been doing this since before most old Christians even believed you existed." She flicked her tongue against the slit, and felt some of his juice sizzle on her tongue. She wanted the hot sauce in the worst way. She moved forward and crouched over that cock, letting it touch the opening to her sex but not slipping inside. It took pretty good thigh muscles to stay perched there, teasing her lover of the moment, waiting for him. Ipos growled, grabbed her waist, and pushed her forcefully down, filling her with one fell stroke. She was so tight that he groaned a pleasurable little noise, watching her grin as she adjusted to his girth. She raised herself up, the lowered herself, using only the strength of her legs. Of course she could just as easily fly, but she liked the way this made her muscles burn. "Now I remember why I hired you," she moaned bouncing harder and harder, letting her pussy throb with delight. She squeezed him with her pussy then stood up a little, stroking him as she went. The head of his member never left the confines of her body, and that suited them both quite well. "Damn," he said as she stroked him with her entire sex, "Human women just can't do what you do." She sank as far down as she could and just enjoyed the sensation of being so utterly filled. She twirled her hips, grinding against him before rising up again. Ipos propped himself up on one elbow and grabbed one of Nessa's breasts with his other hand, squeezing it and making the nipple protrude just a little bit more. She hissed in pleasure when his teeth took it and bit every so carefully, grabbing one of his horns and holding him in place. He released that breast and mauled the other one, torturing it for a while before moving back. Nessa climbed off and knelt beside his body, sucking on his cock again and licking her own special flavors off of him. Then she met his gaze. "You know what I need now." Ipos was smiling like a cat that was about to eat the canary. Nessa stood on the floor and put her hands on the bed, and he took a position behind her. He toyed with her for a moment, running the tip of his cock up and down the entrance to her pussy but not going in. Just when he was able to sense her delicious desperation, he thrust into her. He also grabbed one handful of her shining red hair and used it leverage as he pounded in and out of her. This was, for Nessa, the ultimate balance of pain and pleasure. Ever thrust shot a jolt through her that lit up her nerves like lightning. And then Ipos started slapping her ass, and that stinging felt unbelievably good. He would stop slapping her for a moment to just dig his fingernails into the round, firm ass flesh,, then he would slide his thumb between the cheeks and penetrate her anal opening. He knew how much she liked that. If there were not so many outside visitors in town at the moment, she would probably have the other demons up there violating every orifice that she could offer. Nessa was kind of a superfreak that way. Nessa's orgasm hit her like a grav train, and she dug her hands into her very expensive bedding and let out a high gasping noise over and over again. Her whole body trembled, and her pussy clenched at the object that had brought her so much pleasure. "Good good," she murmured happily. "I so needed that." She pulled away and then sat on the edge of the bed, taking the head of Ipos's cock into her mouth again and stroking the shaft furiously. She was using both hands, coaxing the bubbling gallon of cum that was brewing in his testicles to the surface. "Oh yeah, here it comes," Ipos said, grabbing her head and holding it still while waves of demon seed shot into Nessa's mouth. Demons came a lot, and it was all Nessa could do to avoid it spilling out. She loved the flavor, swallowing it as fast as she could. When the last spurt was in and Ipos gingerly removed his cock, a few drops dribbled out of her lips and down onto her sizable chest, so she pushed her tit up and licked it clean. "Have I mentioned recently that I love working for you?" Ipos said appreciatively as he watched on. "See, most applicants don't believe me when I list the benefits on those job sites," she responded happily, cleaning up the last of his load. "So," he said, reaching for his pants, "feeling any better?" She shrugged. " A bit. I just wish I knew how Jenna's meeting with her boss went." ------------- ------------------ Back at the TACCP . . . ------------- ------------------ Empress sat perfectly still on the small, wire-frame cot in the holding cell. She still cold not believe the turn her life had taken. Three days earlier, the monsters were all make believe. Three days ago, her career seemed solid. Three days ago, she looked forward to coffee with Death in the middle of the afternoon at that same little shop. That was before the darkness of night split and revealed the things that lay beyond, complete with teeth and claws and horns . . . and beautiful red hair and green eyes. Three days ago, she had her memories and nightmares under control for the most part. Back then, Death had not dissected her character, making her seem like a creature barely deserving of life. He had been her friend three days ago. There was a dark, deep chill settling in on Jenna that she thought . . . hoped . . . to never feel again. Her mind went back to the last time, nearly fifteen years prior. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 02 "No!" Jenna screamed, as He walked towards the door, intending to leave her alone in the dark. "I don't want --" He spun and slapped her across the face. "You asked me to it," he reminded her. "You were the one who told me to send your father on to the Lord. Don't you dare deny your culpability." "I didn't want . . . I just want to take it all back," she sobbed. "You cannot take it back. It was your words that delivered all of them. They are in a better place now, free from their sins and yours. You will sit here pray for forgiveness for your weakness." He walked out and locked the door, plunging the room into darkness. She wailed and pounded her hands against the ground until her fingers bled. The darkness did not answer her then. The stones did not comfort her. No one would ever comfort her, because to be close to Jenna meant torment. She had asked Him to kill her family when the notion of being alone was eclipsed by her inability to stand their gazes any longer. She was so alone. The knowledge of what she had done climbed into hands and feet and crept through her bones and blood like unwelcome insects, and they devoured her warmth. The girl that she had always been slowly died in the floor of that church basement. She did not cry. She would not cry again. Ever. There was nothing left inside her that was capable of it. When he came back, there was nothing of Jenna left, so he decided to fill that void. He made her love Him. But even His love never fill what had been emptied. Jenna came back into the present with a start. Something in her arm was itching. She tried to absently scratch it away, but it lingered. She just wanted to feel nothing again. She had no mission, no friends, and no future. She wanted her life to be over, or at least her semblance of a life. Not that she had much to worry about. If the Fool felt she had been treasonous, she would not be much longer for this world. Outside, the Fool was talking with Death. "You are the only one who can make her see reason," the man in charge said. "Are you sure she did not tell you anything?" "I don't know anything beyond what you just told me," Death replied calmly. That was technically true. Empress had not told the Fool anything different than what she had told Death, so the information was the same. "Still, incarceration? Do we really want to lose one of our best agents, particularly since there might be a new threat out there?" "I would be willing to show leniency if she were to cooperate. Empress may be a cold fish, but she is not stupid nor is she insane. And what she showed me defies other explanation. Being able to incorporate the abilities of genuine vampires into our bioengineering could put us light years ahead of corporate special forces." "Why not strike a deal with them rather than conquer them?" "If we can make a deal with them, anyone will be able to. We must assess their numbers and their power --" "And the best person to do that is currently sitting in a holding cell awaiting word that you're going to have her executed." "I saw the look in her eyes, Death. The Empress will not cooperate. Being single-minded used to be an asset, but now it is a detriment. We will extract the information that she has and then dispose of her. She creeped me out anyway, so I'll be glad to be rid of her and promote someone else. You don't have a problem with that, do you?" Without missing a beat, Death shook his head. "No sir. I'm your man." "Good to hear. Let her stew for a little while, then we'll give her one last chance to cough up the info in exchange for a painless execution. Otherwise --" He left the idea trailing, then went back into his office. Death watched the door closed. This was not what he had signed on for at all, but he had more political savvy than the Empress did. He could only imagine what was going through her head right now. He could not help but smile when he thought of how she had bested him. The Fool was being far too close to his namesake on this, but Death needed more time to think of a plan. That was why he had left a present for the Empress nearby. Hopefully she would think to use it. Jenna's arm was still itching, but she could not tell the source. 'Well,' she thought, 'it's right where they cast the spell to control --' Her eyes narrowed. 'The sword. The dancing sword.' But she knew that it had been in the Fool's office, which was too far away. Why would he have moved it? Or did he? Her icy heart beat a little faster. Death? Had Death intervened? But why? Regardless, she called out to the sword. If she was going to die, it would not be here. She would go home, and be with the spirits of her family when the time came. She felt the bond with the sword, and she pulled rapidly in her own direction. The cells had been designed to withstand anything, but the sword was enchanted. It was something that the builders of the base could not possibly have anticipated. The sword came hurtling through the wall as if it were made of foil, the hilt finding its way to Jenna's hand. Did she really want to run? No. But she would. The base alarms went haywire, and all available Arcana came rushing to the holding area. "Holy shit! I knew she gave up too damn easy," the Fool muttered when he saw the Empress's cell. There was a hole cut through the back wall, and the room was empty. "How --" "Maybe her new friends gave her a gift she did not tell you about?" Death suggested. It was so plausible that he himself might have believed it. "Maybe. Wait, where's that damn sword?" ----------- -------------- Hours later . . . ----------- -------------- The Five of Swords had stopped to take a leak and was hurrying to catch the rest of his squad. This was the strangest night any of them had ever heard of. No one had explained why the Empress had walked in, apparently had a fight with Death, then was marched into the brig by the Fool. She then escaped by miraculous means, and now the entire Nightwalker program was out looking for her. And most of the Nightwalkers he knew were not sure if they wanted to find her. Only those of the Major Arcana could stand up to her in a straight fight, and only the Fool and the Hanged Man were considered better in hand-to-hand. The Fool was the boss, but the Hanged Man was the Nightwalker's enforcer. No one had ever seen his face. He was getting ready to exit the alley where he had relieved himself when a hand reached around him and covered his mouth. More hands grabbed him and hauled him back into the darkness. He tried to shout for help, but whoever had him was too fast. The smell of some kind of dog filled his nostrils and the sound of growling filled his ears. He was stripping of his guns and forced to his knees. A man appeared in front of him, and he looked like all kinds of business. He wore a tailored suit, had dark hair, thigh eyebrows, and his eyes . . . oh, those were terrible. They actually seemed darker than the shadows around them. "My name is Garon Pegg," the man said, "and you're going to tell me everything I want to know." -------------- ------------------------- To be continued . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 03 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- Jenna's hands were trembling as she lifted the coffee cup to her lips. She was insane for coming here, she knew that. Death knew she would be here, at a specific time. Any moment now, the Nightwalkers would pick her up. But she had to sit here, one more time, the sun on her face and warm coffee on her lips. She had not slept a wink in the last twenty-four hours. The fear had kept her awake. She was afraid that they would come during the morning hours and drag her from her sanctuary like they had fifteen years earlier. She was afraid of the numbness that threatened to overtake her every nerve. She was afraid of what it would be like without hot showers and coffee, smoke and whiskey. Jenna wanted to write Nessa a note, apologizing for her failure. The vampire deserved to know what was coming. She would find a way to send a message tonight, before the end came. She would not be taken from her home again. She watched the children leaving school while chatting on their comms units and laughing with their friends, then closed her eyes, fighting the pain that was welling up from deep inside. "I will never understand why you chose this place," said a familiar voice. "Why this shop? Why this time?" She slowly opened her eyes and fixed them on Nigel, who had taken his customary seat across from her. "I'm a creature of habit, I suppose. Where are the others? I'm assuming they are around somewhere." Nigel leaned back and looked at the same school that she had been, briefly wondering if April was there thinking of him. "Actually, I came alone. No one else knows about this spot, so I figured that we could have a cup of coffee and a conversation." She sighed. "You moved the sword, didn't you?" "Moi? Help a prisoner escape? My dear Jenna, that would be treasonous." "Why? You made it clear --" "You are my friend," he interrupted. "You are a good person and a loyal soldier. I don't know what the Fool's plan is, but you do not deserve to die. Unfortunately, the Hanged Man is one of those dispatched to retrieve you, and I doubt that even you will stand against him." She smiled, though she felt no warmth. "Go," she told him. "Don't throw your life and career away because of me." "Why are you doing this?' he asked. "You could still make things right." "The Fool wants to capture a real vampire, experiment on it, then kill the rest. He wants an edge over the corporations. It just shows that he is no better than they are. I won't betray Nessa," she said solemnly. "I will not be party to thoughts of genocide, however unlikely. You need to talk reason to him. If the Nightwalkers and the DoD follow through with the Fool's plan, then they will die. I truly believe that. This is a war that does not need to happen." "I can try, but the Fool is somewhat incensed at the moment." "Nigel, I'm sorry I doubted you. I'm sorry I sucker-punched you." He smiled. "I should have expected it." He cocked his head. "So what do you want to do?" "Have one last cup of coffee with an old friend," she whispered, looking away. "We'll just call it a cup," he said, praying that it would in fact not be the last. ------------ ----------------- That evening . . . ------------ ----------------- The Five of Swords was ready for death. He had tried hard to be tough when these . . . things . . . had taken him the previous night. But they were patient, and they were cruel, and they had claws and teeth. He had never seen anything like them, but he had heard of them. Old stories, old movies, old legends. A fake vampire had been captured by real werewolves. It was almost funny. He would laugh if doing so would not cause more blood to come shooting out of his mouth. "So what do we know?" Garon Pegg asked of one of his lieutenants. "There are seventy-eight of them, funded and supported by the Department of Defense. They're named after the old Tarot decks, with Minor and Major Arcana. Created by bioengineering and advanced training. The Minor Arcana are foot soldiers, the Major Arcana are supposed to be the bad asses." Another werewolf, Simon Glicker, stepped forward. "Apparently, someone called 'The Empress' had left the reservation, and they're hunting her down. She's supposed to be one of their most dangerous ones. Guy named 'The Fool' is in charge. We got an idea of who to keep an eye out for, but they all pretty much dress the same. We know where their headquarters is and what their patterns are." "Excellent. I think that this informant has given us everything that he needs. Send samples of his blood back to the lab so that we can find out what they did to him. We may be able to use the technology." Garon then grabbed the man's head and ripped it off his shoulders. "Contact the Council and inform them of our progress. Heck, let that vampire bitch know as well. Her days of incompetent leadership are numbered." --------- --------------- Elsewhere . . . --------- --------------- Jenna had scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed, but all the cleansing agents and hot water in the world could not wash away the thin layer of ice she still felt. Ever since she had left the coffee shop, everything had been getting colder. Would tonight be the night they found her? Would the failed experiment known as her life finally end? Would she never see him again? She stepped out of her shower and, for one of the few times in her life, she almost screamed like a girl. "I thought you were going to broil yourself alive in there," Nessa said, sitting comfortably in Jenna's computer chair. "How . . . but my security --" Jenna babbled, looking around to see how anyone could have gotten by the layers and layers of security precautions. "Your security is impeccable," Nessa told her, staring at that long, lithe, muscular body that was dripping wet and delightfully naked. "But it isn't airtight. I can turn into mist, remember?" Jenna realized that she was being viewed, and she actually blushed. She could not remember the last time she had blushed. She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself. "Don't do that on my account," Nessa purred in spite of herself. 'Damn, that is one beautiful woman.' "You have no right to come here," Jenna hissed. "This is my home --" "You've been to mine." "You invited me. I didn't invite you." "You hunted me there. Big difference." The redhead leaned back. "You're looking kind of hostile. Are we going to fight again, because there's other things I can think of that we could do with you in that state of undress." "How dare you!" Jenna growled. "Fine, no pleasure, so it's down to business. I needed to know how your visit with the boss went, and you had not checked in. Garon captured one of your people and tortured him. I'm assuming now that he knows everything about your organization. He and his men are pretty good at what they do." "And you know this how?" "He left the body in front of my bar and the head on a trashcan with a note in his mouth. He wanted to make a statement." Jenna still felt very uncomfortable. No one besides her had been in the church since she purchased it. And she was mostly naked. And she did not like the way Nessa kept staring at her legs. "Well I'm not going to be of any help to you, so you can just go." "Why?" "Well, it's my home and --" "No, why can't you be of help to me?" "I gave my boss . . . former boss . . . the short and sweet version. No names, no places, and I didn't mention any other races besides vampires. He decided that he wants to capture one of you, use you in experiments, then kill off the rest so no one else can do the same." Nessa raised an eyebrow. "So he's a complete a-hole. So why is he your ex-boss?" "I . . . he . . . there was this problem --" Jenna was wondering when she completely lost her marbles. She had never had this kind of problem expressing herself before. Of course, she rarely expressed anything. "You wouldn't do it, so he fired you." "Put me in the brig and was probably arranging my execution, but yeah. Pretty much." "So now what?" Jenna leaned against her shower door. "It's only a matter of time before they find me. I figure that when they catch me . . . I want it to be here." "A last stand?" "It just seems appropriate," Jenna whispered. "Now please leave. I can't do anything for you." "I disagree. I think you could do a lot for me," Nessa replied. Jenna felt a chill. "Don't speak to me like that. Not here." "I actually meant that you could come work for me," Nessa said, "but let's talk about that." "What?" "About what happened here. Avery told me everything he remembered and I looked at all the old vids. Your name got left out, probably because you were a minor. And he said that you claimed that you loved the guy when they tried to take you out?" "Please leave." Jenna did not want to have this conversation. "He killed your family. Despite what you said, you had no choice. He tortured and raped --" "I asked you to leave." "No." Jenna was momentarily stunned. "You don't get to say no!" "Or what? You'll call the local security forces? Or maybe you'll call the Nightwalkers, the military organization who is already hunting you, and try to have the real vampire removed from your church fortress? The one you don't want anyone to know about? And since we both know that you have no chance against me in a fight --" "Don't be so sure about that," Jenna replied, her pride getting the better of her. "You want to go again?" Nessa said, her eyes brightening a bit. This is the Jenna that she would rather see, the one who still had some fight left in her. "Think you can do it without your whole 'turn to mist'?" "Ah, so you're one of those people who claims that they want a straight up fight, but only on their terms with the other person handicapped. I could just as easily claim that you're cheating by being biomodified." Nessa smiled broadly. "But I promise, no turning to mist and no flying. But to make sure that you don't have any tricks up your sleeve, we both fight nude." Jenna gave her would-be opponent a blank stare. "You can't take anything seriously, can you?" "Oh, I take the notion of wrestling with a naked woman quite seriously, particularly the most beautiful one that I've seen in centuries. You win, and I leave and you never see me again unless you want to. I win, you come work for me and maybe we can solve this whole situation with as little bloodshed as possible." Jenna was a little dumbfounded. 'Work for Nessa? Nude wrestling? Most beautiful woman . . . Okay, she's just trying to fuck with my head,' Jenna thought. She did not want to acknowledge how well it was working. Worse yet, Nessa already knew what Jenna was going to say, because the redhead was getting undressed. "In the original Olympics, this is the way wrestling went down. Think of it as honoring history." Jenna did not want to take off her towel. She knew that Nessa's words were just to get under her skin, but she did not like the way that her skin was reacting. But she wasn't going to back down. This was her home. She was going to reclaim it if it was the last thing she ever did. Which it might be. She tossed the towel onto the ground. "Ready to party?" Nessa asked. Jenna had always considered trash-talking to be a waste of time, so she just struck out. She accepted that Nessa was faster and probably stronger, but that only meant that she would have to fight smarter. Nessa blocked the opening volley with ease, then shoved her like it was a playground brawl. Jenna staggered back out of her living area and into the maze, Nessa on her heels. Once the vampire's feet were all the way inside, Jenna jumped straight up, put a hand on one wall, a foot on the other wall, then kicked at Nessa's face. Nessa was fast and was able to dodge most of the blow, but she was still clipped hard enough to spin her around. The vampire did not look perturbed, but rather appeared impressed. "And here I was thinking that this was going to be a walk in the park." She had forgotten one basic rule of combat . . . never underestimate one's opponent on her home turf. Nessa stepped forward quickly, dodging another kick and punching upward. Keeping herself seven feet off the ground, Jenna managed to roll away in a stylish and acrobatic move. It reminded Nessa of an old Chinese martial arts movie. She rolled forward, underneath Jenna's kicks, then launched up from the floor and grabbed the Nightwalker's foot. She pulled Jenna down off the ceiling while avoiding other kicks, then slammed her opponent onto the ground. Jenna grunted in pain, but immediately pulled her leg inward, drawing Nessa with it, then she thrust out again and pounded the redhead against wall of the maze. She got to her feet and bolted further into the maze. The fight went on for much longer than Nessa expected, with Jenna using everything at her disposal. But after fifteen minutes of high-intensity, high-speed hand-to-hand combat was exhausting, even for a Nightwalker. There were no breaks, no rounds, and no time to hide. Jenna swung a roundhouse that was too slow and too high, allowing Nessa to duck underneath while hooking that arm, then spinning Jenna around into a reverse arm-bar. When the taller woman swung her other elbow back in an attempt to dislodge the the vampire, Nessa caught that as well. With both arms locked in a chicken-wing, she fell backwards and wrapped her legs around Jenna's waist. "Submit," Nessa whispered. That word angered Jenna. She had submitted once, and it had destroyed her. She tried flinging her head and managed to connect with Nessa's nose, but the vampire released one arm and wrapped it around Jenna's throat. She sunk the sleeper hold in. "Game, set, and match," Nessa said. Jenna would not give up. Maybe she could push Nessa enough that she would kill her by accident. Better never to wake up -- "Not gonna happen," the vampire whispered into Jenna's ear. "You're mine, fair and square." "No," Jenna whispered desperately. She could not "belong" to someone again. "No!" But the more Jenna struggled, the closer to drifting into darkness she became. Without warning, Nessa released her hold, pushing Jenna away to gasp for breath. How many times had she crawled on these rough stones? Begging for her life? Begging for her death? Pleading simply because He had enjoying listening to her do so? "So you won't own up to your side of the bargain?" Nessa asked. "No passion, no direction, and now, no honor?" "You can't shame someone . . . (gasp) . . . with no soul," Jenna said, trying to get to her feet. Nessa looked down at her companion, then yanked her to her feet. "Hate to break it to you, but you have a soul. You've beaten it into submission, but it's still there. Anabella felt it, but you've hidden it away. That man . . . the Messenger? He couldn't take it away. It's the one thing that we all have that can never be killed, only surrendered." "I did --" "You did what a fifteen year old girl needed to in order to survive. Is this what your parents died for?" "My parents died because --" "What? Because a maniac convinced you that the decision was truly yours? You still think that it was your fault?" "You have no idea what it was like." "Then let me understand," Nessa said. "I need you. I am attempting to stop a short-term bloodbath and a long term war. I've got a misogynistic werewolf who would love to kill every last one of your people and either discredit or kill me, and now it turns out that your boss is an egomaniac and a sociopath with intentions on world domination. If I see no other choice, I WILL kill them all and let the powers that be sort it all out later, but I don't want to do that. I want you at my side. And I want you out of . . . of this," she added, waving her hand around and indicating the church. "Why? You don't know me. You don't owe me anything." "Sometimes, people just want to do something nice. Jenna, I value my existence. I savor every moment of it. Yes, I've seen friends and loved ones die, and it hurts every time, but I have met the most amazing beings you can imagine. What was done to you . . . there aren't even words for it. I'm offended at my very core that your life has been made so empty by some psycho, and it makes me want to give you that life back. If your life hurts so much and you're so miserable, what do you really have to lose? Or are you clinging to your wounds out of some warped sense of propriety?" Jenna turned around and headed back towards her living area at the center of the maze. She could not respond. She did not have the first idea of how. "You've surrounded yourself with so many walls," Nessa said, giving pursuit. "Are you protecting yourself, or just hiding?" "You don't know me," Jenna reiterated. "Something I intend to correct," Nessa said, spinning the other woman around and pinning her body-to-body against the wall. Both women were very aware of the other's flesh. Nessa found it enticing, while Jenna felt terrified. "Will you honor our accord?" Despite her legendary control of her own physiology, Jenna's heart was beating a million times a minutes, or at least that's how it felt. The question came back to her mind, 'What do I have to lose?' "All right, you win," she whispered, staring down at those mischievous yet compassionate green eyes. "I prefer win-win situations," Nessa replied. "Now, it's time for initiation." Jenna tried to pull away, but Nessa was stronger. "No sex," the redhead whispered. "Not unless you want it. I just want to let --" Nessa whispered, kissing Jenna's neck, "-- me --" she continued, her fangs growing, " -- in." "Why? What --" "I just want to see a little bit of who you really are. And I promise, it won't hurt a bit." Jenna still did not understand. Was she really going to let a vampire bite her as part of a job interview? "Are you ready?" "Yes," Jenna whispered for reasons she could not even grasp. Nessa was right. It didn't hurt. Nessa sank her fangs into that beautiful skin, happy in the knowledge that the puncture wounds would close up behind them. This skin was flawless. Jenna's blood tasted different than anything she had imbibed before, but that was not why she was here. She wanted to see into in the woman's mind. Soon, she almost wished that she could not. A person's mind, memory, and soul took on many forms. For the most part, they were wide open plains, with patches of sunshine and shadow, with roads crossing here and there and tying it all together. Nessa's own soul plain resembled a metropolis, as she had so many connecting memories. Jenna's soul plain was as eerie of a place as Nessa had ever seen. There were only four structures structures as far as her third eye could see. The first three were castles, but of widely varying sizes, shapes, and materials. The three castles sat at equal distances from each other on the edge of a great stone circle. In the center of circle stood a lone stone tower. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 03 Nessa knew that Jenna had used these walls to compartmentalize her life, soul, and heart. It was not unusual for someone who had endure such great trauma to lock it away, but Jenna's entire being had been fragmented. The soul was meant to exist as a single thing, and was weakened when so separated. The first castle looked to be made of plastic, with all the colors of the rainbow adorning it. It looked like something that could entertain and delight children forever, but it had a heavy lock on the door. The little windows were boarded up, and a moat was dug in the ground around it. The second castle was huge, and in many ways resembled a Gothic cathedral, similar in style if not scope to Jenna's home. Storm clouds bubbled and boiled overhead, and the still of the plain was broken by the flash of lightning and the crack of thunder. There were two huge doors that led to the main hall, but Nessa saw no lock on them. The final castle was a bland and barren as the plain itself, made of steel and glass and lacking any definition or personality. The front gate of this castle was open, but there were no spectral people coming and going, but rather just an occasional shade, cast by nothing. The tower in the center was, in some ways, the most mysterious. It rose up to edge of Nessa's vision, and had no door to speak of. The stones appeared thick and heavy, and the air around it was surprising calm, almost warm. Far up on the wall of the tower was a single window emitting a faint light. Nessa looked around again. 'The first castle is her childhood,' Nessa realized. It would be a fight to open that lock, especially without a willing guide. Jenna's spirit self was not here, but that was not surprising. A soul divided against itself might not have enough power to manifest the whole person. In each castle, she would find part of the owner. The third castle was the present as it, like Jenna, was functioning yet lacking in color and ever searching for its own voice. Nessa could not guess as to the meaning of the tower, but the second castle . . . oh, that was all too obvious. The structure made her skin crawl just to look at it for a moment, but she knew that she had to do more than look at the outside. She needed to go in. She needed to see. So she made her way towards those imposing doors, trying not to flinch as the the lightning increased its sky-bound display, and the thunder rattled her to her bones. And as she touched the huge black door knocker, she heard the church bells toll. Nessa found herself in what appeared to be a normal, family home. Four people were sitting around a table, eating dinner and laughing. It was easy to tell that the teenage girl to the right of the adult male was Jenna, though her expression was so different. This Jenna was smiling and chuckling and making goofy faces at her brother across the table. The parents made half-hearted attempts to reign in their daughter, but they were smiling too broadly to be taken seriously. Then the doorbell rang, and the father got up to see who it was. Moments later, the others heard a thump of something hitting the floor. Before any of them could get up to check, a strange man walked in. He had a strange device in his hand, which he pointed at the mother. She dropped like a bag of stones when a dart struck her in the chest. The children screamed and tried to run. The man aimed at the little boy, who could not have been older than twelve or thirteen, but the dart stuck Jenna when she lunged in the way. Her sacrifice was in vain, as the man shot another dart shortly thereafter and hit the fleeing boy. The family were then loaded into a transport. Nessa saw a faint spirit floating nearby, as Jenna's spirit watched on. 'How many times have you gone over this in your head?' she wondered. 'You said you had nightmares. Are we about to see them?' The spirit Jenna did not seem to hear Nessa's thoughts. She simply vanished, drawing Nessa with her to another place. Nessa recognized the inside of the church where her guide now lived. The bodies were each taken to a trapdoor beneath the alter and carried down stairs to the basement, then secured to heavy wooden chairs around a table. All in all, it was a mockery of the familial setting they had been kidnapped from. The vampire stood next to spirit Jenna and watched as the family was woken up. This man . . . the Messenger . . . told them that they were sinners, but that he would save them. He would strip all other things away so that they would be ready for the rapture. But even as he spoke, his eyes were drawn time and time again to the angelic young face of the fifteen year old Jenna. What happened next came as a blur. The man tortured the whole family, including the children. He raped the mother and daughter, then performed similar acts on the father and son using broomsticks and other devices. he ripped out fingernails, broke arms, disfigured faces . . . Nessa was glad that she could not throw up in this form. She had seen evil many times, but she never got used to it. And this . . . this was evil by someone who loved his work. The sixth day had come, which was the day that the Messenger normally killed his victims. But for the first time, he changed his routine. He was enchanted by Jenna, who had pleaded and begged for every life but her own. Somehow, even the Messenger's demented brain saw nobility there. And that nobility sickened him, because it reminded a primal part of himself what he lacked. So he started working over the father, torturing him some more. This time, he spoke to Jenna. "Only you can end his pain," he told her. "Denounce his mortal love, and promise to love only the Lord, whom thou shall love through me." He moved on to the mother, then to Jenna's brother. Nessa was crying bloody tears in her spirit self as he hurt them so badly that one-by-one, Jenna begged for their release and for the Messenger's love. Their last days on earth had been savage, ended by their daughter who was so afraid of living without them. And when her brother breathed his last, the last glimmer of light in Jenna's eyes died. The Messenger kept Jenna for another month and a half past when her family died. He treated her as his wife which, for him, mean verbally berating her, taking her sexually over and over while all she could do was lie there, beating her and torturing her to his black heart's content, then left her lying on the floor, lacking the will or desire to move. Yet when the security forces came barging in after a tip from a suspicious neighbor clued them in, Jenna clung to her captor, screaming that she loved him. The Messenger had no intention of being taken alive, and had been gunned down with a teenage girl clinging to his leg. Social services had tried to calm her down, but she just screamed at them. She begged for salvation, then for forgiveness. Then just as suddenly as her outburst had begun, it stopped. Jenna just stared blankly at the world. Nessa almost screamed herself as she fled from the castle, wanting badly to escape what she had just seen and clean her mind of it. From the center of the stone circle near the tower, she looked back and saw the spirit Jenna looking out at her. Their gazes met for a moment, and the spirit looked desperate . . . lonely. 'I can't leave her there,' Nessa thought. She ran back to the doors, a motion that seemed to inspire fear. The spirit began to sink back into the depths of the castle, but Nessa caught her. "You don't have to go back there," Nessa said, reaching a hand out to her hostess. "You don't have to face it alone." Spirit Jenna nodded, indicating that she did. "No. That isn't you, or at least not all of you. Stay here. Help me unlock the rest of you." Nessa stepped forward and took the spirit Jenna's hand. It felt soft, like the sides of a balloon rather than flesh and bone. "I'll keep you safe," she promised. More than anything else she had ever said that she could remember, Nessa wanted to keep that promise. The spirit Jenna's hand became more solid, and Nessa drew her close, holding her like their physical bodies were joined. Nessa touched her lips to the spirit Jenna's neck -- Nessa came back to the waking world with a gasp, her teeth still buried in Jenna's neck. Jenna was trembling. It was as if her body wanted to break down and cry, but had long since forgotten how. Nessa sent her body's natural endorphins down her fangs and into Jenna's bloodstream. Slowly, the tremors and shakes died off and Jenna was breathing slow and steady. "Stop doing that," Jenna said, but her tone did not reflect her words. She sounded relaxed. Nessa gave one last influx of happy-juice, then withdrew her fangs. "You're safe with me, you know that right?" "I'm never safe. No one near me is safe," Jenna whispered, her voice hazy and mild now. "People near me die." "I'm hard to kill," Nessa replied. Soon, Jenna was asleep, knocked out by the sedative mixed in with Nessa's blood cocktail. Normally she would throw in something to fuck up short-term memory, but she needed Jenna to remember. She needed Jenna to know that she had been with her in that place and had kept her safe. ------------- ------------------- Many hours later . . . ------------- ------------------- Jenna awoke with a start. She was not in her sleeping tube, something she had not done since she was in the service. She was in an enormous, soft bed, under the silkiest sheets she had ever felt. And she was naked. She tried sitting up, but there was an arm draped over her body. She slowly turned her head and saw Nessa lying there, smiling in her sleep. She was perfectly still, almost as if she were -- "Dead," Avery said from a nearby chair. "She always sleeps like the dead." Jenna had almost twitched out of her skin when she heard a voice, pulling the covers up to hide her nakedness. "What the hell am I doing here?" she whispered, trying not to disturb the other woman. 'What happened last night?' she thought. "You don't have to whisper," Avery told her. "You could drop a brick on that woman's head, and it wouldn't wake her up. To answer your unasked question, there was no sex or taking advantage. She thought her presence might help you sleep as well. So she brought you back here so that I could brief you when you woke up. You don't sleep much, do you?" "Four hours is all we need," she replied. "Damn. I need some of what you're on. In the meantime, there's coffee brewing in the kitchen if you want some. Clothes on the nightstand next to you. When you're dressed and comfortable, we'll talk." He turned and walked to the other side of the room. Jenna was surprised by a number of things. One, she felt more rested than she had in . . . well, as long as she could remember. Two, she was not completely freaking out like she thought she should be. Three, she was amazed by how beautiful Nessa was in her sleep. 'What the hell are you thinking?' she wondered as she grabbed the pile of clothing and ducked behind a conveniently arranged dressing screen. The uniform was similar to her old one in that it was a body stocking. This one, however, was a little tighter in certain areas than Jenna thought appropriate. On the plus side, there was body armor sewn into it, and it was the most hi-tech stuff known. It did not cover quite as much (in more ways than one) but it was very maneuverable. But were the blue breast cups really necessary? "Where's . . . uhm, Anabella? she asked when she finally worked up the nerve to approach Avery again. He was seated on the sofa with some files on the coffee table in front of him. "She doesn't exist right now. Go grab some coffee and we'll get started." "What do you mean 'doesn't exist' right now?" Jenna asked, pouring herself some liquid life. "Banshee's don't exist in the corporeal world from sunrise to sunset. Vampires just tend to get really drowsy." "That explains her," Jenna said, looking back at the bed. "No, normally they're just sleepy like humans are at night. She just sleeps like a college student after an all night beer bash." "And she and I . . . there was no --" Avery looked at her meaningfully. "No. I can't tell you everything about her, so you'll have to ask her for anything about herself. I will say that she has never, to my knowledge or to Anabella's knowledge, ever taken advantage of someone like that. She has never coerced anyone to her bed and looks unfavorably towards any employee that would." Jenna felt immensely relieved. "So what is all this?" she asked, sitting down across from Avery. "This are the files of Nessa's financial empire. She likes to keep hard-copies of everything, just in case the computers go down. She wants you to understand her assets and the structure of her organization so that you can better help utilize it to combat the enemy." "How many businesses does she own?" Jenna asked, looking at the large stack of papers. Avery shot her an amused look. "If I were just going to tell you, then I would not have brought all the files." Jenna started shifting through the paperwork. She was an incredibly fast reader and had a near photographic memory, so she was going through much faster than Avery apparently expected. Nessa's businesses were extensive. She owned four clubs besides Devil's Night, all of which were geared towards humans. She also owned a five-star restaurant called the Stone Table, where a dinner cost more than most people earned in a week. And apparently Nessa was the shadow owner of Fortune Favors, the most successful casino on the East coast, as well as Alchemist Pharmaceuticals. Jenna saw Nessa's net worth, and finally just stopped counting zeroes and put the files back down. "She's had a lot of time on her hands," Avery explained. "She is easily the equal of any CEO in the country, but none of them even know she exists. Now here," he added, putting another stack of files on the table, "are her employees and informants." It took Jenna well into the afternoon to digest all the information that she was being given. She still had an hour before she had to be at her coffee spot, but she was getting edgy. "I'm surprised that she hasn't found us by now. This is impressive." "We never thought to look for a top secret government organization creating fake vampires. We probably could find more on our own, but we simply don't have the time, and Nessa was unwilling to start off by utilizing the tactics that have been so effective for her adversary, Mr. Garon Pegg." "I heard. I'm sorry that it came to this. I never imagined that . . . well, I never imagined any of this." "I understand," he said. "I've known about the Night Breeds all my life, so I sometimes forget what a shock it can be. But now Garon has a head start on us, so I need everything that you can tell me about your organization." Jenna's mouth opened, then shut. Then opened. Then shut. Telling him would mean she had truly turned against the Nightwalkers, but not telling him would mean more meaningless deaths. Realizing that she had already effectively committed treason -- "Okay, there are seventy-eight Nightwalkers, each named after a card in a Tarot deck," she began. She told him everything she could think of about the organization, even about Death, though she respectively asked not to reveal his real name. Avery understood. "Actually, I can contact Death and let him know what is happening. Better yet, do you still have the body of the Nightwalker who was captured?" "Yes, we've got it on ice in the basement. Why?" "Tonight, find an out-of-the-way place and put the body there. I'll communicate the location to Death, and he can find it. At least then the Nightwalkers will be on their guard." "Excellent idea," he said approvingly. "I'll set it up. So can we count on your support?" Jenna put her coffee down. "Well, my life is pretty much over anyway. I might as well try and make something good come of it." Avery did not bother to contradict her, though he suspected that her life was simply getting started after a long delay rather than ending. "You and Nessa had a good communication then?" "Is that the word for when she went traipsing around my mind?" "Yes." "Then yes, we 'communicated.' I'm not sure I would call it good. I . . . She shouldn't have seen that. No one should ever see that." "Jenna, Nessa is thousands of years old. Do you really think that there is a horror that she hasn't seen? Hundreds of thousands of Night Breed, many of them her friends, have been slaughtered through the years, often for simply being caught up in mankind's many struggles and wars. She has endured a great deal of pain herself, though nothing compared to what you went through." 'What I went through,' she thought. 'That's a polite way of putting it.' "Okay, I guess I've got the basics. Listen, I have to run an errand. I'm going to be able to get a hold of my contact in the Nightwalkers --" She paused, still uncomfortable with the notion of speaking of her unit from the perspective of an outsider. "That isn't a problem, is it?" "You mean are we worried about you betraying us or running off?" "Well, yes." "I am," Avery said calmly. "I think that Nessa is putting too much trust in you too quickly. But Nessa is the boss, and I've learned to respect her judgment over the years." He stood up, grabbing the files as he did so. "Throw some clothes on over your body armor, and be back before sunset. We have a long night ahead of us. Oh, and tell your friend to go patrolling down near the aquarium. He'll find your fallen comrade there." "I'll tell him. And Avery --" "Yes?" "Thank you for being honest with me." He smiled. He wondered what it had cost her to thank someone for admitting that he did not fully trust her. "You're welcome." ----------- ------------------ That night . . . ----------- ------------------ "This is barbaric," the Fool said, looking down at the corpse that had been left in an alley not far from the Home Depot Aquarium. Death decided not to mention that it was the exact same thing that the Fool would have done to a captured vampire if he had gotten the chance. "Barbaric." "And these look like dog prints, admittedly from a large dog," Death said. Empress . . . Jenna . . . had told him that it would probably be set up to look like something other than vampires. After all, it had been done by something other than vampires. "Werewolves," the Fool said. "I mean, why not? If vampires are real, and you said that the Empress mentioned 'others,' it is conceivable --" "This is much bigger than we thought. Take the Five of Swords back to base and have an autopsy done, however obvious the cause of death." The Fool's face developed into a wicked visage. "And I'll call the DoD." "Sir, bring in the Department of Defense to help deal with magical beings? Isn't that going to get you a psych evaluation on a good day?" "Because they aren't magical. Some corporation figured out what was going on and decided to cash in on the whole ancient monster come to life notion. We figured it was only a matter of time. With the right massaging, we could even set up one of the less scrupulous biotech companies. Kill two birds with one stone." "Frame an innocent company?" "They're not innocent. We just have not gotten enough 'evidence' yet," the boss said, making air quotation marks. "Indeed. What do you want the rest of us to do?" "We're being hunted by dogs? We set bait." -------- ----------------- Elsewhere . . . -------- ----------------- This was not what Jenna had been expecting when she had been called to a "midnight meeting." Strategy, yes. Tactics, probably. Dinner . . . not so much. Then she thought that they were just going to discuss business over dinner. Again, not so much. And when she assumed that she would just be wearing her new uniform -- Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 03 "Oh no, not at the Stone Table," Anabella had told her. "Don't even mention that to Nessa. She might lose that five-star status if one of the delivery guys show up in anything less than tux, so there was a definite dress code. And that literally meant a dress. Jenna did not own a dress, therefore asked to be excused. No dice. And as it turned out, personal grooming had long ago failed to be a priority for Jenna, something which Nessa found unacceptable. She was given some hair removal cream and sent to the shower, while Nessa would have her guest a new dress sent over. Jenna wanted to object, and then wanted to know how Nessa knew here measurements. One look at that saucy vixen's face, and Jenna swallowed her objections and headed to the shower. At least Nessa did not insist on joining her there. Her boss was . . . clingy. She was also stunning in a tight red dress that was cut low enough to entice but not to offend. Much. The end result was Jenna, stuck into a blue designer dress that fit her like a glove, was tasteful, and made the Nightwalker incredibly uncomfortable. "Where do I put my gun?" she asked. "You don't need a gun," Nessa replied. "Security at the Stone Table is exemplary. I eat there after all, and it would do no good to have me being killed and all." She saw a distressed look on Jenna's face, so she forced a sigh. "Okay, get a shoulder holster and I'll find a dinner jacket to go with it. Which is a shame, because you have very shapely shoulders. And your neck is --" "I'll take the jacket," Jenna replied. Her neck tingled when Nessa looked at it. Or talked about it. Jenna was pretty sure it tingled when her boss thought about it. Then Jenna, Anabella, Avery, and Nessa went off to the restaurant, with Avery driving of course. It was the most ridiculously posh place that Jenna had ever seen. Nessa almost had to restrain her from breaking someone's arm when he offered to take her jacket. "Please don't," Nessa told her. "The maitre d' is a werecat and a model employee." "Werecat?" "He's can change into a lion. I have five werecats working here, two dragons . . . they can take human form, so stop looking around . . . a plethora of spell-casters, and a weaver." "Weaver?" "Yeah, the chef is a spider-like . . . thing. You really have to meet Claude to understand." Dinner was extravagant. Jenna was used to food coming in bar and supplement form, and it had been a long time since she had eaten food simply to enjoy eating. "Seriously?" Nessa looked perplexed that after staring at a menu for twenty minutes. "You have no idea?" "I don't know what any of this is," Jenna replied, frustrated by her apparent inability to find what appetizer she wanted. "Can't I just have what you're having?" "A glass of blood from a Columbian nun?" Jenna stared at her. "You're not kidding, are you?" "I pay a pretty penny to have some shipped in. I have Brazilian dancer on tap, if you prefer." "Boss," Avery growled, looking towards the door. They all turned and saw Garon Pegg standing next to the maitre d'. The werelion glanced over his shoulder at Nessa and shrugged. Garon, Simon, and four others strolled in and stopped at Nessa's table. Everyone stayed seated, though Jenna wanted to stand so she could be ready to throw down. "I don't recall your name on the guest list," Nessa said calmly. "Actually, I remember banning your name from any guest list." "Unless you're going to remember the name of every werewolf in this town and ban them all, I'll always have an available spot. Did you get my package?" "Yes. I find myself cleaning up after you yet again." Nessa could not resist adding, "Of course someone must, as you no longer have a woman around the house to do so." Jenna watched every muscle in Garon's body tense. "I have long since replaced that bitch." Then he looked at Jenna. "Of course, I could always find a proper replacement," he said, his voice soothing now. "I see that you've upgraded your taste. I think she would look better on my arm than yours. Certainly better than that other hag you hang out with." Anabella tossed by a shot of Scotch. "Sorry, was the puppy barkin' at me? Where's a rolled up newspaper when I need one?" Jenna noticed that this time, it was Avery who was tensing up. Apparently, he did not like unkind words being spoken about the banshee. "Make no mistake," Garon continued, "once I solve this problem, the Council will be forced to acknowledge that you were unable to do your duties as sheriff. Who knows, perhaps they will give me control of the territory as well." "Never going to happen," Nessa replied. "One, you're an egomaniacal mutt who's bark is much more impressive than your bite." Nessa was counting off on her fingers by that point. "Two, you always underestimate women. Three, I've got resources you can't imagine. Four, my business assets are untouchable, and you know it." "Yes, but personnel would be transferred to the new sheriff." He looked at Jenna again, devouring her flawless skin and angelic face with his eyes. "I'm sure I could find many positions for some on your staff." He reached his hand out and stroked a strand of Jenna's hair. She promptly grabbed his hand, put it on the table, and stabbed it with a shrimp fork. The following chaos had to be broken up by a dozen or so high-powered members of the restaurant staff, as well as by Garon's attendants. It took both Nessa and Anabella to keep Jenna from gouging Garon's eyes out with the broken stem of a wineglass. "Calm down girl," Nessa whispered as she kept her new employee pinned to the floor. "You know, if you really didn't want to come, you could have just said so." "He shouldn't have touched me," Jenna hissed. "You and your new pet will pay dearly for this," Garon snarled as he was escorted out of the restaurant. After a minute, Nessa decided it was safe to let Jenna up. She summoned a waiter over, and quickly spread the word that everyone's meal would be comped for the evening to make up for the distraction. That seemed to alleviate some of the surprise and tension in the room. Nessa led a flustered Jenna to an office in the back and closed the door. "Okay, as much as I would have liked to do that myself, what were you thinking? We have rules in this world! Etiquette! Now it will look to the council that I can't control my own people." "They don't even know I exist, so how --" "I sent a communication last night when you slept. I have a lot riding on you," Nessa said, then she relaxed her tone. "And I really want you to be comfortable within my organization. I need you to control your temper. I've touched you, and you didn't try to kill ME with assorted cutlery." "You never touched me like that," Jenna said before she lost her nerve. "Like what?" "Like I didn't really matter. Like I was just a means to an end." 'Fuck,' Nessa thought. 'She saw him as the Messenger. This is your fault too,' she reminded herself. 'You've let that djinn out of its bottle, so now you have to deal with it.' "I'm sorry," Jenna was explaining. "I've never lost it like that." Her skin felt flushed with humiliation and anger. "It's okay. Listen, part of this is my fault. Me probing around in your head probably reminded you of things you otherwise would have left buried. But I think the best thing is to conquer all those things, because you're divided against yourself. When we get back, I want to go in again." "What?! No! I can't --" "When was the last time you slept that well?" Nessa asked. "Avery said you looked relatively relaxed when you woke up. When was the last time you ever let anyone in?" She took Jenna's hands gently. "I'm not like them," she said. "I don't want you to hurt. I just want to see what you're capable of. You, together." Jenna's eyes felt like burning, a sensations she was not familiar with. At least, not anymore. "I just want to sleep without the nightmares," she whispered. "You will," Nessa replied, brushing a strand of hair away from the woman's face. "See? Letting people touch you isn't so hard. Now lets go back out there, I'll help you find something to eat, and we'll figure out how to make Garon Pegg miserable." "And stop the slaughter of the Nightwalkers," Jenna replied, smiling just a little bit. "Young woman, you need to learn to prioritize," Nessa said, taking her companion by the arm and leading her back to the table. Dinner turned out to be rather productive after their interruption. Jenna had Cornish game hen with some kind of potato side-dish which was not bad at all, and Nessa was afraid she was going to have to pry the chocolate cake away from her new employee's cold dead fingers. Every now and then, Jenna actually seemed like . . . well, a girl. She was still at her most calm when she was planning. The next night, she was going to be introduced to the rest of the street sweepers, which was slang for Nessa's security forces. Nessa was going to try and find out what her old boss was up to. "He's got to know that he's outnumbered," she muttered, looking at a map of the city that had been called up on the table display. "And the only place he can get reinforcements is from the DoD. Now, I don't know if he thinks that he's facing one force or two, but my bet is he'll plan for two. We need to find out what he's planning on feeding his superiors, and how that we can interrupt." "This is a mess," Nessa said sadly. "The whole point was to avoid a conflict just like this." "We can still contain the fallout," Jenna muttered. "Do we know where Pegg is rallying his forces?" "Glicker's house. The local pack leader is obligated to host a more dominant wolf. It's their way." Avery rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Is there any chance of a Nightwalker revolt on this one?" Jenna flushed a bit. She was almost embarrassed to admit it, but, "I don't know. I was apparently not well liked by my peers." "Who of them do we need to worry about?" "I don't know. I mean, I doubt Nessa would have many problems with them considering her power." "I am an anomaly," Nessa said. "I'm one of the oldest of my kind, and there aren't many blood vampires anyway. I'll set up a sparring match with one of the werecats tomorrow for you. They're a little more powerful than the werewolves one on one, but they're pretty much the toughest thing that the Nightwalkers might face." "Okay, then I'll hazard to guess that any of the Major Arcana will be worth being concerned with, and the Minor Arcana could be if you let them choose their ground. They're still twice as strong and fast as normal people. If you see anyone with a beret on during the fight, that would be the Fool. He's dangerous. Also, if you see someone carrying a noose, be very careful." "The Hangin' Man?" Anabella asked. "Yes. You're familiar with the Tarot?" "Enough ta know that there's power in those names. Did ya know that in the old decks, there weren't always no 'Fool' card?" "Really?" "Yeah, I think it was the Italians that had a card in its place called 'The Traitor.' Not a good sign, though the Fool trumps everything." "And you were . . .?" Avery asked, letting his voice trail off. "The Empress," she responded, more than a little wistful. "Well now you're Jenna Owens. I think that's a pretty good title as well," Nessa added, raising her glass. They toasted, but Jenna's mind was on track. "Hanged Man is the enforcer for the Nightwalkers. Rank was given based on how much bioengineering a participant was able to endure. The Hanged Man scares the other Nightwalkers." "Good to know," Nessa said. They spent the next hour planning and dining, then they headed back to Devil's Night. Jenna was not sure what was supposed to happen. She half-wanted to go back to her church and the familiar protections it offered, but half of her . . . that half craved the deep, restful sleep that she had enjoyed last night. How sad was it that sleeping without nightmares could mean so much? Avery and Anabella made themselves scarce as soon as they got back to the club. Jenna wanted to go to the bar to get coffee. Nessa raised an eyebrow and pulled her towards the stairs. "Shouldn't we patrol? Pegg is going to be on a warpath --" "You stabbed him with a silver fork. He'll have silver poisoning for the next few days, so he's not doing anything." "But we should look in on the Nightwalkers --" "I've had their base watched since you told me where it is. Looks like they're getting ready to scramble." "It's a defensive protocol. I've got a number of possible back-up locations memorized --" "They'll pick someplace new because you've been compromised." Nessa stood very close to Jenna, but did not touch her. She was giving her a way out if she really wanted to take it. "I'm not like them," she whispered warmly. "I won't force you to do anything. I won't hurt you. I won't take more than you are willing to offer. I promise you that." If Jenna had not had a physical recently, she would have thought something was wrong with her heart. It was going far to fast, even for a rabbit on cocaine. "Why are you so afraid of me?" "Why aren't you afraid of me?" Jenna replied. "People around me die." "I'm already dead," Nessa reminded her. "Sort of. And I've seen things a lot more worthy of fear than a beautiful woman in a sexy dress who can wage war with cutlery. Actually, that last part is kind of scary." Nessa was shocked when she saw Jenna's mouth curl up just a little as she attempted to suppress a smile. Nessa led Jenna by the hand into the darkness of her apartment. Suddenly, the fireplace flickered to life. "Magic?" Jenna asked. "No, just automation. It lights when I'm in the room for more than thirty seconds." In the warm glow of the firelight, she let her dress slide to the ground. "The magic is still to come." "I . . . I can't -" "Shh," Nessa said. "I'm not asking for that right now. This just works better the closer I am to you." Jenna thought back to her earlier indecision, but this time she made a choice. With unusually nervous hands, she removed her jacket and holster. She saw approval in Nessa's eyes, and that made it easier to removed her own dress. Jenna had underwear on, or at least a few bits of cloth that claimed to be underwear. Nessa had only a thong on, and she made it work for her. The vampire moved to the bed and built up a pile of pillows, then lay back on them. She pulled Jenna towards her, until the Nightwalker's back was nestled against Nessa's pillowy breasts. Nessa leaned her charge's head to the side and exposed her neck again. "Shh," she whispered again. "Just think of a time when you felt safe. Think of a time that you were happy," she added. Nessa waited a moment, then sank her fangs back into Jenna's neck. The scenery had not changed since Nessa's last visit. The second castle still loomed ominously against the sky of Jenna's mind, but the spirit Jenna stood outside now instead of waiting within. She looked afraid, and obviously did not want to go into that place alone. Yet she hung on to the front door as if admittance was a given. That place was drawing her back, as it had been for so many years. Spirit Jenna looked at Nessa, and appeared as if she wanted to smile. But then her face was drawn back to the doors. Nessa needed to free all of her friend in order to save her. She put her fingers to her lips and then pointed them at the spirit woman. That Jenna turned back, looking confused. She touched her own lips. Nessa approached the plastic castle, the brightly color panels starkly contrasted by the heavy padlock, looping chains, and the plywood over the tiny windows. She found herself wishing for a bottle labeled "Drink me," but none was forthcoming. She was tempted to rip off the plywood, but she would not fit through those windows anyway. She stood up, looking at the large children's playground. 'Playground,' she thought. 'This is a child's design. What way in might a child not think of? Hmm, castles have courtyards, and courtyards don't have ceilings.' Hoping that she could still fly in the world of Jenna's mind, Nessa leaped from the ground . . . and floated to the center of the castle. The moment her feet hit the ground, Nessa was in a new place, and it was not a castle. It was a backyard, complete with play set and a small pool, a barbecue grill and a doghouse. In a lawn chair, a man was sitting with a book in his hand. Nessa recognized him as Jenna's father. And as if on cue, a nine-year-old Jenna came out into the yard with a steaming cup of coffee. She handed the cup to her father, then nestled against him in the chair and started reading the book with him. He smiled at the top of her head. He offered her a sip of coffee, which she took, then made a face. 'That's why she drinks it now,' Nessa realized. 'It was something that she shared with him.' Nessa wandered into the house and saw the mother and brother watching television. Nessa soon found Jenna's room, and the younger Jenna was there as well. 'Well, it's her mind,' Nessa thought. Young Jenna was lying on the bed, typing in her laptop and oblivious to Nessa's ethereal presence. The young girl was fifteen now and she was typing a message to a friend. Apparently, she was a good friend . . . a girl named Tanya. Nessa felt vaguely guilty about looking over Jenna's shoulder, but what better way than to find out the character of a fifteen year old girl. She typed something about classes and being Freshmen, which was "totally" unfair. They talked about vacation plans and celebrity news. Jenna tried to discuss some more mainstream corporate stuff, and was promptly labeled a "square." Nessa had not known that kids still used that expression. Maybe it was retro. Then Jenna looked nervous. Tanya had typed, *Maybe we should talk. You know. About what happened.* *I'm sorry,* Jenna typed back. *I didn't mean to do it. It just happened.* *I'm not mad at you. I was just surprised. So, was I good?* Nessa saw something that she would not have believed possible. Young Jenna was blushing. *You were okay.* But at least she was smiling. *You know how it is.* *Better or worse than Nathan?* *I'm not gonna kiss and tell!* *No, you're just going to kiss your BFF in the locker room and then run home before you can talk to her about it.* Jenna blushed again. *I don't know what happened. I just looked at you and this thing came over me and I had to.* *I'm not complaining. But the next time, warn me. I'll give you a kiss that makes Nathan's smooches look pathetic.* Young Jenna's eyes opened wide. *You mean --* she typed, and then she waited. After a few seconds, she got a response. *Yeah, I mean.* Young Jenna was up off her bed and dancing around like a madwoman. Then she heard her mother yelling that it was time to come for dinner. Jenna hurriedly typed that she would communicate later, then logged off. She danced down the hallway to the dinner table, and to what Nessa considered an all too familiar scene. The doorbell rang like a church bell, and Jenna's father was like a zombie. He was walking towards the front door while Jenna screamed at him not to do it. She clung to his hand in an attempt to slow him while digging in her heels, but he moved inevitably forward. He reached the door and opened it. On the other side were shadows and teeth, glowing eyes and a preacher's collar. This was Jenna's nightmare man . . . the Messenger. The whirlwind of malice started to make its way inside, destroying Jenna's father in a flurry of slashes and a fountain of blood. Nessa tried to move and intervene, but it was like her feet were stuck to the floor. She could not help save any of them. This had happened, and there was no undoing it. The monster ate Jenna's mother next, then clawed through her little brother. Jenna tried clinging to each of them, but the were pulled out of her hands and destroyed. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 03 Finally, the nightmare came for Jenna herself. But when it tried to cross the threshold completely, Jenna's mouth opened and she screamed. The spirit Jenna from the other castle, namely the one that Nessa had already visited, came out of her younger self's mouth like a fog. Spirit Jenna charged the monster, driving it back through the door. Suddenly, Nessa's feet were released and she hurried forward. Spirit Jenna was trying to the nightmare away, protecting young Jenna. Nessa ran to young Jenna's side while the young girl had her head buried in her hands, crying her eyes out. "Come on," Nessa told the quivering young thing, "we have to escape." "No! I can't leave. If I leave, it'll get me. It always gets me" 'Oh poor thing,' Nessa thought, 'How many times have you lived this?' "I won't let it get you. It has done all the damage that it can do. Now, you have to leave. You have to help yourself fight that thing." Young Jenna looked up, her ghostly eyes displaying her fear and anguish very clearly. "I can't." "You must," Nessa said, "or this will never end. You need to help yourself now, or it will come back every night and hurt you all over again." She looked at the cloud of evil. "That's what took your family away from you. You can't let it get you too." Young Jenna struggled to her feet. She was so afraid that it broke Nessa's heart to watch as she looked around. The girl picked up a chair from her dining room set, and swung it at her tormentor. In the blink of an eye, they were back outside. Young Jenna stood next to spirit Jenna, staring surprised back towards the plastic castle. Nessa understood it now. In order to protect her own innocence, Jenna had tried to lock her own childhood away. But no matter how she had tried, the Messenger had still accomplished what he had set out to do. He had broken Jenna in two. For the first time, that childhood had stood on its own. The two Jenna's looked at each other, then at Nessa. Nessa watched the two halves start to meld. The resulting shade looked more like the Jenna that Nessa knew, only more . . . well, more human. The new Jenna walked over and touched the lock on the door to the plastic castle,and the padlock crumbled to dust. The chains soon followed. Jenna turned to Nessa and forced a shy smile. The vampire's spirit self stepped forward and embraced Jenna, and noticed the girl seemed more solid. Nessa's eyes closed and her mouth turned to latch on to Jenna's neck again -- The vampire was back in the real world, her mostly nude form still pressed close against Jenna's. But her mouth was no longer on Jenna's neck, as the taller woman had turned her head a little further than expected. Their lips touched gently, then connected more firmly. Nessa's tongue traced her companion's lips, then slipped inside just a small bit. For Jenna, her senses were so alive. It was like going from hypothermia to lying on a sandy beach in mid-summer. Her body did not know how to handle it, but her lips remembered. They remembered a stolen kiss in a girls' locker-room fifteen years earlier. That kiss had been good. This kiss was amazing. And it went on for a full minute before Jenna realized what she was doing. "No," she whispered, "I can't --" "You can," Nessa breathed. "As a matter of fact, you seem to be pretty good at it for an amateur." She let Jenna create some separation between the two, though was encouraged that Jenna did not move too far. She did pull up a pillow to cover herself though. "So, whatever happened to Tanya?" Jenna just stared for a moment. What had happened in her head was more dreamlike for her than it had been for Nessa, so it took some time for her to piece things together. "You . . . you saw her?" "I saw you typing to her. She meant a lot to you?" Jenna looked away. At that time, Tanya had meant close to everything to her. "Yeah, I guess." "Guess? You kissed her and then did a happy dance when you found out she wanted to do it again." "You didn't need to go there," Jenna told her. "That has nothing to do with anything." "It has to do with you, therefore it matters. You're a living breathing human being." Jenna shook her head. "I used to be. He killed most of that part," she whispered. "I killed the rest." "No. He wounded it, and you buried it," Nessa countered. "It's still alive. All of you is still alive. So are you going to answer my question? About Tanya?" Jenna blushed. "She's living in the New York area now. She has a husband and two children." "So you did keep in touch with her?" Jenna shook her head. "I never spoke to her again. How could I? She deserved a life. I didn't." "You did and you still do," Nessa said, crawling over the bed towards Jenna. The blonde beauty tried scooting away, but it proved difficult to do with nothing but a pillow, bra, and panties preserving one's modesty. "Tell me the truth. Did you enjoy kissing me?" The Nightwalker blushed. "More than anything." "Good. Because I'm going to do it again. And again. We won't do anything that you're not ready for. I won't hurt you. I won't let you be afraid of me. I won't make you cry --" "I . . . I haven't cried for fifteen years." Nessa's eyes opened. "Not once?" "Never. One of the many things that proves that there's something wrong with me." Nessa pushed Jenna over backward and pulled the pillow away. She could hear the girl's blood pumping and her heart racing, and it turned on the predatory part of her. But that was not the part that Jenna needed. She needed Nessa to be a woman. Rather than lay down directly on top of her new companion, she lay half-on and half-off, her arm resting across Jenna's firm breasts. She did not grab or grope, but just let her flesh rest on Jenna's. "I'm going to kiss you now unless you tell me not to," Nessa said. 'Please don't tell me not to.' Jenna's mouth opened. Her body was so warm . . . feverishly warm. She felt safe, except for that look of longing in Nessa's green eyes. That longing was dangerous, because it threatened to draw her out into the open and away from the walls she had put up so long ago. She was a prisoner stepping out into the sunlight that she had not seen for half her life. She did not know what to do, and that terrified her. "You didn't say not to," Nessa pointed out, then touched her lips to Jenna's. 'So soft,' she thought as she traced the underside of Jenna's top lip with her tongue, then sucked on the bottom lip. "You taste so good," she breathed heavily, teasing her partner's lips relentlessly. "You taste like whiskey," Jenna replied, her mind attempting to cope with these unfamiliar sensations. Nessa pulled away for a moment and met the woman's eyes. "Whiskey?" "It's how I found you. You smell like smoke and whiskey." "So would you say that I'm intoxicating?" Nessa replied, wiggling her eyebrows. Low and behold, Jenna laughed. It was more of a gasping bark than a normal laugh, but it was still recognizable. Then her eyes opened wide as she realized what she had just done. Then she actually looked embarrassed. "That's the strangest laugh I've ever heard," Nessa said with a grin. "Do it again." "No! I mean I can't --" She let out a yip when Nessa ducked down and stroked the underside of Jenna's foot. "You wouldn't . . . I mean, we're grown ups and grown ups don't --" Jenna couldn't say anything at that point, because Nessa had begun tickling her feet like there was no tomorrow. Jenna was laughing so hard she could not breathe, and she tried crawling away. But Nessa clung to her like a tick, running her finger over the sensitive soles of her friend's feet. Jenna tried pushing away with her feet, but Nessa was too strong. If Jenna was going to get loose, she was going to have to hurt the vampire. She did not want to do that, so instead she hit Nessa with a pillow. 'Pillow fight with a woman in lingerie?' Nessa thought. 'I can do that.' She grabbed a pillow of her own and nailed Jenna. Every now and again, she forgot how strong she was, as this time she sent Jenna flying all the way to the end of the bed. "I'm sorry," she said, remembering her promise not to hurt Jenna. "I didn't mean --" She was cut off when a vindictive looking Jenna charged across the bed and nailed Nessa hard enough that it launched the topless redhead off the bed. "Oh, it's on now," Nessa replied. Both women were proficient in many forms of hand to hand combat and weapons-based martial arts. Neither of them had previously tried to bludgeon a woman in a thong into oblivion equipped with nothing but a Pacific Coast Down Surround jumbo pillow. Both women were willing and able to improvise. Nessa preferred power swings while Jenna gripped a corner of the pillow and used her reach advantage. Things escalated when the vampire hurled a comforter at her opponent. For a moment, Jenna was transformed into a scarlet ghost, mumbling some very unkind things. Nessa tried to close in for the victory blow, but Jenna jumped straight up in the air. "That's not something you see every day," Nessa muttered as the comforter jellyfish descended on top of her. Soon, she was being pummeled by a pillow while surrounded by satiny comfort. 'I really wish this comforter weren't the size of a small country,' she thought irritably as she got hit so hard she was spun around. The vampire made a run for it, putting bedspread and space between her and Jenna, quickly emerging into daylight. She proceeded to cheat and flew over Jenna's head, waiting behind her hapless opponent. When the Nightwalker emerged, Nessa pushed her from behind, rolled her over on the bed, then jumped on top of her. "And here we are again," Nessa said with a smile. It probably pissed Jenna off that Nessa was not even breathing hard. Of course, she rarely actually breathed, and that was mostly a reflex action. "Do you want me to kiss you again?" Jenna blushed, but she nodded. Her body felt so blazingly alive, and her mind . . . she felt free. For the first time in fifteen years, she did not feel weighed down by a thousand sins and regrets. Someone had walked those dark paths at her side the last few nights. How far could she trust Nessa? How far did she want to? Jenna met this kiss with softness, letting the more experienced woman's tongue tease Jenna's mouth open and slip inside, delicate as mist. She lost track of where Nessa's hands were, or where the moon was in the sky for that matter. But those hands made their presence known when they slowly traced their hands down her sides and touched the flesh of her butt, which was quite firm after years of training. "You're beautiful," Nessa said simply. "You're . . . warm," Jenna replied. Nessa chuckled and said, "Surprised? When a vampire gets excited, her blood starts moving again. I'm very, very excited." She punctuated each "very" with a kiss. Then she took Jenna's hand and placed it on one of Nessa's cup-overflowing breasts. Like a teenager in the back seat of a transport, Jenna fumbled with her hands, squeezing too hard at first and then cutting back until Nessa's faced demonstrated that she had found just the right pressure. She had only examined her own breasts for health reasons, so touching one just for the joy of it was a new thing. They were) full and heavy and begged to be fondled. Without even thinking about it, she touched one hard nipple with her tongue. "Oh yeah," Nessa said approvingly. She would have enjoyed some biting of the nipple as well, but that would probably be pushing her luck. She felt that hungry mouth move to her other breast, content to feast on her flesh for many minutes. "Turn about is fair play," Nessa said at last. She drew Jenna up to a seated position, then reached around and unhooked the woman's bra, pulling the satiny garment away to reveal pert, firm breasts. Pink nipples stood out proudly, begging for attention. It took every ounce of self control for Nessa not to just grab them and twist them. Jenna needed gentle. For now. So she kept her eyes on Jenna's while sucking one nub into her mouth, applying the most delicate of pressure. She took great delight in the pleasurable, almost surprised moan of her lover-to-be. "You can touch me all you want," Nessa assured the more nervous partner. "This is about making you feel good, so you can ask for anything too." She let her fingers walk across that rock-hard abdomen, feeling the goosebumps with her sensitive fingertips. Jenna had never imagined it would be like this . . . that it could be like this. She knew how strong Nessa was, so the woman's gentle touch was a pleasant surprise. But when one hand drifted to the top of the blue silk bikini panties, Jenna's body started to shake. "It's okay," Nessa said, pulling her hand away but now so quickly as to make it seemed panicked. "We can take it slow. We've got all night, or longer if you want." "You can really do this all night?" Jenna asked, slightly incredulously and slightly impressed. "Jenna, I once had sex for two weeks straight. Except for sleeping, of course. Sex is an amazing thing, or it can be." The Nightwalker blushed. She was not a child anymore, so she should be able to handle this. "I don't know what to do," she admitted. "Let me show you," Nessa replied. She got off the bed and chewed seductively on her bottom lip while peeling her rather damp thong off her body. "Your turn." Jenna did not think she could do sexy, so she raised her feet straight up in the air, scooted her underwear past her ass, then simply slid them up her legs. Without realizing it, she had done sexy quite well, at least in Nessa's opinion. 'Mama likes those legs,' the vampire thought. She grabbed one ankle and kissed it, then kissed her way down that long, toned leg. She kept to the outside, not wanting to make a move to the inside until Jenna seemed more comfortable with it. Even playing it safe, the woman shivered a bit when Nessa passed her hip. Her sexual center did not forgive or forget the damage Jenna had suffered. At least not easily. Nessa wanted nothing more than to make Jenna forget everything. And when her mouth found those excited nipples again, she thought that she might actually pull it off. 'Never stop!' Jenna's mind screamed as her breasts were wickedly, lovingly ravaged. How could she not have known that something as simple as a nipple could provide so many pleasurable sensations? "Like that, don't ya?" Nessa asked naughtily. "Just think of all the other things that I could do with my mouth." Jenna was thinking. Oh, was she ever thinking. "I want . . . I want --" She could not finish the words. Nessa kissed the blond woman, trying to draw the words out. Jenna's mouth was receptive, delicious, and soft. And it was learning. "Do you want me to make love to you?" Jenna's heart almost burst out of her chest. "Yes." "I'm going to touch you now," Nessa replied softly. She lay half-draped over Jenna like she had done earlier, close but not overbearingly so. She let her hand stray southward again, skimming that taut skin and firm belly until it approached the promised land. Jenna started to tremble again, so Nessa just let her hand rest on the woman's lower abdomen. "You don't have to be scared of me. If it gets too much, just tell me." She started moving her hand again, glad that Jenna's shakes were not so extreme. Nessa's hand reached Jenna's mound, but she did not push her fingers inside. Instead, she stroked that newly shaven mound, exciting the outer labia and coaxing it to wetness. The trembling stopped, and Jenna pushed her legs together as an unfamiliar feeling began to brew in her core. "How's that feeling?" Nessa asked. Jenna was breathing more heavily than when she had been fighting this woman. "Feels . . . incredible." "It gets better," Nessa promised. She rubbed small circles around the entrance to Jenna's pussy, then around the clitoral area. That got a very pleased reaction and a gasp from the Nightwalker. "Let me touch you," Jenna whispered huskily. Nessa smiled and rolled slightly more onto her side, then she took Jenna's hands and put it between Nessa's thighs. "Do what I do, or improvise. I think you'll get the hang of it." Then she started petting Jenna's kitty, finally allowing one finger to penetrate that moist cleft and then stroking with it. Jenna wanted to play, but she was going to have to wait a second. Nessa's initial attentions had already done their job. It had been a long time since she had orgasmed, but she knew what one was. This was one. She did not know what to do with her body, her hands, her voice . . . all she could do was let that explosion expand out from her core and run through her blood like wildfire. She started to moan, but Nessa's mouth found hers and captured the sound. "And that," Nessa said when her lover's body was back under Jenna's control, "is how it's done right." Jenna just lay there, silent in the aftermath. She had let someone touch her. Hell, she had encouraged it. She had also swore once that she would never do it again. Her eyes began to burn. Nessa had viewed many reactions from her lovers over the centuries, but not many had cried when she had brought them release. "Hey, it's okay. Listen, whatever it is I did wrong --" "You . . . you didn't," Jenna sniffed. How was she supposed to explain the relief that she felt. She had thought her body broken and soul gone, and now Nessa had shown both assumptions to be quite wrong. Nessa just held her lover until this outbreak of emotion passed. Much like the orgasm that preceded it, both acts were necessary for Jenna's healing. "You haven't cried since . . . him?" Jenna shook her head. "Did you want to stop?" Jenna shook her head again. Nessa lay on her back and moved Jenna's hand back to the vampire's smooth sex. "Then proceed at your own leisure." Jenna slowly started to stroke the slot as close as she could imitate to how Nessa had done it. But she also lowered her mouth to those voluminous breasts, enchanted by them in a way she could not explain. Boobs were fun. The vampire had been with tens of thousands of lovers in her life, and most of them were more adept than Jenna. But few if any of them had displayed such need that Nessa could not complain. And she seemed to like Nessa's tits, which gave her points in the vampire's book. Too many people overlooked breast-play, seeing the mammaries as something to drool over and fill out a sweater, not something that can bring great pleasure to their owner. Jenna's finger grew bolder and thrust themselves deeper into Nessa's body, drawing the wetness out. She wanted to feel the beautiful, flame-haired woman inside and out. She felt Nessa's hand threading its way between her thighs, penetrating her again. Jenna was kneeling next to her lover now, their eyes locked. Jenna realized that she was not proficient, but she took some delight from the simple acting of doing. For Nessa, all that was needed was the look in Jenna's eyes. For the first time, there was an intimate confidence there, and it was growing. So Nessa played it up a bit, reacting more to each pleasurable touch more than she normally might. "I'm new," Jenna said, her voice a bit dry, "not an idiot. Stop doing to the porn-vid routine. Please?" "Hey, I like porn-vids," Nessa replied, trying to look innocent. Well, as innocent as a naked vampire could look while getting fingered, but she did try. "I was going to star in my own series, but the Council forbade it." "You really like sex, don't you?" "Yes I do. Sex, fucking, making love . . . whatever variation you can think of, I've tried." Jenna looked concerned. "So this really isn't exciting you, is it?" Nessa humped her hips against Jenna's hand. "Yes, it is. Fucking, that I'll do with anyone. This is making love, and there's a difference. You're also one of the only people that I've been with in my home in my bed. That's not something I trust with just anyone." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 03 Jenna's fingers moved faster, and she felt Nessa's reciprocating. Whatever it was they were doing, it felt pretty damn good and she was continuing. She also felt comforted that she was basically in charge. Nessa was not going to give even the impression that she was in charge, though they both knew that the vampire was definitely orchestrating the whole thing. The Nightwalker turned her face to the ceiling and gasped as a second orgasm hit her. She would have thought that the second would be less intense than the first, but her sexual parts were still on high alert after the first climax, so it almost became too intense. She was so caught up in the tingling sensation that was everywhere in her body that she almost missed that Nessa was orgasming as well. Jenna had always seen Nessa as beautiful, but seeing her succumb to her passionate side was something else entirely. It was as if she put every ounce of energy she could produce into spreading the warmth through the entirely of her form. Perhaps she did, because she looked as joyful and content as anyone Jenna had ever seen. Nessa took Jenna's arm and pulled her down so that she cold taste those nervous lips one more time. "And that is the basic lesson for making love. And you are quite an apt pupil." "I don't think I can take much more of this," Jenna said. "Everything feels . .. well, everything feels." "Some women are more sensitive than others after they cum, and this was your first time." Jenna blushed, this time with some more closely resembling shame. "No, it --" "Yes it was," Nessa interrupted. "What happened before does not count as sex, fucking, making love . . . what that son of a bitch did was about abuse of power." Jenna started to collapse back in on herself. "But how could I love him then? I did. I had to." "No, you didn't. I promise you, you will feel love someday, and you will understand how different it is from what you felt before. You did what you had to do internally to cope, but you have to move past that now." She put a finger on Jenna's lips. "No more talking about him or what he did. Not tonight." She pulled Jenna under the covers and wrapped her up. "I don't want to own you. I just want to know you." "You know me better than anyone alive," Jenna said. It felt odd to be held in a such a protective manner, but it was also odd to be held at all. "You've seen inside my mind." "I've seen the essence of who you are, and the defining moments that made you put those walls up to protect yourself. There's more to you than that." Jenna felt a chill. "Nessa, I don't want you to go back in there." Nessa pursed her eyebrows. "Why? I thought you trusted me." "I do. Lord knows I do. But some things . . . some things I need you to let stay secret, at least for now." Nessa nodded. "Fair enough. I think you've started to cope, so I'll let you work through things on your own. But I need you now as an employee also. If you start to freak out again or give up --" "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Jenna traced the skin on Nessa's arm, marveling at the smoothness of that freckled skin. "Tell me more about you. You've been in my head, and my bite doesn't give me the wacky brain-drain ability." "What do you want to know? If you say 'Start at the beginning,' we'll be in bed for days. And as tempting as that is, we have work tonight." "Where were you born?" "Well we really didn't have a name for it back then, but it wound up being called a place called Musselburgh, Scotland. Actually, that was one of the first known established settlements in Scotland, though there were some others that didn't survive. Folks were decent enough I guess. Hunters and gatherers, the lot of us. I had a half-dozen siblings, most of whom didn't survive to their teens." "Do you miss them?" "Sometimes. I see folks with their families and realize that there are disadvantages to outliving your own. But I've put together a family or two along the way, so it balances out." "Scotland . . . is that where you met Anabella?" "She does have an accent, doesn't she?" Nessa laughed. "Yeah, I actually met her not long after I got Turned. Turned is what happens when a human gets changed into a vampire, by-the-by. Vamps can see the non-corporeals like banshees and ghosts and what-have-you, so I got to talking with her. She and I hit it off from the get go, and we've been best friends ever since." "Who turned you?" "A vampire who had actually come up from Greece," Nessa said, her mind stretching all the way back to the beginning of her second life. "He was just wandering around the world and came upon me and my kin tanning hides. He liked the looks of me I guess, and saw that I wasn't exactly enjoying my domestic lifestyle. He let me know what he was, asked if I was interested in becoming one, and I accepted. Turned out that he was just looking for a bed bunny and planned on disposing of me after a century or two." Jenna frowned in disapproval. "What happened?" "I killed him. Seriously, he was such a boozer that he let it slip what he was going to do to Anabella, she told me, then we offed him. Don't ask how. Let's just say it wasn't pretty." "Brutal?" "And a half. The world of the Night Breeds is like that." Jenna nestled into Nessa's body, letting herself feel comforted. She was tired of brutal, she was tired of not knowing who she could trust, and she was very tired of the loneliness. Nessa was doing so much to alleviate the latter two items, and the former was unlikely to change for her benefit. For the moment, she would have to be content. She had never been so adrift in her life. "Stop thinking," Nessa told her. "Plenty of time for that when you wake up." "I'm really not tired," Jenna replied. "I told you that I only need four hours a day." Ten minutes later, she was out like a light. ---------- ---------------- Elsewhere . . . ---------- ---------------- The Three of Cups was struggling to keep up with the rest of his troop, limping along with a bandaged knee. Out of the darkness, a half-dozen shapes jumped out of a hover-truck and charged towards him. The Three looked horrified for a moment as his attackers, all of whom seemed to be covered in a coarse hair and sporting impressive looking teeth, closed the gap on him with alarming speed. Then, the horror went away, as did the Three. Jet flames erupted from the the soles of his boots and he took to the sky. "What the hell?" one of the werewolves said. Another started looking around. "Trap!" Sure enough, the nearby roofs were suddenly lined with the entire Cups suit, all of whom were armed with nasty assault gear. But they were just there to hold the line. The muscle of the operation came out of four different alleys. The werewolves could tell that these were not lightweights. One of these commandos wore a skull emblem on his armor, and he held himself with great poise. A female figure had a pair of scales on her breast, while the third man had a pitchfork emblazoned on his armor. But it was the fourth man who had their attention. This man was a monster, even from the point of view of other monsters. He was nearly seven feet tall, and his armor could barely contain the powerful muscles that covered his body. His armor was completely black, but had no emblem. Instead, a noose made of white synthetic rope hung from his belt. And in a voice devoid of remorse or even the slightest hint of humanity, the man spoke. "We only need one of them alive." One of the werewolves launched himself at this figure, howling a battle cry that reverberated through the night sky. He was not going to go quietly into that night. But go he would. The man with the noose moved so quickly that even the werewolves' improved vision could barely keep up. He grabbed the wolfman by the throat, swung him overhead, and pounded him into the pavement with bone-crunching force. The werewolf was then pulled off the ground, kicked so hard in the back that his spine snapped, then was bludgeoned by a straight punch to the face while he was still floating in the air. The creature was dead before he ever hit the ground. The Hanged Man tilted his neck to one side until everyone hear a slight popping sound, then he tilted it the other way. "So," he continued in that almost robotic voice, "who's next?" -------------- ------------------ To be continued . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 04 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- Nigel had been careful to make sure that he was not followed when he left to meet with Jenna for coffee. He was surprised that she was sticking to her regiment, knowing that she was being hunted. After last night, she would need to be especially on guard. He walked right past her the first time and almost did not recognize her. Jenna was wearing color. Admittedly, it was a simple blue blouse, and the slacks were gray rather than black, but for Jenna it was the equivalent of wearing pink pastels. "What?" she asked. She started to fidget, feeling a little self conscious. This outfit wore comfortably over her body armor, but was confused why Nessa had ordered it for her and left a note requesting she wear it. Of course, after a few nights of the most restful sleep, and now one night of sexual exploration, Jenna found herself willing to entertain some of Nessa's ideas. "Just . . . nice outfit." Jenna glared at him. "Go order something." "Should I find out what you had first so that we can coordinate our coffees --" "I'm already on for treason, so killing you really does me no harm." "I'll go get coffee," Nigel said, bowing gracefully. He could not help but marvel at the slight smile that played across her beautiful face. Then that face turned to street, but something was different about her. She was actually seeing everything that passed by rather than looking through it. He ordered, waited the appropriate inordinately long amount of time, then returned to his seat. Jenna was on the phone, but hung up quickly when he approached. "Business?" Jenna just raised her eyebrows and took a sip. "Just so you know," she started, "the leader of the werwolves will be out of it for a few days." "Why?" "He got sick," Jenna said with a shrug. "Something he ate I suppose. But it means that faction is going to be a bit disorganized." "Apparently so," Nigel said. "Enough so that six of them fell into the Fool's trap." Jenna sighed. "This isn't good news is it?" "Let's just say that the Hanged Man got to stretch his killing muscles, and the Fool violated several anti-torture conventions. He's still taking the 'Corporate experiment' line with the masses, but the upper echelons of the Major Arcana all know. The prisoner gave up everything he knew about the so called Night Breeds, his boss, the Council, how new Night Breed are created . . . everything. He gave up the name Nessa McGowan without much hesitation. Your new boss?" Jenna nodded, not wanting to admit what else Nessa had become. "That would be her. Did he say how to find her?" "Just said 'The Devil's Night,' but he wasn't a local boy, so he couldn't really give directions." "I still need to warn Nessa. They'll need to be on alert." "Good thinking. Oh look, there's April," he said. His girlfriend had come outside and was breaking up a potential fight between two school boys. "Is she going to be able to handle it?" Jenna asked. "Don't underestimate her," Nigel assured her. "There is one more thing you need to know. The werewolf described Nessa in detail, and then he described you. He didn't know your name, but apparently all the werewolves are supposed to capture you if they can. Fool recognized the description, so he knows that you're with the enemy. So he's moving the TAACP and bringing in a load of DoD special forces to help out. And now he's looking into you." "What do you mean, 'looking into'?" "He's trying to access your past. I didn't know you had personnel files that were closed to him, but it's pissing him off. He wants to find something that will force you out of hiding and to surrender. You know too much about the program and you're too dangerous." Jenna's recently warmed heart froze all over again. If the Fool found out . . . No, she could never allow that. "Where are they moving the TACCP?" she asked, trying to keep her voice calm. While her voice was smooth and her heart cold, her brain was boiling with unspeakable rage. "Won't know until tonight. Jenna, don't do anything rash. Everyone is gunning for you, and you've become a special project for the Hanged Man. On the possibly bright side --" "The most lethal human being to ever walk the planet wants to kill me, and there's a bright side?" Jenna asked. Her mind was racing a mile a minute. She had never expected that it would come to this, but the Fool was rushing into where angels should fear to tread. "The Major Arcana is not all behind this plan. A third of them are supporting the Fool, about half are on the fence, but there's a few that want to go over the Fool's head and contact the DoD Secretary. It's tense." "Who's side are you on?" she asked softly. Nigel was rarely truly offended, but that question did it. "I've done everything I can to protect you --" "I know, I know," she replied bitterly. "I'm sorry." "The Fool believes we had a falling out because of the fight. I don't know how he knew about that, but he did. So he's trusting me --" "Or feeding you bad intel," Jenna countered. "You can't trust what he says, at least not completely." Nigel nodded. He had considered that himself. "All I can do is tell you what he tells me. We'll figure out what it means later." "This has gotten out of hand. All Nessa wanted was for the Nightwalkers to change tactics. This --" She waved at the world at large, "This is the worst case scenario. The Fool and others know about the Night Breeds, the werwolves are looking to exterminate all of you and possibly Nessa as well, and Nessa is running out of options. Hanged Man and DoD reinforcements be damned, I believe she'll kill every single one of you to keep this from getting any worse." "And here I was thinking things were awfully dull around here." "Not funny," Jenna said. "Not funny at all." They finished their coffee, chatted idly about other things, but Jenna's mind was not in the conversation anymore. She was contemplating her next step. She had to kill the Fool. Tonight. --------- --------------------- Later that evening . . . --------- --------------------- Jenna was just sliding the last of her armament into place when Avery wandered into the armory. "Jenna, I've been looking all over for you. I got . . . What the hell are you doing?" He looked at the woman who had changed so much over the last several days, but this Jenna scared him a bit. She was literally armed to the teeth. She had a laser pistol on one hip and a slug-thrower on the other. Knives were sticking out of both of her boots and two more were in her arm sheaths. She had a sniper rifle and an assault rifle slung to her back, and she had crisscrossing bandoliers of plasma grenades. To top everything off, she was carrying a Vulcan fully-automatic laser cannon. All of this told Avery one thing. Jenna had killing on her mind. "I'm going out." "Not until you explain what the hell you're doing. Is there some small country you were planning on invading?" "No. Things are getting out of control. I'm going to put them back in control." "With no backup or explanation?" "Something like that." He looked her over, but did not get out of her way. "Got a call today from some guys at the precinct. They promised to give me a holler whenever a key word or request gets floated their way. Today, I got a message saying that some mysterious government agency was poking around some classified files that I had recently shown an interest in. Your old case files." Jenna grabbed Avery by the shirt and lifted him off the ground. "Who? When?!" "What the hell's going on here?" Nessa asked, walking naked and sleepy-headed into the room. "Jenna, what's with all the guns?" 'Fuck!' Jenna though. She had wanted to be gone by the time Nessa woke up. "There's something that I have to do," she said, putting Avery down. "Mind telling me what?" Jenna knew that she could not lie, but maybe she could omit. "I'm going to kill the Fool." Nessa looked wary. "Why?" Jenna recited her conversation with Death earlier, downplaying the part about the Fool looking into her past. "This is going to get worse before it gets better. With the Fool dead, they'll send someone else, and hopefully they'll be more reasonable. If they promote Death, then we're in the clear for the most part." "Are you going to kill all the Major Arcana who know the truth?" Nessa moved closer, staring into her friend's eyes. "With less than five hours planning, you've decided to launch a full-on assault on a base that you've never been to against a defense you haven't scoped out? That's your plan?" Jenna nodded. "They won't be expecting it." "Because it's stupid!" Nessa said, shaking the other woman by the shoulders. "It's the most insane thing I've ever seen. If I marshaled all my troops right now, I'd still spend more time than this to coordinate an attack of this magnitude. I am NOT going to let you do this." "Are you planning on killing me?" Jenna replied coldly. Nessa was feeling very uneasy. "No, but --" "Because that's the only way you're going to stop me from doing what I need to do." Avery handed Jenna a data-disk. "Here are the files that the Fool was looking for. It'll take a while before he knows they're missing and can contact the Fed to get another copy. What are you so afraid that he'll find?" "Hey, if you have aunts or uncles that you need to protect --" "Her parents were both only children," Avery said. "Do you think they'll trace you back to the church? You don't need to go back there --" Jenna stepped around Avery and headed toward the door. She had more time than she thought, but her private anger would not let her stop. She did not get far before Nessa was in front of her. "No," the vampire said calmly, even softly. "It's a suicide mission. Tell me what's going on, and maybe I can get some help --" "No help," Jenna said. "No one goes with me. I have to do this alone." "Why?" Jenna tried to go the other way, but Avery was there. To make matters more complicated, Anabella had just arrived. "Please," Jenna whispered, her voice trembling with rage and tears in her eyes, "you've got to let me do this." Neither human nor vampire nor banshee moved, and Jenna knew she could not fight them all. She doubted she could even beat Nessa, much less when the vampire was aided by the other two. "Tell me what's got you so spooked," Nessa said. "I'm not going to let him hurt you, but you need to --" "I'm not worried about him hurting me!" Jenna shouted, her anger getting the best of her. "He can roast me over the fires of hell for all I care. I've already done that." "Then what --" "Dammit!" Jenna screamed, shoving Nessa back across the room with a strength that even she did not know that she had possessed, "I won't let the Fool get my son!" And just like that, there was silence. All the anger and energy and adrenalin that had been running through Jenna's body abandoned her, leaving her feeling weak as a newborn kitten. She had just uttered something that she had never told another being . . . ever. "Your son?" Nessa asked, her voice wavering with disbelief. "You mean --" "I won't let anyone hurt him," Jenna said, mostly to herself than to any one of the three people facing her. "I'll burn down the world before I let that happen." "You . . . but . . . Oh my," Nessa muttered. "The father --" "Yeah," Jenna whispered. "Him. Even dead, he found a way to crawl inside me. They told me to that I could get rid of the baby and no one would blame me." "But you didn't. Why? Why go through that?" Jenna shrugged, her whole body a building mass of tension and nerves, and she was still faced with a burning desire to hunt the Fool down and kill him. "How could I? That son of a bitch took everything from me. I killed . . . he made me . . . my whole family," she spat out. Then her face softened. "He doesn't know I exist, but he was the only family I have left. How could I kill him like I did the others?" "You didn't kill your family. The choice the Messenger gave you was a fucking illusion!" Nessa said, her voice growing angrier, though her true rage was not directed at the woman in front of her. "Let them suffer and eventually die or let them die now? And after all the he put you through, you still blame yourself?! You had his child and --" Nessa stopped. "You know where he is, don't you? Your son?" Jenna's mouth moved, but no sound came out. "If you have any good in your heart," she said at last, "you'll let me protect the one good thing I ever did." "If killing the Fool will protect your son and end this war, then we will kill him. But don't throw your life away doing it." Avery was feeling clammy. He was a father himself, though his kids were grown up and away from this for the time being. "It will take a few days for anyone to go through the red tape. WitSec just doesn't move faster than that. We find out where the new base of operations for the Nightwalkers is, then we find the best way to move." He looked at Nessa. "I know you wanted diplomacy, but this is getting out of hand anyway." Nessa just could not shake this news. "You must have been terrified," she said to her friend. Jenna looked at her hands. "I was numb. I was so far beyond being afraid that there isn't a concept for it. I just couldn't let him go." "Can your informant let us know when your old boss gets the intel?" Jenna's head shot up. "Death? He could, but --" The words stuck in her throat. "But you'd have to tell 'im," Anabella finished for her. "And you're still not sure you can trust him." "I don't know if I should," Jenna agreed. "This isn't my life we're talking about anymore." "From the sound of things, he has stood by you through everything. And you picked him of all people to be your one friend, which has got to say something." She put her hands on those strong shoulders; shoulders than must be tired from carrying such a heavy load for so long. "This Fool will find out about your son eventually, so trusting Death may be your best option." "And you can trust us too," Avery put in. "I can send a word through the right channels, and he'll be hidden away --" "No," Jenna snapped, then her voice lapsed into the apologetic. "I'm sorry, but he has good parents and goes to a good school, has good friends, and he's even got a date for the Winter Ball. You can't make him give up everything because of me. I'll give myself up to save him." "And the Fool would still be able tah use 'im to make you do whatever he wanted," Anabella pointed out. "I'm on board with the killin' 'im idea, but yah gotta do it right." Nessa met Jenna's gaze. "This is what you wanted to hold back from me, isn't it? The tower in your mind is where you store memories of him." This was a statement rather than a question. "You've obviously been keeping close tabs on him." "As soon as I could, I found who he'd been adopted too. When I got into the Nightwalker intro program after a stint in the armed forces, I used what influence I could to make sure he got into good private schools. I've put money away so that he'll have a special scholarship that I've made sure that only he can win . . . He's only fifteen," she murmured painfully. He's not even a year younger than I was when I had him. He deserves a life." Nessa knew that she was trying to compensate for the life she basically lost by making sure this young man wanted for nothing. "Did he ever try to find you?" Jenna just nodded. "He sent letters to the adoption agency and the hospital but . . . Like everyone else, I let him think I was dead. His adoptive parents are so good to him --" She stopped and walked to the other side of the room. Nessa approached while Avery and Anabella stayed behind. The Nightwalker did not even turn to look at the true vampire. "Everything's gone wrong," she said, looking out at a night broken by speckles of orange street lights and the occasional white of an office light left on. "I had a job and a friend and my son was safe and everything was peaceful --" "This fight would have come whether you were here or not," Nessa said. "And wars hurt innocent people." "It shouldn't be his war," Jenna replied bitterly. "Not for my sins." Nessa was becoming exasperated. "You have committed no sins," she said with forced calm. "You want to help your son? Get your mind back in the game. I've got a good strike team, but you know what tactics the Fool is likely to use. Help train my people." "Train," Jenna said, almost grateful that she finally had something to wrap her head around. "Train a bunch of Night Breeds to kill my old boss and hopefully stop a werewolf revolution." "And you thought things would be boring." Jenna actually laughed briefly. "Meeting you has brought me many things, but boredom isn't one of them." Nessa touched her friends face. "I know it's a lot to ask, but if you do want to tell me your son's name, I'll make sure he gets somewhere safe if the going gets rough." The Nightwalker relaxed just a little bit. "Thank you." "Go train my men and help get them up to speed. That'll be thanks enough." -------------- ----------- Elsewhere . . . -------------- ----------- "I want that bitch," Garon said as he flexed his hand. "I want her to be begging at my feet." The silver poisoning he had got from, of all people, Nessa's new bed toy, had cramped up his arm and given him the heaves, neither of which were fun. "Have we gotten a name for her yet?" "No sir," Simon Glickler replied. "No one on the outer fringe has any idea who she is. Just McGowan's inner circle, and capturing one of them will be a bit more problematic." "What of our missing wolves?" "We just received word that blood and scent traces that matched them were found near signs of a struggle. It looks like they were ambushed. They had reported in that they were pursuing the false vampires, then nothing. They were good men sir." "Not good enough," Garon replied. "But we will howl tonight in their memory nonetheless." "And we have word of an influx of 'unmarked' trucks moving in and relocating their base, but we do not know where. It is also believed that they have called for reinforcements." "We expected as much. It seems that this Fool of theirs is going to keep this out of the media. Perhaps he will publicly maintain that we are simply 'Corporate experiments' like he has the vampires." "So what is our next move?" "Call in the Alabama wolves. I want them here by the weekend. We wipe them out, burn their new base to the ground, then I'll deal with --" He paused, looking again as he injured hand. He was going to hurt Nessa for this insult, and he figured the best way to do that was by hurting the blonde angel. ----- ------------------ The next day . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 04 ----- ------------------ 'It's okay,' Jenna told herself for the hundredth time. 'You can handle this.' Even the people at the counter thought she had gone off of the deep end. She had consumed enough caffeine to kill a water buffalo and had had been gripping her stirring spoon so tightly that it had broken. She was nervous. All the times in recent days where she had revealed herself to someone, it had been under great mental emotion or strain. This was different. "You're early," Nigel said. "I was hoping to have the upper hand for once." He had been hoping to get a smile out of her, but nothing. She looked more pale than usual, which was impressive. "Just . . . a lot on my mind," she said. 'Nice way to chicken out,' she told herself. "How's the move going?" He raised an eyebrow. "Well. I take it that the Fool's plans are already known to your new allegiance?" "My allegiance is to the citizen's of this country," Jenna replied. "Right now, the one best serving those interests is Nessa. And yes, they're well known. The multiple caravans was a nice touch though. We're going to have to stake out a lot of places to find the right one, aren't we?" "Probably." "You could just tell me." "Unlikely. You may trust this Nessa woman, but I am still skeptical. You'll have to earn that one." "Has the Fool gotten my file yet?" "Not the part that he wanted. It seems to have vanished. Convenient," Nigel said. "You're going through an awful lot of trouble to hide it." Then he waited. He did not believe for a second that she was going to tell him anything. Jenna was staring across the street at the school. "How's April?" That was another thing that Nigel had not been expecting. "She's . . . fine. Why?" "Do you love her?" "Uhm, what does that have to do with anything?" Jenna sighed. "She's close to you. What would you do if she was pulled into our world? If there was a chance that she could get caught up in the fight that was coming?" "I'd do what I could to get her out," he whispered. "Jenna, what are you getting at?" "Look over there," she replied, realizing that it was now or never. Wait another minute, and she would lose her nerve. "What do you see?" "Pedestrians. Kids. There's that boy who was almost in a fight yesterday." Jenna breathed deeply. "That's my son." Nigel's eyes almost popped out of his head as he stared at the side of Jenna's face. "Your . . . son?" He saw the unthinkable occurring before him. There were tears in the Empress's eyes. "You . . . how? I mean when? He's got to be at least --" "Fifteen years, two months, and twelve days old. I know, Nigel. I know exactly how old he is." "But that would mean you were --" "Sixteen years, six months, five days old when I had him." She looked away. "Which means I was fifteen when I was --" She choked on the word, a word she hated. Despite everything Nessa had said, she still believed that somehow, she had forced herself to love Him. Was it still rape when you loved someone, regardless of how unnatural that love might be? "Jenna . . . My god, I'm --" "Don't say 'sorry,' please. Not until you know the truth. Do you remember about fourteen to fifteen years ago . . . the Messenger case?" she said. She almost could not get the man's name out, as if saying it would make him appear in the coffee shop, a ghost with a woman he had all but destroyed all those years ago, across the street from the child he had forced into this world. "Yeah. How could I forget?" Saying each word out loud, without the crutch of soul-sharing or anger, was the hardest battle she had ever fought. Telling the story in the light of day caused her real pain. But to his credit, Nigel just listened. He went from incredulous to sickened to that icy rage that had given him the title of Death. His acceptance of her rambling alleviated some of the torment she was experiencing, allowing her to get the whole tale out. "And that's why I never talk about myself," she finished. "It's why I'm so terrified of letting anyone get too close. You were always so patient. Like Nessa, you never asked more that I was willing to give. That's probably the only reason I was able to be friends with you." Nigel wanted to go shoot someone. He had done some pretty violent things in service to his country over the years, but he was a soldier. Preying on a young girl the way Jenna had been preyed in was not something real soldiers did. It was vile, evil, and made his stomach churn. "Jenna, I'm sorry," he said. "I listened, and I am so sorry. Your friend Nessa was right. You did not love him. You did nothing wrong. Your mind did what it needed to do in order to cope, and the ship simply never righted itself." Nigel was surprised yet again when Jenna buried her head in his shoulder and sobbed. He had never seen her emotional before, never seen her cry before, and never even exchanged a hug with her before. Whoever this Nessa was, she was unlocking a human being inside Jenna. He hoped that she was as spectacular as he was expecting. "Jenna, I swear to you that I won't let the Fool hurt the boy. I've . . . What's his name?" he said, stopping as the young man with that now-familiar blond hair chatted with a young lady as they turned a corner and vanished. "William," she said, her voice still crackly and uncontrolled. "My son's name is William." --------- ------------- That night . . . --------- ------------- "So it went well?" Nessa asked as Jenna took a break from putting the troops through their paces. There had been some resentment at first that an outsider was doing the training, but the re-masked Jenna had effectively squashed doubt when she showed just how much of a badass that she could be. It turned out that except for the two-thousand year old vampire, the upper echelon Nightwalker could go toe-to-toe with just about any of the Night Breeds. And she was wicked smart. "Better than I anticipated," Jenna said through her mask. She and Nessa had agreed that keeping her identity from the troops was a good thing. Only the demons, Avery, Anabella, and Nessa knew the truth. No one would associate her with Nessa's dinner companion. The commando rolled her shoulders and popped her knuckles. She had been put to the test by this strange medley of creatures, and it had been strangely refreshing. She had needed a good workout after baring her soul so blatantly. "Death will help how he can. He doesn't trust you completely, but he trusts me. Not enough to reveal the Fool's new base, but still --" "He's helping you with that other issue, and that's enough," Nessa said. She was actually quite fond of this "Death" person even though she had never met him. She stood next to her friend. "You know this is not going to end well now. The Fool had his chance, and he blew it. You gave him that chance." "I could have handled it better. I could have --" "Second guessed yourself some more?" Nessa replied. "You did what you could. But we've got more problems. My sources tell me that the Alabama wolves are mobilizing to come to Garon's aid. He's pissed off something fierce, and now he's lost face in front of his men." "That would be my fault, wouldn't it?" Nessa smiled. It was the only response she needed. "I think the boys have gotten the picture," she said, looking at her troops. She had a greater variety than either of her opponents, including a few werewolves who she trusted and had refused to ally themselves with Garon who they considered, and these were their words and not Nessa's, "A crotch-sniffing, egomaniac mutt." "We could probably run a few more MOUT exercises before sunrise," Jenna said. "With other DoD special forces units backing them, you really shouldn't underestimate the Nightwalkers." "I'm not. I've got you to keep me honest." "I'm a soldier, not a miracle worker." Nessa stared at her new commander. "Was that a snide comment? Leveled towards me?" Jenna shrugged. "Maybe." "There may be hope for you after all. Okay, run them through one exercise, then we're going out." "Where?" "Wherever you want?" "What do you mean?" Nessa cocked her head this time. "The comment is pretty straight forward. Wherever you want to eat or whatever you want to do . . . What do you do for fun?" Jenna processed the question. Finally, "I don't." "You can seriously be telling me that you have no hobbies. At all." Jenna shrugged. "Not really. A hobby is a luxury that saps time." 'And you never believed you deserved a luxury,' Nessa thought. "Okay, then we need to find you a hobby. Stat." "We have other things we really should be concentrating on," Jenna pointed out dryly. "These guys know how to fight, and now they know their enemy," Nessa pointed out. She leaned in closely. "Sex is an amazing hobby," she whispered. "And one that I am more than happy to teach you." Jenna flushed under her mask and armor. It was not because she thought Nessa was kidding. She was fairly certain the redhead meant it. And the idea, despite her own conflicted nature on the basics of intimacy, was not without appeal. "I'm sure that the rest of your harem would be quite happy to satisfy any cravings you may have." She tried to make it sound light-hearted, but her heart was not in it. "My cravings, as you put it, involve you," Nessa replied. "And any member of my harem would gladly join in if you were so inclined. I could find us a man who is gentle, powerful . . . hung like a horse," she purred happily. "You kissed a boy before. It wasn't so bad, was it?" "There's a subtle difference between kissing a girl when you're fifteen and . . . well, what I've heard that you've done with the demons." "That would be just about everything that doesn't require zero gravity to pull off," Nessa said, wiggling her eyebrows. "How about we go dancing?" "Why? It's just a waste of motion." "It's fun, sexy, and it can be really be liberating." Nessa forced her lungs to sigh. "And you obviously aren't interested. Honestly, you don't do anything for fun?" Jenna felt her temper snap a bit. "Listen, I train, I do my job, and I drink coffee. That's it. And only two of those things matter right now --" "Your mental health matters," Nessa replied calmly. "Not to this mission." "Yes, it does. And it matters to me." "Why?" "It just does." "You make no sense," Jenna muttered. "And we're still going out later." "Ready to go Empress?" one of the demons asked. "Yes. Kobal, what kind of scenarios do you have on that HoloSim machine?" "I dunno." She sighed. It turned out that Nessa had a highly advanced training facility for her people, but most of them just used the basketball court setting in the 3D simulation projector. "Does anyone here actually know how --" "What scenario are you looking for?" Avery asked, stifling a chuckle. Jenna, or "The Empress" as she was called amongst the troops, had a soldier's mentality when it came to training. Most of the Night Breeds under Nessa's control lacked a certain amount of formality. "Taking the high ground in an urban setting. Wherever this goes down, the Minor Arcana will take the high ground and take as many enemy out as they can before the Major Arcana start a ground war." "Got it. Do you want simulated werewolves too? Make this a three way fight?" "If you've got an AI that will work for them, that might be a good idea. I take it they're all about a ground game?" "Ground and pound," Avery agreed. "Fine. Set their hostility level at 70 percent towards the Nightwalkers and 30 percent towards us. Garon may want my head and Nessa's job, but he'll need to take care of the Fool before he can lay claim to either." "You know," Nessa whispered from right behind Jenna's ear, "you're really hot when you're in uniform and being all authoritative." She grinned as Jenna promptly stiffened up and went down to run the troops through the scenario. "Oh yeah," she said to Anabella who had scooted up next to her, "She wants me." "Why ARE you so interested in her?" Nessa's oldest friend asked. "I've seen the girl she was when she was young. I want to see what that girl would be like as a grown up. I mean, we've talked about how fucked up she is, but think about how much she's survived. There's something there . . . something worth seeing." "The fact that she's gorgeous has nothin' to do with it?" "Of course it does. Just a smaller role than usual," Nessa agreed. She watched as her newest employee talked with the different units, letting them know what to expect and what the Fool might change now that the Empress had switched sides. "When she is on, she's really on," she muttered. "Oh, she's a smart one," the banshee agreed. "Got a mind for fightin'. And speakin' o' fightin', you plannin' on dealing with Garon anytime soon?" "I'd have to wade through a whole horde of werewolves to get to him, and he's sure to be warded against me. All other things being equal, I could take him. But if he's warded, then that would negate the flying and the blood mist. Things get trickier at that point. And right now, I'm just giving him enough rope for the Council to hang him with. But for now, I have more important matters to deal with." "The Nightwalkers?" "Actually, I was thinking of how I was going to get Jenna into a thong." "Ah," Anabella said, "the important stuff." ------- -------------------------- Hours before sunrise . . . ------- -------------------------- "I'll see you ten and raise you ten," Avery said, tossing his chips in. He glanced around the table, trying to figure what his opponents had in their hands. Kobal was already out, while Nessa and Cresil were down to their last chips. Nessa was also down to her black-spandex boy shorts and matching bra. They were not actually playing strip poker . . . she just wanted to be naked. "Okay," Nessa grumbled, "How is it that I'm thousands of years old and yet I'm losing?" "You have no poker face darlin'," Anabella responded. "You can't bluff fer shit." "And using phrases like, 'Oh no, another fucking deuce' probably doesn't help," Avery mentioned. "Just a suggestion." Cresil tossed in some chips. "That, and we usually play strip . . . well, strip everything. And you try to lose." "Good points all around," Nessa said. She glared half-heartedly at Jenna, who was sitting across from her with about half the chips on the table. Her face was completely blank, and her cards were held perfectly still. "And she's never even played before!" "Rules are simple," Jenna replied, her voice flat. "The rest is about odds and memory." "Now SHE has a good poker face," Cresil muttered. Jenna looked up. "Huh?" "Nope," Nessa said, "her face is just stuck like that." Jenna eventually cleaned the table, looking somewhat perplexed that "such a simple game" held so much fascination. Cresil, who had been the last opponent to fall to Jenna's gambling prowess, grumbled something unpleasant under his breath and then led his fellow demons back down to the bar. Avery asked Anabella if she wanted to grab dessert, and she accepted. She also shot Nessa a mean glare when the vampire started to smirk. Nessa tried to look innocent. She failed. "I should be going," Jenna said at last. "I haven't been home in days." "So? It's not like you have to go and feed the fish or anything." "I . . . I've never been away this long." "Jenna, that place isn't a home, it's a prison. You are the warden and the prisoner, and it's not good for you." "I'm not a child," Jenna snapped suddenly, "so stop treating me like one." "I just don't see the appeal in going and torturing yourself like this for the sake of it." "Are you that full of yourself? I have sex with you once and suddenly I'm supposed to turn into a drooling idiot who can't bare being away from you?" "Hey, I wasn't trying to pick a fight. And yeah, I'm surprised. I thought you had a good time last night." "I did," Jenna said, trying to remain calm, while her body was taking a trip down memory lane and her soul sought the warm comfort that lying in Nessa's arms had provided. Nessa counted backward from five in her head. "Jenna, did I do something wrong? Something to make you angry?" "Besides being possessive?" Jenna sighed. "And that's not even a bad thing. I just don't know who I am. I know that is why you're pushing me, but I need some space. You've had thousands of years to figure out who you are. I --" She stopped and shrugged. Nessa smiled, a little tiredly. "You've had a week. Maybe asking you to face all your demons while helping fight my battle is a lot to ask, but I need to ask it. But ask yourself this . . . do you really want to sleep alone?" It was not a hard question really, since Jenna's eyes were drinking in the fluid curves of Nessa's body, almost as if they had a mind of their own. "No, I really don't." "Then come to bed," Nessa said, sliding her bra off and sashaying over to the life-sized mattress with a natural sensuality that Jenna could barely wrap her head around. "How is it that you spend so much time every day in bed?" Jenna asked. "I do my best work there. And I'm not even just talking about sex." "You think about things besides sex sometimes?" "Occasionally, but usually I get over it pretty quick." Nessa looked over her shoulder and her eyes grazed their way down the front of Jenna's body. "See, I'm over it." Jenna did not want to smile, but she could not help it. "You have a one-track mind." "YOU have a firm grasp of the obvious. Hey, want to shower before bed?" That had Jenna's attention but for different reasons than Nessa was expecting. Nessa had the most amazing shower on the planet. It was a walk-in with adjustable pressure jets that could be set to just about any angle, and they all had the most amazing massage setting -- "Okay, I practically throw myself at you, and you just get nervous," Nessa pouted, somewhat insincerely, "but I mention my shower and you look weak in the knees." Jenna tried looking aloof. "It's just a very nice shower." "Fine," Nessa said, dismissively waving her hand. "Just get all hot and naked and wet. See if I care." Jenna sighed. "One track mind." She stripped off her gear and started pressing buttons at the kiosk near the shower entrance. Yes, it was advanced enough that it needed a kiosk. And when the temperature was just right, she stepped into the center of the circle and let the warm water and steam ease her cares away. "Mind if I join you?" Nessa asked from the edge. She had been quite content to just watch the streams of water cascade down that tight body, but she just could not pass up such an opportunity forever. "Strictly innocent and platonic." Jenna smiled. "You know the story of the frog and the scorpion?" "Yeah. What of it?" "You can't help being what you are," Jenna pointed out. "I may not have known you that long, but two things you are most definitely not are platonic or innocent." "You're right. But you're no frog, and stinging you was not what I had in mind." Nessa wiggled her eyebrows. "You're really hopeless, aren't you?" "Oh no, I have great hope. For me, for my life, for tonight, and for you." Jenna stared out from the steam. "Okay, either that was really . . . sweet . . . or one of the weirdest come-ons I've ever heard." "First of all, why can't it be both? Second, I doubt you go out in public often enough to have heard a lot of come-ons. And you never answered my question. Mind if I join you?" Jenna waited for a moment, then nodded. Her eyes widened a bit and her breathing deepened as that red hair became soaked with water and rivulets flowed over every luscious curve. "Just remember," Nessa said, delighting in the warming sensation of the spray, "I am a scorpion." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 04 Much to Jenna's surprise and delight, Nessa grabbed a scrubbing pad and helped scrub those hard to reach places. It was playful touching . . . friendly. It was nice. "Tell me more about you," Jenna requested. "I feel like we've spent so much time talking about me --" She stopped. Those conversations had not been pleasant. "What do you want to know? I've been around a long time, so you'll need to narrow the scope." "Hmm," Jenna hummed as Nessa's hands worked her shoulders, "How about . . . famous people. Name the three most interesting famous people that you've met." "Good grief, do you have any idea how many people that I've met?" "And some of them were probably important historical figures." "Well . . . do they have to be good people?" "Not necessarily," Jenna replied, scrunching her eyebrows. "Why? You've met bad people?" "Hitler." "You're joking. Right?" "Nope. Of course, he was just a member of a Bavarian regiment at the end of the first World War, complaining about Germany surrendering too easily. Yeah, if I had known --" For the first time since they had met, Jenna noticed that it was Nessa who became pensive. "What?" "If I had just known then what he was capable of, I could have saved the world so much pain. And yes, I know that there was no way I could have known. It doesn't matter though." She pointed to her heart. "Not in here. Avery's family were gypsies in Germany on the outset of World War Two. I owned a shipping company back then, and tried to get as many of them out of the Axis territories as I could." Jenna turned and started soaping the vampires shoulders. She was not good at comforting someone else due to a profound lack of practice. "You've seen some horrible things, haven't you?" "I've seen humanity at its very worst," Nessa replied. "And that's pretty damn bad." "But you've met some good people too, right?" "Sure. Let's see, I met Alexander the Third, King of Scotland. He was a good ruler for my people. And William Wallace, of course. Albert Einstein was a hoot. He always seemed to be one step ahead of you in conversation. Van Gogh was sad but brilliant, Charles Darwin had this gleam in his eye when he got back from his voyage --" "Who was your favorite?" "Rosa Parks," Nessa said. "About twenty years after the bus boycott. I also met Miep Gies when I was in the Netherlands. That was impressive too." "I don't know that name." "She was the lady that hid Anne Frank from the Nazis and then gave the world her diary. You find such courage in the strangest places," Nessa murmured. "You're brave," Jenna said, feeling a need to be supportive. "I'm powerful," Nessa said wanly, her mouth forming a smile that did not reach all the way to her eyes. "It's easy to behave bravely when you have power. It's when the powerless assume control . . . when a woman keeps her seat or keeps a secret that eventually changes the world simply because it is right. I can't even imagine what that would be like." "You're really . . . more than I expected," Jenna muttered, then blushed. That had been kind of rude. "You mean, I think about things besides sex? Jenna, I've had more than enough time to think all the deep issues of the universe, and I came to one conclusion a long time ago." "Which is?" "I'll never figure it out. The universe is so big and so magical that I know I'll never have the big answers. I don't need them. I like things being magical." "Really?" "Really. Like how your fingers are magical right now." Jenna froze for a moment. Without any permission from her brain, her hands had drifted lower and around, and were in the process of caressing the sides of Nessa's breasts. "Sorry," she whispered. But she did not move her hands. "Don't be," Nessa replied huskily. "I just was wondering where those hands were going next?" Jenna's fingers wrapped themselves around the soft, round, wet globes that decorated Nessa's chest. Her fingers sought out nipples, and her mouth found the side of the vampire's neck. Nessa did not know what had brought this on, but it was nice that she was not the one doing the seducing this time. Jenna's lean body was pressed against Nessa's curvaceous one, and it felt so good. "I wish that I could see things like you do," Jenna whispered. "I haven't believed in magic of any kind for a long time." "Trust me, I can show you magic that you never even imagined." "Show me," Jenna said. "Show me everything." Nessa turned in her lover's arms and kissed her before saying, "For me to teach you everything will take a very long time." Her hands found Jenna's annoyingly firm ass and gripped it. Jenna kissed Nessa as best she could. Here, in the steam and the heat, she felt her best. And Nessa made her feel even better. Jenna liked how she felt with this woman, even though those same feeling frightened her. They were new . . . unknown. But they were so much better than the vast nothing that Jenna had felt before. "Will you come into my dreams tonight?" Jenna asked. "Do you want me there?" Nessa's soul brimmed with warmth at the request. She had said that she would not take more than Jenna was willing to give, and now Jenna was giving her the keys to the kingdom of her mind. But for now, she wanted Jenna's body. "I do," Jenna pleaded. "The nightmares are afraid of you." She knew that she probably sounded like a terrified schoolgirl, but with Nessa it was okay. "The nightmares are smart then. I'm a scary woman." Nessa slid one hand between Jenna's thighs and tested the woman's arousal. Even if they had not been in the shower, Jenna still would have been wet. Jenna gasped, this little touch providing something her body had never known. Jenna let Nessa in, needing those fingers more than she had needed anything. Anything except perhaps those kisses, hidden behind lips along with those dangerous teeth. But Jenna did not fear the teeth. As a point of fact, she craved them. She ran her tongue along the upper row of Nessa's teeth, finding the points of her fangs and teasing them. 'Oh, she's getting good at this,' Nessa thought. She pushed her fingers deeper into Jenna's sex, searching for that special spot that would make her lover forget all her troubles for the rest of the night. She gripped Jenna's ass tightly as her fingers performed their magic, but she did not break their kiss. Jenna just wanted to ride Nessa's hand all night. Those fingers were just that good. She tried to squeeze her hand between them so that she could reciprocate, but the vampire was having none of it. "I want to make you cum first," Nessa whispered over the sound of streaming water. "Then, I'll begin your real education." This made Jenna want to cum right away, so that the lessons could continue. Okay, that and she really enjoyed the orgasm that Nessa had provided last night. So she pressed herself against the vampire's amazing curves and let the ecstasy take hold. And when it did have Jenna's body in its decadent clutches, it did not let go. It only took a minute until her body told her it was ready. That was when Nessa stopped. "What?" Jenna gasped. "Why?" Nessa grinned in a most evil way, then grabbed one of the spray hoses off the wall. She redirected the spray at an angle so that it just caught the top of Jenna's pussy. "Oh oh oh oh oh!" the Nightwalker uttered, her already heightened arousal kicking into overdrive as her sex was relentlessly stimulated by the water. And if the flow of liquid from the hose was intense, it paled in comparison to the wetness that squirted from Jenna's body. Nessa quickly withdrew the nozzle, knowing that her companion would be far to sensitive at that point to withstand it any longer. "You see," Nessa purred, "sex is a lot like war. I believe that in a pinch, use anything at your disposal to complete the objective. It's just that the objectives in sex are a lot more fun." She pulled her fingers up and sucked the juices from them. "And much tastier." "I want to taste you now," Jenna admitted, glad the steam hid part of her blush. "And you will. Let me give you a bit of a preview." The redhead sank to her knees, pushed Jenna's long legs apart, and placed her tongue softly but firmly in between Jenna's folds. Jenna thought she was going to cum again almost instantly. It felt that damn good. A few flicks here, a long drag there, and Jenna was in a mental state where she would probably do anything Nessa asked her to as long as she did not stop. "Why don't we dry off and continue this somewhere a little more comfortable?" Nessa hinted. Jenna did not really want to leave the warmth of the shower, but the warmth of the bed was calling as well. Because the drying off process seemed to involve a lot of body-on-body rubbing and fondling, the notion gained in merit. Nessa got to the bed first, and she crawled like a cat to the mountain of pillows. She rolled onto her back and said, "You asked for this, so I'm just going to let you do whatever you want. And I don't use the term 'whatever' lightly. And it's okay if you don't know what you're doing. This is one of those things that if you're trying, you're going to do some stuff right." Jenna knew that she could not do the sexy thing that Nessa seemed to have down, so she almost literally dove right in. She slid quickly across the bed until her face was between Nessa's thighs. It was beautiful. She was not sure why she was surprised, but Nessa's pussy was gorgeous, just like the rest of her. Jenna had never thought of that body part as being capable of beauty. It had always been a practical orifice, nothing more. But as soon as her nervous tongue touched it, Nessa's pussy became so much more. It was exquisite, soft, wet, and waiting to be explored. "Mmmh," Nessa moaned softly as her lover took that first exploratory lick. Damn, she loved shy girls sometimes. Guys would have compensated for a lack of skill with false confidence, but not girls, and especially not Jenna. This woman wanted to learn. And the way she was going after Nessa's clit, she was learning fast. "Woah there young lady," the vampire muttered. "You don't fast forward to the end of the movie like that. At least watch the previews." "Okay," Jenna said, gasping as she came up for air, "you need to stop mixing your metaphors. I'm not good at pop culture references." "It's basic video controls," Nessa said, wanted Jenna to get back to work. "You really didn't get out much, did you?" Jenna froze and blushed. She had no life experiences. Nothing to share. "Listen, if you'd rather find someone else --" "No no no," Nessa said, realizing her verbal misdirect, "If I wanted to be with someone else, I would be. A chance to be with an angel?" "I'm no --" "You're closer to being an angel than you'll admit. But only a force of pure evil would leave me hanging like this!" Jenna forced herself to calm down. 'You wanted this,' she reminded herself. 'You still want this.' And when she pushed her tongue back into Nessa's cleft, it was not very hard to convince herself anymore. Once Jenna seemed comfortable again, Nessa grabbed that blond hair and held the woman's face right where she wanted it to be. She did not grip too tightly, because she did not want Jenna getting spooked. She cooed when Jenna did something that she enjoyed, which was a lot of things, and made sweet suggestions when the less experienced woman's tongue went astray of target. She was surprised how pleased Jenna was when she was given some guidance. 'She really wants to learn to do this right.' Nessa felt her climax building, a primal force in an erotic package too small to contain it. "Don't stop," she said. "Just . . . keep . . . working . . . that . . . spot . . . aaah!" Orgasms were things that Nessa would never get tired of. They made ever nerve in her undead flesh feel charged with electricity. They lit up the darkness that always lingered at the edge of her vampiric eyes, and they made her feel so incredibly warm. "Okay," Jenna said matter-of-factly, "I think I've got the hang of this now." Nessa knew that she should not laugh, but she could not help it. Jenna was just so . . . purposeful. Dedicated. "You have done well, but still have much to learn, young grasshopper." "Just give me ten more minutes --" "Ten more minutes and I'll pass out. You really want to learn? Then let the master show you how its done." "Wouldn't that be 'mistress' instead of 'master'?" "Do you want me to do this or not?" Nessa tried looking vexed, but considering she had pushed Jenna onto her back and was getting an up-close look at the sweetest sex she had seen in a long time. "Yeah," Jenna murmured as the hungry shark that was Nessa approached her evening meal. "Yeah, I do." "Then lean back and enjoy the ride," Nessa replied. "And feel free to scream my name when the time comes." "I'm not that . . . oh!" the Nightwalker yipped as her teacher's mouth engulfed Jenna's tender pussy, sliding the tongue so far that Jenna was convinced the woman was part lizard. "How . . . how are you doing that?" Nessa pushed breath out from her lungs to tantalize Jenna's clitoral hood, then she responded. "I started practicing this when the Romans were still a power in Central Europe. I'm pretty good at it by now." "Yeah, I believe you," Jenna gasped, somewhat happily. Her hips and feet were planted, and she arched her, with her hands resting on her own breast as she willed Nessa's tongue deeper inside her. Her eyes rolled back in her head as Nessa licked her like an ice cream cone, soft but firm and from bottom to top. Then the fingers came into play. Fingers parted her folds, fingers slipped into her warmth, and something was teasing her clitoris. 'How many fingers does she have?' Jenna wondered. 'No, that was her tongue. Definitely her tongue.' She moaned, and moaned again. Nessa worked three fingers in, pushing slowly but surely in and out of Jenna's body. She would not do more, because Jenna was way too tight. Hurting her angel was the last thing on Nessa's mind. But still -- "Jenna, do you have any fears of being penetrated?" she asked, then kissed her lover's clit again. "By something bigger than my finger?" "What? Why? Please don't stop," Jenna mumbled. Nessa sucked on one of Jenna's inner labia, tugging on it and then releasing it. "I'm serious. I've got a lot of toys that could add to the fun. Heck, I've got a lot of boys that could add to the fun if you were up for a threesome sometime, but I don't know how you feel about someone inside you like that." "I . . . I hadn't thought about it," was the honest reply. "I just . . . just --" Nessa had cut off that train of thought by focusing attention on the g-spot, her nimble fingers finding it and taunting it with delicate touches. She was pretty sure she could talk Jenna into taking more eventually, but she still needed and very badly wanted to make Jenna scream. Sparks. Jenna was seeing sparks. Was her hair on fire? No, she was definitely seeing things. More importantly, she was feeling something. She was feeling a glow . . . a warm, sparkling explosion of things she never imagined she could feel. And then she was saying something. "Nessa," she moaned. "C'mon, a little louder than that," Nessa encouraged. "Nessa!" the climaxing blond belted, grabbing the sheets and arching her back even further. She was more than seeing stars. She was seeing a supernova. "Told ya," the vampire replied, a little bit cocky and a whole lot satisfied. "Heck, give me a strap-on low-pulse vibrator and in about ten minutes I'll have you improvising a song in my honor." Jenna was just staring at the ceiling while she waited for everything to stop spinning. "Everything's . . . swirly." "Yep, I'm that damn good," Nessa muttered, crawling down the bed and laying half-on, half-off her dizzied lover. "It's almost morning. Want me to help you to sleep?" "Wait . . . wait until I can see you," Jenna said, then shook her head. "Okay, I can focus." She looked at the lovely redhead who was staring back at her. "What's it like for you? Coming into my head?" "It was scary at first. I won't lie to you about that. Everyone's mind is different but yours --" "What?" "Someone's mind shouldn't be compartmentalized like that. It's not healthy." "But it's fixed now, right? Isn't that what happened? My dreams . . . my memory of you in those places --" "Is a journey, and one I'm glad I get to take with you. But we just opened the doors to the sections of your mind. You're the one who is going to have to fix things. Just . . . just don't hide from your past anymore. However painful it is to think about, you need to build on it. A life is a long, continuous thing, each part growing from the next. You tried to start over after what happened to you in that church, but you tried starting from scratch. It sounds like a nice idea in theory, but you don't build a strong house with no foundation." "But I'm getting better. You opened the doors. Isn't that enough?" "I didn't do anything. No, I didn't," Nessa added, cutting Jenna's interruption off. "Jenna, in this world of ours, I'm powerful. I'm not being arrogant when I say that you've never met anyone AS powerful as me. But in your head, I've only got as much power as you let me have. I was only able to do what you wanted me to do." "But if I wanted it, how come I couldn't do it myself?" "My guess? Guilt. You wanted it, and by 'it' I mean relief from the loneliness and pain, but you didn't think that you deserved it. You let me do it, then that makes it okay. But eventually, you're going to need to forgive yourself. Or better yet, admit that you did nothing deserving of guilt. Let your present get to know your past because besides that time with your tormentor, I'm willing to bet there's a lot of worthwhile memories. I'll bet you hadn't even thought about Tanya or how you felt about her since . . . well, you know." "No," Jenna whispered. "I'll bet there's some good stuff there. Thoughts and memories that you can put your life into context with. And make new memories here with me. And maybe someday, you can make some with your son." Jenna shook her head emphatically. "He can't ever know about me. If not for me, then for him. I can't tell him who his father is or how he came into this world or why I abandoned him. That would just be cruelty for the sake of it." "No, it wouldn't. He looked for you because he wanted answers, I'll bet. Adopted kids aren't stupid. They know that there's not going to be a fairy tale at the end of whatever story they hear, but I'll bet they still need to know the truth. He's as much a part of you and your present and your past as your own memories." Nessa brushed some hair from her lover's face. "I won't push you or force you to talk to him, but I think some day you'll need to." "Did you ever have kids?" "Human ones? No. But I've created a few vampires over the years, and I consider each one my child in his or her own way. A vampire's children are call her brood, and I have an even dozen scattered around the world. I call them all from time to time. The oldest is almost a thousand years old himself." "How . . . how does it work?" "Making a vampire? It's not just a bite. If that were the truth, the world would have been overrun years ago. It is a bite, the sharing of blood, and an act of pure will. It drains the sire, so he or she needs to be careful who they turn. I was always at my weakest in the day following a turning." "So if you picked a bad apple --" "It could kill me. A lack of judgment is why so few vampires survive more than a century or two." "Are they all . . . you know . . . like you?" Jenna almost stammered, looking down at Nessa's naked, perfect body. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 04 "Hot and horny? Not all of them, but certainly more sexual than average. Hell, my line give the succubi and incubi a run for their money. Before you ask, those are female and male sex vampires. Instead of feeding on blood, they feed on sexual energy and lust." "There's a lot more to your world than I'll ever understand," Jenna said, lying back on the bed. "You'll understand, especially if you stick around. But let's worry less about my world and more about yours. Are you ready?" Jenna nodded, her pulse quickening. Even after what they had just done, this bite . . . this penetration of Nessa into the plain of her soul, was the most intimate thing she had ever experienced. The soft kiss on her neck, the prickling sensation on her skin, following by that cool, brief intrusion -- "Amazing," she whispered as she fell into the shadows behind her eyes. Nessa was not sure what had changed, but things did not seem quite so dark. The wind that had savagely whipped across the plains was much more manageable and much less bitter. The chains around the playhouse remained draped around its plastic walls, but the padlock on the front door was gone. Jenna had separated again, with the child part of Jenna available, but still shy. Still in hiding. The church was fully unchained, but still conveyed an uneasy, uncomfortable dread. The front gate looked like a hungry mouth, and the steeple windows glared down on the spirit Jenna who stood just outside the grounds. She looked frightened, and the church looked ready to devour her. But this time Jenna was also standing her ground. Nessa looked toward the cold, glass and steel castle on the third point of the circle. That was where she would find the rest of Jenna, the part of the woman that had begun after she had been rescued from the messenger. 'How do you see yourself now?' Nessa thought. 'With all the excuses stripped away, what do you really think of yourself?' Then she glanced at the tower in the circle's center, with its lone lighted window far overhead. As soon as Nessa's eyes fell on that window, storm clouds started to brew, lighting flashed, and thunder roared over the plains. "I won't invade that," she said out loud. "I won't look there until you want me to." Almost immediately, the storm dissipated. Jenna's soul would protect the secrets and memories of her son, even more fanatically than her waking mind would do. Nessa started walking toward the third castle, pausing outside the black glass doors. She pulled one open and saw . . . nothing. The inside of the building that represented Jenna's present, there was nothing. The floor was bare concrete, and there was no furniture, pictures, lamps . . . nothing. There was no obvious source of light, but Nessa could still see. Then she discovered that she was wrong. There was something there. The Jenna of this place was even more translucent than the church Jenna was. She appeared in the middle of the room and, paying no attention to her guest, began to run. Nessa was confused for several moments as the spectral Jenna turned, ran in a new direction, then turned again. Sometimes she seemed uncertain, but she kept moving. 'It's like the maze security at the church,' Nessa realized. 'Even in her head, she runs this stupid thing. Why?' Nessa was not sure how long she stood and watched the ghost Jenna turn corners, sprint down invisible hallways, and generally just look -- 'Lost,' Nessa thought. 'She's absolutely lost. She's in a maze with no beginning and no end.' Nessa pushed forward, but could not advance into the maze on her own. She wailed against the wall, but it held fast. How could she help Jenna out if she was trapped in the middle. Then Nessa slapped her own head. 'You TOLD her that she was lost because she had cut herself off from her own memories. Yes, she needs an end to this maze, but she lost her beginning.' Nessa ran out of the building and across to the plastic castle. She knocked on the door. Young Jenna peeked out through a crack in the door after a moment. "Jenna, I need you to come with me. Please?" "Can't," came a younger voice than Nessa was used to hearing. "Can't leave. That was the rule." "What rule?" "The rule I made. None of Me can break the rule. I stay here, I stay there, and I stay over there," young Jenna said. Nessa was perplexed for a second, but then she saw it. This Jenna saw "I" as three different people. In her mind, this all made sense. "You made that rule for a reason," she started, "but you have to break it now. You are lost, and I need your help. All of you. Jenna, you brought me here. You asked me to come, and I think I know you want to get better. But I can't force you to do this. I promise though, it can be better. Please, come with me." For a long moment, Nessa thought that it would be a lost cause. This fracturing of Jenna's psyche was a organized thing, made more solid by years of rehearsal. Fifteen years earlier, one personality became three but unlike those with disassociate personality disorder, two of those personalities never emerged. They stayed trapped of their own volition in accordance with some bizarre agreement they made with themselves. Then young Jenna opened the door and peeked out. She had been out the other night, probably for the first time since the incident. She was obviously scared, but just as obviously determined. "Thank you," Nessa said. "Now, we need to go get the You out of the church --" "No no no," young Jenna babbled. The fifteen year old girl started to backpedal. "I told Me to stay out of there. If I go in there, bad things will happen to me." "No, it won't. The monster died fifteen years ago. This one is just a shadow. He can never hurt you again. If he tries, he'll have to go through me." Young Jenna stopped moving backwards. The beautiful young lady allowed herself to be coaxed forward on hesitant feet, her skin trembling. They approached the church, but Nessa did not need to knock this time. Spirit Jenna came out, and she looked angry. "What are you doing? You can't bring Me in here! The rule --" "Screw the rule. You need Your help." Nessa was getting confused attempting to keep using the same reference for multiple people, but that was the way it worked in Jenna's brain. "But he'll hurt Me," spirit Jenna shouted, pointing at young Jenna and looking over her shoulder at the doors of the church. "He said he would." "He's dead, and the worms have had their way with him. He --" The bells of the church began to ring and the doors exploded outward. Thick black smoke came out, its tendrils reaching like some great sea monster for its prey. And it was reaching straight for the two Jennas. Young Jenna screamed, and spirit Jenna stood between the monster and her younger self, looking hopeless. Nessa was not sure what possessed her, but she moved between her friends and the thing that had tormented Jenna for so long. Spirit Jenna yanked Nessa out of the way. "No, this is for me. You can't --" "I won't let you do this alone. Not again." "You don't understand," spirit Jenna whispered over the screaming smoke and the clamoring bells. When the smoke reached them, Nessa began to understand. She had been expecting pain, but that was not the first experience that tore through her mind. Fear. In all of Nessa's long life, she had never experienced fear like that before. It crept through her veins, oozed through her pores, and invaded her nostrils. It made Nessa's knees give out, and all she wanted to do was go cower in the shadows. "Leave her out of this!" spirit Jenna screamed. She grabbed Nessa's arm and pulled her away from the smoke, but she started to scream when the monster concentrated on her. Nessa could not tell where the young Jenna was. She just prayed that the girl was safe. "It's just fear!" Nessa screamed over the cacophonous sounds. Saying it and feeling it were two different things, but she understood the truth of it. "This is your mind. It only has the power that you give it." "I can't stop it!" spirit Jenna screamed, her eyes tearing up as the darkness overtook her and threatened to drag her back into the church. Then, a hand reached into the smoke and took spirit Jenna's hand, while another pulled Nessa away. Nessa looked up and saw young Jenna, but that did not surprise her as much as seeing ghost Jenna holding spirit Jenna. The Beginning had gone and gotten the End. Now, for the first time since they were divided, the three parts of Jenna Owens were together. Young Jenna stood and faced the doors of the church. She looked terrified, but she also looked angry. The frightened spirit Jenna put herself between her youngest self and the thing she had tried to protect it from for all those years. But her youth . . . her innocence . . . was apparently tired of being afraid. And then the confused ghost Jenna, a creature who had been adrift for those fifteen years, placed a hand on the youngest Jenna's shoulder. The monster howled as a new and fearsome wind blasted it back towards the church. It's smoky tendrils grasped at the pavement and the gate and the door frame, trying to pull its way back into Jenna's mind. But the linked parts of her, young, spirit, and ghost, met the monster with a single gaze, and it was devoured by the structure that it haunted. The doors slammed shut, and then there was silence. Nessa lay on the cobbled circle ground. It had just lasted a moment, but she had finally understood what it must have been like for Jenna when she had been captured. That much fear and hopelessness was something no living or undead creature should ever go through. It was ghost Jenna, the one who had been running an invisible maze, who offered her hand to the vampire and helped her to her feet. "I know you," the modern version of Jenna said, confusion crossing her face. But she also looked . . . happy. She was glad to see Nessa. "Yeah, you do. But it's not me you need to get to know." She looked at her spirit self and her young self, totally perplexed. She reached out and touched her young self's face, then gasped. The young self took the spirit self's hand, forming a tentative but necessary chain between the three of them. Nessa just watched for a moment, then willed herself out of her friend's mind. This was a private moment for Jenna. ------- --------------- Elsewhere . . . ------- --------------- "Are you sure?" the Fool asked. "We really should try this on one of the Minor Arcana." "The captive indicated that the ability to morph was greatly influenced by the will of the infected. We of the Major Arcana achieved our rank through force of will." The Hanged Man turned his masked face towards his commander, who held a syringe filled with a thick liquid. The Fool nodded. Their captive werewolf had given them a great deal of data before he expired, including clarifying some of the intel about his kind gleaned from legends and myth. "Still --" "You cannot be the first to try sir. Protocol dictates that the risk be mine." "This time," the Fool muttered. They were on the verge of trying something that even the scientists behind the Nightwalker program could never have envisioned. "I've got the rest of the Nightwalkers on patrol except for the Rods, and they're on sentry. No one will come near this cell. Based on the data, the silver on the door handle and bars should keep you from attempting to bend them directly, and the rest of it is glas-steel a foot thick." "And the dead-man protocol?" "If I feel you're going to succeed in escaping, the gas that floods that compartment will kill anything and break your physical structure down into goo." "So we're set." The Hanged Man turned his mask towards his commanding officer and waited. The Fool stepped backward and closed the cell door behind him, staring through the observation window as the Hanged Man tied a band around one muscular arm, found a vein, then stuck the needle in without so much as a sound. "Here but for the grace of God --" the Fool muttered. Werewolf saliva, captured directly from the source, was now flowing through the Hanged Man's body. He faced an army of werewolves and vampires. If this worked as expected, he would have both. And then the enemies of the Nightwalkers . . . the enemies of his country . . . all would be reminded of what a superpower really was. ---------- ---------------- To be continued . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 05 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- Garon Pegg was not a happy werewolf. He had been searching futilely around town to discover the new base of operations for the Nightwalkers, a group of government-created, bioengineered vampires build to act as the government's commandos in a fucked up world mostly run by corporations. Unfortunately for them, there were real vampires in the world who did not want to bring the spotlight of attention on themselves or the other Night Breeds, the myriad of races that lived on the outskirts of human vision but buried within their societies. Garon had quickly realized that the local sheriff, a vampire in heat named Nessa, was not up to the task of putting down the impostors, so he had brought in his werewolves to take care of the problem. It had turned out that the vampire wannabes were more resilient and more resourceful than anyone had anticipated. Of course, having the backing of the last free government on the planet had granted them substantial resources. "Sir, we've got a solid lead on their location," Simon Glicker said as he approached. Pegg's lieutenant was the local pack leader for Atlanta and a good man, loyal to a fault and someone who knew his place. "And this is different than the rest our our leads how?" "This came from one of our own. Turns out that all the Nightwalker bases were hoaxes. It was like a shell game where someone had palmed the pea. They actually moved less than two miles from their original location. We identified a perimeter patrol and kept the spot under observation." "Excellent work," Garon replied. "Any side of the bloodsucker or her people?" "No. No identification of McGowan's 'companion' either." "It is no matter. I'll claim her as spoils when I complete this task for the council. They would not deny me this after cleaning up McGowan's mess." "Speaking of McGowan," Glicker said, "perhaps we might want to enlist her aid in quelling the problem." Garon raised an eyebrow. He waited for his second to make his case. Glicker had no aspirations outside of Atlanta, but he was in line to be local sheriff under Garon when the regime changed. So more than likely, he had a point. "Sir, accidents happen in conflict. Call it an act of 'friendly fire' if you like." Garon Pegg looked thoughtful. "A good idea, but the vampire is no fool. She would never accept any gifts from me. But . . . but if she were to find out about through a third party, she would probably show up just to keep her position." "I could arrange for some of our less 'dependable' patrols to lead her people right to it, assuming that they haven't found it themselves." "As long as we let it slip as to when and where the raid is going to happen, they'll show up. Good work, Mr. Glickler. You're ingenuity will be remembered." "Thank you sir." ---------- ---------------------------- At the Nightwalker base . . . ---------- ---------------------------- Death was on sentry duty when the courier arrived. DoD couriers were an incredibly pretentious lot with delusions of their own significance, and this one tried to stare Death down as if the glorified messenger boy was an equal or, worse yet, a subordinate. Death ignored the man. It was the package he was worried about. He was sure that this was his friend Jenna's file. The one that told about her ordeal as a child. It was the one that would tell the Fool that Jenna had a son. Death understood his commander well enough to know that he would do anything to ensure victory. If that meant kidnapping a fifteen year old boy and holding him hostage to get the Empress back into the fold, so be it. And the Fool was up to something else. He and the Hanged Man had been holed up for days. Death did not ask questions. He never had before, so starting now would raise suspicions. As it was, he was certain he was being watched, though there were no obvious cameras. He got on his communicator. "Fool, a package has arrived for you. Do you want me to secure it in your office?" *No, bring it up to the holding cells. I'll meeting you at the security station.* It was as Death had expected. He knew that he only had a minute to figure out some way to help Jenna keep her secret, the secret that would be exposed in file. He had to give the Fool something, since this file had been hard to come by and that would not happen if the information were not damaging. So the Fool would find out that the Empress had once been the victim of one of the most evil serial murderers of all time. He would know that a young Jenna Owen had been forced to watch her family suffer and die . . . that she had been raped and tortured for almost two months before being rescued, and that her broken young body and soul had been faced with a pregnancy she was not prepared to deal with. 'The best diversions and lies are the simplest ones,' he reminded himself. Once he reached the doorway that led to the stairs, he booted up the tablet. He would only have a few minutes to do what he was going to do before he was back in an area that was under surveillance. He knew he had to leave the morbid story of Jenna's capture in there, but when he got to the birth certificate . . . William Owen . . . he had an idea. And it was beyond simple. A simple override of the read-only field, and then a quick checkbox activated, then a short descriptor -- 'There,' he thought. He had just adjusted the record so that for all intents and purposes, William Owen had died at birth, born prematurely to a girl who's body was still recovering from her ordeal. Simple, believable . . . the perfect lie. The tablet had just clicked off when Death arrived at the security desk, where the Fool sat waiting patiently for me. "Thank you Death," the Fool said. "I am most pleased with your attitude as of late." "How so, sir?" "You were the Empress's friend. Surely you were tempted to help her in her rebellion." "Sir, my loyalty is to the United States Government and the people it represents. If the Empress has proven herself to be a threat to either body, then she becomes my enemy." He did not mention that she was no threat to neither and therefor was not an enemy, but the Fool could interpret it however he wanted. "Excellent. I need you to keep an eye on the others. There have been grumblings of discontent which could well boil over to mutiny." "Sir, any grumblings are merely concern. The Empress was one of ours, and the other happenings of late have been so mysterious that everyone is on edge." Death knew exactly who the discontented ones were. Several of the Major Arcana a few of the Minor Arcana did not like this secrecy from their leaders, nor did they understand why the Empress had been incarcerated in the first place. Death was keeping track of where the battle lines were likely to be drawn come fight time. "True. Meet me here at 24 hundred hours tomorrow. I'll have a job for you." "Yes sir," Death replied, then turned and left. The Fool stared after the assassin for a moment, then booted up the tablet. He walked slowly down the hall to the last cell, reading the reports on Jenna Owen, formerly known as the Empress, and searched for weaknesses. He begrudgingly respected her for surviving all that she did, and it certainly explained her stand-offish nature. There were certainly some psychological ploys he could use on her when next they met. "It's a shame," he muttered as he stood outside the cell door. "Sir, what's a shame?" came a voice from inside, floating from the darkness like a bat. It was a harsh, feral voice that spoke of blood and bones and the other things it hungered for. The Fool read off the findings, then got to the end. "Seems she had a son who died during the birth. He would have made a good negotiating tool. Still, I think there's something to work with." He looked through the viewing window. "How are you feeling?" "Hungry, sir. And good. Very good." The Fool smiled. 'Oh, if those pompous white-coated scientists could only see what I've done, they'd wet themselves with envy.' "The bait has been set. The werewolves know where we are. Now all we have to do is wait." "And the vampires?" "I don't want to start a war on two fronts. The werewolves are a homogenous mix, so we deal with them first. Then we go after this vampire mistress, finish off the Empress one way or another, and then we put such a fear in the Corporations that they're begging for the United States to come to their aid." Inside the cell was a rumbling that sounded like pure, vicious pleasure. The Hanged Man was ready for what was to come, and the Fool was practically salivating at the thought of watching. ----------- ------------------ That afternoon . . . ----------- ------------------ "Thank you," Jenna said. Nigel sighed and looked his friend in the eye. "I wish I could have done more. If had just deleted it --" "The Fool would have known something was wrong. He has no reason to go looking for William, so he should be safe." "You don't look reassured." She sipped her coffee. "Safe for now, was what I was thinking. You're playing a dangerous game, you know that? If the Fool finds you out --" "Let me deal worry about me." "I have to worry about you. It's a 'friend' thing, or so I'm told." Jenna saw Nigel crack a rare smile. "What?" "You . . . making jokes. It takes some getting used to." She smiled back. "It's strange saying them." She looked at her friends solemnly for a moment. "I'd like you to meet Nessa." "Jenna, I don't think that's wise." "Why not? You're already consorting with me, which is grounds for treason. Why not meet Nessa? You're right to be cautious, but you'll never be able to trust her if you don't at least meet her." "To what end, Jenna?" "There are those in the Major Arcana you said would listen to you. If the Fool lost their support, he might have to rethink his plans." "The Fool has lost his mind. He's on a crusade now, and losing a few Nightwalkers isn't going to change that. And assuming that they'd follow me is a stretch. Most of them would not even believe what is truly going on." "But . . . but I want YOU to meet her." Jenna emphasized. "How badly?" Jenna looked confused. "What?" "I said, how badly do you want me to meet her?" "Fairly badly, I guess." "Well, April has been bugging me about you. She feels bad about setting you up on that double-date, but wants to do it again. My condition for meeting Nessa is that you two meet April and I for dinner. She sees you with a date, she stops bugging me to help fix you up." Jenna blinked. "Huh? What . . . huh? Nigel, I'm not joking." "Neither am I. You help me get April off of my back, and I'll meet this woman of yours." "First, she's not a 'woman' of mine. Secondly, do you really want April getting mixed up in this? Thirdly, we really don't have time to play games --" Nigel held up his hand. "Firstly, there's something between the two of you that is not just an employee / employer thing. You look so much . . . well, lighter when you're talking about her. She got you to open up, which is something I hadn't been able to do in the years that I've known you. Secondly, April knows the score. I told her everything." "You what?!" "I wasn't worried about treason charges with her. Her father is a four-star general, so I figured that even the Fool would be stupid enough to use her as leverage. When I realized that I was serious about her, I decided to tell her everything. She's been surprisingly understanding." "You . . . Wait, you said that you weren't willing to risk your career to help me, but you would for her?" Jenna was not sure why she was offended, but she was. A little bit. Nigel smirked. "You and I aren't intimately involved. That changes things." Her raised one hand and displayed three fingers. "Thirdly, you're right. This isn't a game, but right now everyone is marshaling their forces. If we're going to establish trust, you're running out of time." "You're a jerk, you know that?" Jenna actually wanted to pout, but that was when she saw William coming out of the gate with a few friends, including the young woman that he was taking to the winter dance. Jenna's heart caught in her throat, just like it always did, and she gazed at a son who would never know her, despite how badly she wanted to go speak to him . . . to make amends for abandoning him fifteen years earlier. "He's a handsome young man," Nigel whispered, respecting his friend's momentary distraction. Now that he knew why they really came to this same coffee shop every day, he would do better at giving her a moment of peace while she took in the sight of her child. "He is. He needs to pay more attention in his history class though." Jenna made a note to do something about that. Maybe an anonymous tip to his teachers? "For what it's worth, I think you made the right choice with him," Nigel said earnestly. "And I believe that you would make a wonderful mother." Jenna's heart skipped a little. "Really?" "Really. You've already got the parental thing where you're far too nosy and overprotective going." "Thanks," Jenna replied absently, paying him virtually no attention until the young man that had caught her attention was out of sight. "Sorry, what?" Nigel just smiled and said, "Never mind." ---------- -------------- That night . . . ---------- -------------- "This is really not a good time for this," Jenna said. "Do you realize I've been out to dinner and . . . dressed up . . . more in the last week than I have in the last year? Does anyone besides me remember that there's a fight going on? This is a war, not a tea party." "Yes, you keep saying that. And no matter how many times you say it, I still want you to try on at least three dresses before I work on your makeup." "I don't want makeup." "Just a little peach gloss and maybe some eyeshadow. You're eyes are gorgeous, and it'll help emphasize them. Trust me." "She is pretty good with that sorta stuff," Anabella agreed, looking on. The blonde banshee was already dressed to the nines in a green blouse and billowy skirt. Jenna had noticed Avery noticing Anabella, and was wondering why he simply did not proposition her. Nessa seemed to have no problems making her desires toward someone known, so Jenna had simply figured the entire group would be like that. "Don't even start," Nessa whispered. "I've been trying to figure those two out for years." Jenna simply shrugged. It was not her business. "Okay, I guess I'll just wear that one," she said, pointing at the dress nearest on the hanger. Avery rolled his eyes, Anabella made her "I can't believe you just said that" face, and Nessa made a sighing motion. "The notion of 'trying on' is somewhat lost on you isn't it? Even that amazing body of yours will eventually run out of things that it can make look good, and I won't have that happen on my watch. For crying out loud, you make battle-armor sexy." "I didn't make the battle-armor at all. I --" "Not what I meant. Now try on the first outfit. This is a double-date, and we want to impress the competition." "They're not competition. They're an assassin and school teacher." "Young lady, dating is all about competition. So much to learn," Nessa said wistfully. Jenna chewed her bottom lip, trying to find the right way to ask her question, as well as the courage to ask it at all. "Hey guys," she started, looking from Avery to Anabella, "could you give us a sec?" "Absolutely," Avery said, looking interested but willing to give the woman some space. He offered his arm to Anabella. The banshee just looked at him, grunted something less than flattering, then took his arm and walked over to the lift. "They are so weird," Nessa said. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?" "What are we?" Jenna blurted. "I'm a vampire. You're a genetically altered super-soldier pretending to be a vampire." "I'm . . . that's not what I meant. Our relationship. What do I tell April? Death already seems to think that we're involved, but I know that I'm just another in a long string of people you've taken to your bed. Is this just the way you treat your employees or --" "Sweetheart, if I slept with all of my employees, I wouldn't need an HR department." "You have an HR department?" "Yes. They sleep with everyone that I can't get to." Jenna narrowed her eyes a bit. On things like this, she could not quite tell if Nessa was joking. The vampire laughed that rich, genuine laugh of hers. "I like sex, with all its variety. I've had enough lovers in my life to fill a sports stadium, and I take no shame in it. It's different with all of them. You are first and foremost my friend. No matter what else happens, we have that. Tonight is a date, but I don't see us as dating, or what usually constitutes dating for me." "Which is?" "Sex with one partner more often than the others. The reason why I don't see us as dating is that you still don't know who you really are yet. We're intimate because we both want it, or at least I think we both do." Jenna nodded. "Good. I enjoy being with you, and I think I can help you achieve some happiness in your life. So just tell them that we're friends that are trying to figure out if there might be something more." "Sounds like a plausible cover," Jenna said, slipping back into work mode. 'It's not a cover,' Nessa thought, but kept it to herself. "At least I don't have to pretend to be a security official now. I don't know why he didn't just tell her who I was, since he already told her who HE was." "Your secrets are yours to tell. Maybe he understood that. Now stop stalling and try on some clothes." An hour later, they were at the Stone Table, towards the back of the restaurant where they were protected from prying eyes by half-walls decorated with flowers and by some pretty impressive spells. All of this was lost on April, who was simply gawking at everything. "I've never even been in here," she whispered to Nigel, despite the fact that everyone could hear her. "The waiting list for this place is insane! It takes months to have a shot, and you have to put down a deposit." "I'll have the maitre d' put you on the 'preferred' list," Nessa said, raising her glass and savoring some wine. At least, she said it was wine, but Jenna knew better. "I can't believe you own this place! Jenna, why didn't you tell me you knew the owner?" "I didn't know she owned it a week ago," Jenna replied softly, her eyes on her hands. She was uncomfortable in a dress. She was uncomfortable without a weapon. She was very uncomfortable attempting to be a girl on a date. She did not know how. She realized that it bothered her now that she knew where she stood with Nessa. They were just friends, making Jenna feel like even more of a fake than usual. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 05 "And you're --" April paused and looked around conspiratorially, " -- like him," she added glancing slyly over at Nigel, who was smiling. "A covert operative?! Why didn't you say anything?" "That would rather defeat the purpose of being covert, don't you think?" Nessa asked, her voice warm and honey-filled. April blushed. "I suppose. How did you find out? Jenna didn't just tell you. She's a woman of secrets," April said knowingly. 'You have no idea,' Nessa thought. "I know some people in high places, and found out about the program. I'm actually currently an investor in a specific part of the program," she added, glancing at Jenna. She touched the Nightwalker's leg under the table, and was a bit surprised when she got no reaction. "I'm SO sorry that I tried to set you up," the school teacher said. "If I had known you were gay, I know a really nice lady who works for the sheriff's department who --" She stopped and looked at Nessa. "Never mind. You obviously have no problems getting your own dates. I'm sorry, but has anyone ever told you that you're stunning?" she asked of the vampire. "I like her," Nessa said, still a bit concerned about Jenna but unwilling to not enjoy herself. "I've always heard that teaching is like warfare without all the rules. I'm sure you have some stories --" And that was all it took. April rolled her eyes, gave a flip of the hand, and she was off to the races. From the sound of it, the school was in fact a war zone, and it was constant battle between the teachers, the administration and the students for the high ground. Jenna glanced up from time to time, breaking her intense staring contest with her dinner to see that Nessa and Nigel were sizing each other up across the table. In that moment, Jenna wished that Nessa had made first contact with Nigel instead. He was better at this. As the Empress, she had been coldly efficient. Socializing was not her thing. "-- and so I said, you leave that boy alone," April was saying, breaking Jenna from her reverie. "Sweet mother of all that's holy, that William Monroe is going to be the death of me." Nessa noticed an instant alertness to Jenna's eyes that was not there before. The melancholy that had plagued her throughout the evening had receded, and her attention was fully on April. "How so?" Jenna asked. "Oh, he's just drawn to trouble. None of its really his fault, at least not in a bad way," April explained. "He just seems to find trouble. He's an outrageous flirt, but he doesn't push it. He doesn't like bullies and he lets them know he won't be pushed around, which of course just infuriates them. He's always in the principal's office --" Jenna tuned out for a second. Many of these transgressions had been off the record, or she would have known about them. She would have to be more vigilant. Then she felt a poking sensation in her shoulder. "Did you want dessert?" Nessa whispered into her ear. "No, I'm not really hungry." "So I gathered," the vampire replied, looking at the mostly full plate. "The chef is going to think you don't like his cooking. The last time that happened, I had to talk him out of jumping off the roof. He's very sensitive." "I'm sure he hated being consoled," Jenna replied, more bitterly than she had intended. She felt Nessa withdraw a bit, a clear understanding of what Jenna had meant in her mind. She could not explain her sullenness even to herself, so she decided to give Nessa and Nigel a chance to talk. She accidentally-on-purpose rubbed her hand across her face, smearing her makeup just a bit. "Damn it, I did it again. April, I'm horrible at this," she said, pointing to the mess she had made. "Could you help me?" From the look on April's face, one might have thought that she had just been asked to be the maid of honor at the wedding. Jenna, the cool and beautiful woman she had admired since she had first met her had just asked for her help. With makeup. It was something she could do. "Let's go. Where's the powder room?" "Just to the left of the kitchen," Nessa told her. After a moment, she was alone with Nigel. "So, Death is it?" "I prefer Nigel in more mundane settings. Not to disparage this fine restaurant of course," he said, sipping his wine. "I am curious to hear how you managed to make such a remarkable turnaround in our mutual acquaintance." Nessa smiled. "There are parts of that story that only she gets to tell." "I wouldn't even recognize her from a week ago." "And I think we may both be surprised a week from now. But shall we dispense with the conversational games? She won't be able to distract your date forever. So, can I count on your trust now?" Nigel cocked his head. "Don't you think you should make your case first?" Nessa just laughed. "Nigel my dear, you've already made up your mind." "How so?" "We could have had a conversation over the phone. You never would have met me if there wasn't something you simply wanted to see. And I doubt you would have introduced me to your girlfriend if you saw me as a threat." "You're no threat to her," Nigel said. "That was never a question. Even if you had to try and kill me, you wouldn't go after her. The question was never whether or not you were a good person . . . vampire person. But there are a lot of good people who are not necessarily the solution to this problem." Nessa folded her hands in front of her. "I was the only one of the major players who wanted this to end peacefully. I still do. I just no longer think that is an option." "Why not?" "Because my opponents are an egomaniacal paramilitary guy with delusions of beating back the world's corporations and an egomaniacal werewolf lord who wants me dead, my territory his, and Jenna to treat as his sex slave just to reassert his dominance." "She neglected to mention that part," Death said calmly. "Garon Pegg wants revenge against me and Jenna . . . well, she didn't exactly endear herself to him when she stabbed him with a fork. You know, dining at this place has gotten a lot more interesting as of late." Nessa glanced towards the restroom. "If we could replace the leaderships of the Nightwalkers and guarantee silence from those who know, I would still be willing to pursue a peaceful solution." "Ma'am --" "Please, don't EVER call me that." Nigel suppressed smile. "If it makes you feel any better, you don't look a day over --" "Be very careful how you proceed," she growled. "Very well. The Fool's mental state and general psychological stability has become seriously compromised, but going directly against a commanding officer is not something done lightly. Several of us question the Fool's sanity, but rebellion is another thing entirely." "Jenna did." "Jenna was never really one of us," Nigel replied sadly. "She was always apart from the rest of the unit. Others saw it as her being aloof." "And you?" "I saw her as being lonely. Now I know why. Back to the matter at hand, you have another problem you have not yet faced. The Nightwalker program has been a success thus far, meaning that the government will continue to create more of us. The next will not be under the control of the Fool. You will have the same problem of drawing attention to your kind, without having the benefit of an inside source. You could kill all the Nightwalkers here, maybe even make it look like an accident, but more of us will come. The only thing you will have done is expose yourself to the United States Government which, despite recent historical trends, is still a very dangerous adversary." Nessa leaned back in her chair, her eyes looking past Nigel and into the world beyond. "You are quite correct. We cannot simply kill all of you, nor will a temporary change in command help. We need . . . we need for your employers to think that the project is a failure." Nigel nodded thoughtfully. "That might work, but we have been in operation for some time." "Bioengineering has aftereffects that could take years to manifest," Nessa pointed out. "It is well within the realm of possibility that something could happen. But convincing your higher-ups of a serious defect without actually harming your people, now that will be the trick." Death was not easily impressed, but Nessa had been right earlier. He had already decided to trust her, and now he decided that he liked her. She was still looking for the least damaging solution, something that the Fool was not even considering. "I'll try to delay the Fool's plans as much as I can, but I can't promise anything." Nessa nodded, then something occurred to her. "I'll check with my spell-casters. They might be able to come up with a temporary curse that we could pass off as an effect of bio-tampering." "Non-lethal?" "Of course. It will probably not be pleasant, and in some cases might seem lethal, but it is better than the alternative." "I think we have the beginnings of a plan," Nigel said, raising his glass and toasting with his hostess. "So what have you two been up to?" April asked as she led Jenna and her "repaired" face back to the table. "Just dull business my darling," Nigel said. April smiled that school-teacher smile of hers. "See? This is why I adore Nigel. He's a gentlemen, even when he's completely full of --" "Tisk," Nigel cut her off. "What would your children say if they heard you using such language?" "Like they haven't used worse," April mumbled. She reached out and squeezed Nigel's hand. 'Is that what I want?' Jenna thought, watching her friend interact with his fairly normal (though nice) girlfriend. 'One person for me? Romance? Augh! Why is my mind so screwed up?' Dinner wrapped up quickly, with April doing most of the talking. Nessa found it funny that the school teacher was the center of attention, surrounded by two covert assassins and a vampire. What was less funny was the funk that Jenna had slid into. She was trying hard to look interested in April, who she did actually like, but the woman's mind was a thousand miles away. When they had said their goodbyes, an understanding now in place between Nessa and Nigel, the vampire walking the still-silent Jenna back to the hover. "Okay, now what's with you?" Nessa snapped. Jenna tensed up. "Why does something have to be 'with' me? Some people appreciate silence." "Monks are a livelier bunch than you were tonight. The only time you weren't in a coma was when she mentioned your son. And don't bother denying it was him. There's no other teenager on Earth who would capture your attention like that." "Yeah, so?" "So get your head back in the game --" "How can I get my head back in the game with you messing with my mind all the time?" Jenna shouted. Avery and Anabella took that as their cue and found elsewheres to be. This was a bit of a trick, since the hover limo was not that long. "I'm not . . . okay, how am I --" Jenna actually put a hand up, indicating a desire for Nessa to stop. She took several deep breaths, then spoke. "I'm not trying to be mean. I asked you a question earlier, you answered it honestly. I just don't know what to do with that answer." "I'm a bit confused," Nessa said, but she was calming down. "I don't know what I want. With anything. You told me what our relationship is, and I appreciate that, but what do I want in a relationship? Do I want what Nigel and April have? That whole 'I only have eyes for you' thing, or do I want what you have with your . . . well, more decadent nature?" "You don't have to answer that right away," Nessa reminded her. "But I need to start asking it," Jenna replied. "And that's hard with you around. I appreciate everything you've done, but I can't always rely on you to make my nightmares go away. I've been leaning on you like a crutch to point me in the right direction for everything, but I need to start doing that on my own." "So . . . what?" "I'm going home tonight. My home. Yeah, I know you don't like it, but it's just as much a part of my history as anything else, and I need to prove to myself it doesn't control me. Like you say, it only has the power I give it. I'll still be back in the evening to get the troops ready." Avery raised his hand. "Our people have noticed Garon's men staking out a particular location. It's one of the places you thought that the Nightwalkers might go if the Fool was being sneaky." Jenna's business face came back on. "If Garon found it, then that probably means that the Fool wanted it. He's setting a trap." "To make matters worse, we have to save Garon from walking into it," Nessa added. She recited her conversation with Death earlier. "So if the Nightwalkers die, we're back to square one when your old bosses create new ones and, as much as I hate Garon, I won't allow the werewolves to be wiped out like that. Most of them are just following their alpha." "You really think that magic will be able to help?" "I do, but I don't have anyone with enough moxy in the area to pull it off. I may need to call in a favor from a guy in Louisiana --" "Yer not serious!" Anabella said, making her presence known. "Yer gonna call up Ghede?" "Who's Ghede?" Jenna asked. "He's a voodoo priest and a very nice man," Nessa said, glaring at her banshee friend. "Just because he creeps YOU out --" "The guy gives off so many vibes he makes my skin crawl," Anabella said, her whole body shuddering. "He also is our best bet for pulling off the spell we need, and he owes me. Heck, he'd probably come anyway just to piss off Garon." "That fuzzy bastard hasn't made a lot of friends, has he?" the banshee agreed. "So why don't you like him?" Jenna asked. "Ask her," Anabella grumbled. "She's got a theory." Nessa patted her friends arm. "Banshees are magical beings but unlike others, they are generally bound to the area of the British Isles. There is no real voodoo presence there, so Banshee's magic doesn't recognize him." "If banshees are native to the islands, then --" "She's got a rock of our homeland stored in a secure place," Anabella interrupted. "Lets me stay within a few hundred miles of wherever it is." "That's nice," Jenna said. She had nothing else to say. They returned to the club and Jenna went up to retrieve her normal clothes. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Nessa asked as Jenna prepared to make her escape by the window. "I'm not sure of anything," Jenna replied. "Which is why I need to do this." "I'm not used to having an empty bed," Nessa said. Jenna's face fell. "I know. I don't expect you to." Then the Nightwalker vanished into the darkness, carried by her high-tech gliding wings back to the place that would not let its claws out of her. Nessa felt an uncomfortable silence settling around her like a cloak. She felt that she had done something wrong or that she should apologize, but she did not know what for. She had done everything that she could for her friend, only to see her still in a state of distress. There was only one way that she really knew for curing bouts of unease such as this. She picked up her communicator. "Ipos," she said firmly, "Find someone to cover for you and the boys for security tonight, then come up to my chambers. Bring Cresil and Kobal. I need . . . I need some tough love." --------- ------------ Elsewhere . . . --------- ------------ Jenna approached the church from the front, taking in the oppressive weight of it's stone buttresses and heavy door, and glaring at the stained glass eyes that looked down on her so disapprovingly. It dared her to explain her absence. This place contained the spirits of her family . . . their memories. "I'll never forget you," she whispered, then entered the max of her personal demon. It had been over a week since she had slept here, but her body knew the routine. She passed through her robust security measures, then prepared to run the glass maze. She actually made it through more quickly than usual. It surprised her how clear her mind was. Had she always been so tense? Once she had cleared and deactivated the maze, she did something that she did not remember doing since they day she had moved back in. She looked around. And soon she found herself remembering how things used to look . . . how they used to be. She remembered where the alter was, and where the old Christian icon once hung. She remembered the severity of the pews and how she had briefly wondered why anyone would design such an uncomfortable thing to sit on while they tried to make peace with the universe. And she remembered the trapdoor leading down to the basement and the hidden room where the Messenger had lived out his sick fantasies on Jenna and her family. He had destroyed her in as many ways as a human being could be. Angrily, she shoved the rolling computer desk away and upended the chair. Underneath was a three foot by three foot tile that would have easily passed unnoticed by anyone except Jenna. She knew what was down there. She lifted the tile up, revealing a jack-knife staircase that descend about twenty feet, at which point she emerged into a room, filled with dust and cobwebs and nightmares. A flick of switch lit up the chamber. All the furniture was gone, confiscated by the police, but she could have rebuilt it all from memory. The table was there, surrounded by sturdy wooden chairs that more resembled the old electric chairs than dining room furniture. Where there currently was a single bulb had once been a chandelier, giving off an inappropriate air of civility. Around the room had been tables equipped with restrains, and the wall had held racks of torture devices. But it was the far corner that held her eyes the longest. That was where the bed had been . . . the bed where she had defiled herself over and over to satiate the unholy cravings of a madman. Jenna found herself wanting to scream, or better yet to destroy something. But there was nothing left to destroy. She headed back upstairs, frustrated by the knowledge that she would never be able to exact her pound of flesh from the man who done this to her. And it sickened her to know that she had, in her own perverse way, found a way to love him. How could she ever forgive herself for that? She undressed and showered, but the warm water brought her less comfort than she expected. Her shower, while practical, lacked the comfortable decadence of Nessa's. Thinking of Nessa reminded her that her mentor was probably already with her flavor of the night. This time, the thought inspired wistful sorrow rather than the pang of jealousy she had experienced earlier. Nessa was exactly who she claimed to be, and she had done more for Jenna in a week than anyone else had done for her in fifteen years. She actually found herself admiring the zeal with which her friend lived life. This thought, a more forgiving and understanding one, gave her some comfort as she eased her body into the sleeping pod for a slumber where she would challenge her own dark side, and this time she would do it alone. ---------- -------------------- Back at Nessa's . . . ---------- -------------------- Ipos had a handful of Nessa's hair, her silky red tresses bound up in his fingers as he shoved her face up and down on his enormous red cock. He and his demonic brethren had arrived in Nessa's room to find her naked on the bed, and she had been courteous enough to bind her own hands behind her back with a convenient pair of handcuffs. When Nessa had asked for tough love, she had meant it. She was in the mood for mean and dirty, no questions asked. He had wanted to inquire as the location of Jenna, but he knew better when she was in a mood like this. "Sweet mouth," he grunted as her lips stretched to accommodate his girth. He plunged into her willing throat several times, then withdrew and handed over control to Kobal. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 05 "Fuck yeah," the second demon agreed as the enormous head entered that talented mouth. He still couldn't believe that this was a blood vampire instead of a succubus, and he had worked for her for years. Her tongue slathered along the underside of his member, coaxing it to come deeper into the parlor. He obliged her, forcing himself down into her throat. She could only take half of him, but that was a hell of a lot more than most women, mortal or Night Breed, were ever able to pull off. And she was so into what she did. She slobbered around his cock, looked up at him with big pleading eyes, and making gagging sounds even though he knew for a fact she had no gag reflex. She just did it because she knew it turned them on. Cresil was next to grab Nessa's head, yanking it backward until her knees were at an extreme angle and her chest was thrusting up to the sky. He placed his scrotum in front of her mouth, waiting for her to suck his balls into her mouth. He was not long to wait, and he stroked his own massive hard-on while she sucked and licked his sack. While Cresil was getting tea-bagged, Ipos thrust a hand between her thighs, jamming two fingers up into her sex with ruthless abandon. The vampire responded immediately with a moan, pushing her hips against the demon's hand. She soon found her breasts being mauled by Kobal. He had a thing for her tits, which suited her just fine. He grabbed at her nipples and pulled them just to the point where good pain started to become bad pain, then released them with a snap. Then he gripped her breast flesh, pushing his nails against her skin but not breaking it. "Yesssss," Nessa hissed, her body burning with need. She wanted their strength and their desire and, most importantly, she wanted to not be the one in charge for a little while. Looking after Jenna's mental well being had been taking a toll on Nessa's psyche that she had not even noticed until she took this time off for herself. But part of her still felt a bit of guilty that she was not looking out for the Nightwalker even at that moment. The only way to drown her guilt was in a sea of hedonism, and the demons were perfect for that. Nessa was tossed onto her back, her arms pinned beneath her and her hips on the edge of the bed. "Open wide," Cresil said, putting that beautiful cock head at her lips, then pushing himself inside. "Sucking this better or worse than sucking blood?" Nessa made a gargling noise as she tried to get more of his meat into her mouth. "I thought so." Meanwhile, Ipos was spreading Nessa's thighs and thrusting his smooth, hot, red dick into her body. Normally he would prime his boss with a little oral play first. He did not mind doing it at all, and she generally enjoyed it. But when she said she wanted it rough, then that was out. He grabbed her hips and shoved himself inside of her, almost losing it on the way in. She was so tight, and her body recovered quickly after every encounter. Watching almost a foot of red skin disappear into her pussy was a sweet sight, and her legs wrapping around his waist indicated that to her it felt as good as it looked to him. Ipos began thrusting, making his boss grunt and groan into his fellow demon's cock. She was doing her best impression of a python, her jaws almost dislocating to try and swallow prey bigger than she was. Her mouth was taxed to the limit, letting inch after inch of smooth skin slide between her lips. Kobal got on the bed and straddled Nessa's midsection, putting his own rod between her breasts and, after spitting on the valley of her cleavage, started squeezing them together around the shaft. He kneaded her breasts as he slid his manhood between those warm, heavy mounds. Nessa just let her worrying mind take a wander and let her body rule the hour. One demon by himself was generally a satisfactory lover. Two was asking for trouble, and three meant she probably would not remember her name come the end of the night, but oh would she be satisfied. "Switch places," Ipos growled. The three demons moved in unison, each moving to a different part of Nessa with which to pleasure themselves. Nessa closed her eyes and was able to identify who was where just based on their measurements and their techniques. Ipos was in her mouth now, because he was driving much further than the head of his cock into her throat. He liked the fleshy nub at the end played with more than the other two. Cresil was on her stomach fucking her tits. He was more of an ass man than a breast man, so he was not as enthusiastic as Kobal had been. Not that he exactly minded, but it was not his favorite thing. Even without the process of elimination, she would have known that Kobal was the one between her thighs, driving his flesh spike into her greedy pussy like an oil rig. Kobal was the youngest of the demons and the most enthusiastic, and he put his all into his youthful pounding. He might eventually learn some moderation, but he certainly would not learn it from Nessa. She liked how he could keep his hips moving with such consistency. "Harder," she muttered throatily on one of the rare moments where Ipos had slipped out of her mouth. Instantly, Kobal began pounding her harder, causing her hips to lift off of bed with every thrust. Ipos was finally working more of his shaft into Nessa's mouth, while Cresil dismounted her midsection. leaned over, and gripped one of Nessa's nipples with his teeth. "Ah!" Nessa gasped, as if her pleasure centers had just been struck by lightning. "Why don't you 'ah' on this?' Ipos asked before filling her mouth up again. "Mmh," the vampire moaned happily, humming her content directly into his sensitive cock skin. "Oh, do that some more," Ipos said, feeling the vibrations all the way up his spine. "C'mon slut, give me a hummer." Nessa started to hum, just as requested, sound becoming tactile in the warmth of her mouth, bringing a little piece of ecstasy to her friend. "Switch places," Cresil growled. He wanted a shot at Nessa's oral skills. "Spoilsport," Ipos said. "But hey, I've got an idea." He stood up, rolled Nessa onto her stomach, then grabbed her by the waist and picked her up with ease. "You boys pick an end." His brethren smiled, with Cresil violating Nessa's mouth while Kobal remained between her thighs. Ipos held Nessa's body up with ease, sliding her forward onto Cresil, then he pushed her back on Kobal. She was a piece of meat on their collective demon spit, her arms still cuffed behind her back. 'Remind yourself to give Ipos a raise for this one,' Nessa thought as she was filled at both ends. It was not long until she felt her climax building, a veritable crescendo of pleasure and release. And when the high notes of her sensual symphony hit, she gave into their sweet, sweet music. "Ooh, she's primed," Kobal said. "Yeah, but she lost some fluids there. Seems only fair we give some back," Cresil agreed. Then he held Nessa's head, pulled his cock out until only the head was between her lips, then shot what seemed like a gallon of seed into her waiting mouth. There were two big reasons why there were so many legends of mortal women copulating with demons. Firstly, they were hung like horses. Secondly, they produced a much greater quantity and quality of sperm. And by quality, Nessa meant "kind of tasty." So when the white creamy substance poured into her mouth, she could not drink it down fast enough. Some leaked out of her mouth and down to her chin. "Thank you sir, may I have another?" Nessa asked. Ipos and Cresil quickly switched places, so Ipos was able to let the boss nurse his staff back to full mast. "Man, thousands of years of experience have made her the perfect fuck," Kobal was saying, filling Nessa's pussy to the limit while gripping her ass. He raised his hand and slapped her ass hard, eliciting another pleased moan. Soon the room and Nessa's ass were lit up with the sound and sensation of a good spanking. "She's the ultimate sex machine," Ipos agreed. "Sweet mouth. Ya know, if they'd made more angels like this, we wouldn't have had to rebel." For a moment, Nessa wanted to chuckle. She had found out after meeting her first demon that the "great war" between heaven and hell was a badly misrepresented event. Demons and angels were actually basically the same race, but there had been a human resources issue. The demons had wanted full permission to engage in carnal acts with mortals, while the angels thought, and this was a quote from a demonic source, "That's one of the dumbest, most irresponsible things ever imagined." Needless to say, there had been a parting of the ways after that. It was not until the early monotheistic religions had tried to keep a stranglehold on their parishioners' behaviors that the angels were put on pedestals and the demons were . . . well, demonized. But thinking of angels also made Nessa thing of herangel. She hoped that Jenna was doing all right. When the boys finished up with her here, maybe she could go check . . . but that would have to wait, because the enormous cock in her pussy had started her all-a-quiver again. Her tunnel clamped down on Kobal's rampaging member, holding it tightly like a dear lover while her climax gave his member a squeezing massage. And she came . . . and came. Then she felt a swelling in her nether regions as Kobal grunted and shot his load into her womb, which gobbled it as greedily as her mouth had done earlier. And like before, some of the excess seed seeped out, making Nessa feel like the dirty little slut she aspired to be. Kobal and Cresil kept Nessa aloft, one on each side of their boss's body and using her like a battering ram. Over and over again, she was thrust mouth-first onto Ipos's staff. Her tongue dragged along that red skin, and she was exerting enough suction to make extraction tricky. But getting out was not Ipos's concern. Getting off was. He grabbed Nessa's hair, pulled out of her mouth, and pointed his cock-head straight and her face. Nessa had the presence of mind to close her eyes before she was covered from forehead to chin with the money shot. This was not one of her favorite thing. For one thing, it really stung if it got in her eyes. Secondly, she liked the taste of demon cum. It seemed like such a waste. But she knew it floated Ipos's boat to do it, so she just opened her mouth and caught what she could, licking her lips for more. "She just can't get enough," Nessa heard. She wasn't willing to open her eyes until the last stream had come to rest. Then she felt something at her vaginal opening. 'Oh boy,' she thought, 'Cresil is hard again.' Sure enough, the first demon to ejaculate shoved himself up to the hilt in Nessa's pussy, holding her by her hips while he began thrusting. Nessa felt a hand slapping her ass, but she still could not see. 'Feels like Ipos. He's got longer nails.' Then her mouth was presented with something else. "You know what to do," Ipos growled. His cock was semi-soft, but he knew that Nessa was more than capable of getting him ready for round two. Nessa loved dicks in this condition. They were so hot in her mouth, full but not rigid. She was able to play with them a bit more, and she got to experience them expanding while already inside her. Kobal finally got around to wiping Nessa's eyes clean so that she could enjoy her limited view of Ipos's body as he fucked her face. She teased him for a while, applying lighter pressure on his cock than she would if she were trying to get him off. She would be willing to just play with that fleshy head all night. But the demons had other plans for her. "Hold up," Ipos said. He looked at Cresil. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?' Nessa did not see the look the two exchanged, but she found herself quickly being carried back to the bed. Ipos sat on the bed, and Nessa was lowered pussy-first onto his now hard manhood. Cresil disappeared for a second, but Nessa managed to pass the time by riding her demon friend like a cowgirl on a horse. Then she was roughly pushed against Ipos's chest, and the bed shifted behind her. 'Oh hell,' Nessa thought. She had asked for tough love, and she was getting it. Cresil's huge cock was pressing against her rectum after apparently having some lubricant applied. "Fuck my whore ass," Nessa said, getting back into the spirit of it. This was probably going to make her walk funny for a while, but it would be well worth it. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck," she babbled as her anal ring spread, making way for Cresil's flesh staff. It was not at all unusual for Nessa to wonder why the hell she had asked for this if one of the demons wanted butt sex, since that initial press was so incredibly painful and uncomfortable. This time was especially uncomfortable due to the double penetration, which was not something she did very often. But when the two demons got their rhythms going, Nessa began to remember. "Fuck me fuck me," she said, expounding on her earlier verbalization. She was so unbelievably full, and the discomfort had turned into that wickedly exciting ache that she loved so much. She was glad that she had a video-camera pointed at her bed, because she wanted to see what she looked like when sandwiched between these two massive entities. She looked forward to find Kobal had positioned himself in front of her, his semi-hard cock taunting her from just out of range of her tongue. The young demon slapped her in the face with his equipment, then gave her the head to suck on. She gratefully licked the head, then sucked it in until just the crown was engulfed in her greedy maw. She kept sucking softly while Kobal stroked the hardening shaft, causing her mouth to open wider and wider. Nessa passed the better part of ten minutes as every available access point was penetrated to the content of the demons, and she orgasmed two more times before the boys were ready again. Though he was the last to regain hardness, Kobal was the first to achieve his second climax, filling Nessa's mouth with a second load of jizz. Nessa let more slip out that she swallowed this time, her mind and body completely enchanted by what was being done to her. Cresil pulled out of Nessa's ass and proceeded to spew another large load of his seed all over her ass and back. Hot, sticky stuff flew in streams, forming an elaborate if chaotic tattoo on Nessa's skin. The sensation made her ride Ipos harder and harder, bouncing like a madwoman until she fell him cumming inside her sex, coating her vaginal walls with his spunk. "You boys," Nessa said happily, "are all getting big Christmas bonuses this year." "I thought that's what this was," Kobal said earnestly. "If not, then whatever our bonus is may put you into traction." "You know, I do pay you guys in things other than sex." "Only when you have a headache." Nessa thought about then, then shrugged. They had her there. She quickly popped the latch for her handcuffs and tossed them aside. she kissed each of the demons on the cheek, then hurried them on their way. They were her fuck buddies, not cuddle buddies. She hit the shower, thinking that she might give Jenna a call and see how she was doing. 'I hope she's going to be able to sleep all right,' the vampire thought. ------------ ----------------- At the church . . . ------------ ----------------- Jenna was tossing and turning in her sleeping tube. The nightmares had returned, but they lacked some of the teeth that they normally would have had. Jenna's time with Nessa had shaped her dreams, so the Nightwalker was now aware of all three incarnations of herself in her sleep state. The monster in the church had tried to call spirit Jenna back inside, but ghost Jenna and young Jenna had helped her resist. Young Jenna had been most adamant, for she had been locked away with no understanding of why. She had even begun to stare inquiringly at the tower where ghost Jenna had locked away the memories of their son, but that conversation had been interrupted by -- BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP -- Jenna awoke with a start. She had never heard that alarm outside of system checks, but she knew it quite well. It was her perimeter alarm. She extricated herself from the sleeping tube and looked around. Hearing no disturbances, she brought up external and internal security security cameras. She began donning her new body armor as she scanned for the possible intruder. 'It couldn't be Nessa,' she thought. 'She would have called first. Avery?' Those were the only two who knew where she lived, or that this old church was even inhabited. 'It could be just thieves or --' She paused her thoughts when she thought she saw a shadow moving near one of her steeple cameras. 'No common thief is going to be up there,' she realized. Then she saw another two shadows move. "Nightwalkers," she muttered, cursing herself. She had figured that by forging the death of her son that Nigel had quelled interest in her past, but that had been a foolish assumption. Her history and that of this church would have been in there as well. It would not have taken much to discover that the building was under private ownership, though how they figured out it was her was beyond her. But why had they come to this place on this night? Had they been casing it out? How oblivious had she been when she had returned. Up above, there was the sound of breaking glass, and instantly there was a gun in Jenna's hand. She felt rather than heard something hurtling through the air, and then three figures landed on the glass ceiling above Jenna's living space. Her free hand picked up a second gun, but there was no use firing. That ceiling was two-inch glas-steel, and a tank landing on it wouldn't be able to get through. She glanced from form to form, and it was easy to pick out who was who. Tower had landed on the top of the maze near the entrance, while the Magician was near the side entrance. And the figure standing about ten feet above Jenna's head was unmistakable as well. For a moment, the Empress froze. The Hanged Man looked huge. Had he always been that big? His body-armor straps were let out as much as the would go, and the black under-suit seemed stretched around his muscular frame. She glanced at her computer. This was her terrain. She needed to use it. She knew that she could not call Nessa, because it might be traced if there were other Nightwalkers about. Then something else occurred to her . . . there was evidence of William on her computer. Snapshots taken from afar, copies of his report cards . . . these were things that could never be found out. Hanged Man brought one hand down on the glass ceiling, and Jenna heard the most awful sound, cutting through what should have been a noiseless environment. It was the sound of nails on a chalkboard, taken to the the hundredth power. 'No,' she thought. 'Nails on glass.' She looked closely at the Hanged Man's hands and saw that they seemed longer than before. And he had claws. "Oh my god," Jenna whispered. "What have you done?" The Hanged Man began raining blows down on the glass, cutting grooves in it with his new-found claws. The other two Major Arcana were also looking for ways in, so Jenna knew she did not have much time. A few quick commands began to purge her database, and another activated her worst case scenario security protocol. In five minutes, the church would implode and take everyone inside with it. The Empress looked up at the Hanged Man one more time. His face was mostly hidden by the spandex mask, but it still seemed distorted, and his eyes glowed red. Then Jenna realized -- 'He's a werewolf,' she thought. 'They crossed a Nightwalker with a fucking werewolf?!' Then she saw that thick glass begin to crack. 'Impossible!' she thought. The glass had been made to withstand the impact of heavy arms, so how could one man . . . one thing break through? Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 05 She hurtled down the corridor's of the maze, wishing that she hadn't reset the pattern before going to sleep. She tried to keep her calm, but part of her was frayed. This was twice that her inner sanctum had been invaded in less than a week. But at least all Nessa had wanted was sex. The glass crashed behind her and she heard yelling. Actually, "yelling" was too human of a word for it. It was a hideous, unholy growling sound that echoed throughout the church. It was commanding the other two Major Arcana to find their ways back outside. Since the walls were reinforced, they would somehow have to find their ways back up to the roof. Jenna wondered if they would make it in time. But for the second time, she was being pursued by a demon inside these "holy" walls. The Hanged Man launched himself into the maze, and Jenna could see that he was moving with a purpose. His nose was low, and he was barely looking at Jenna. 'He's tracking me by scent,' she said, her hopes falling. He did not need to find his way out, or at least he did not know that he should. The church was going to go down in flames and rubble in just a few minutes. Jenna stopped for a moment when she got to a section that had three possible routes. She ran quickly into the all three, then pursued one and hoped like hell that it was correct. She was rewarded when she soon saw the Hanged Man stop in that spot and look confused. If he had been looking up, he would have seen the direction she had headed. Their eyes met across several walls of clear glass. Jenna knew in that moment that he would kill her if he caught her. No capture. No "rehabilitation." There was more beast than man there, and she had always wondered how much man there was there in the first place. She made two wrong turns in short order, but she felt assured that she was close. Finally, she spotted her front security portal. Unfortunately, her pursuer had caught up with her. Jenna jumped and spun when she heard his paws on the path behind her, drew two guns, and fired a dozen rounds down the narrow corridor. Almost all of them hit. The Hanged Man, or the creature that wore his skin, stopped in its tracks. Bullets had bounced off its armor in most places, but a couple had gotten through. Then their eyes met again, and . . . and the Hanged Man started to laugh. The laughing turned into a howling, barking sound that frightened her more than anything had in a great while. She scrambled towards the door, glad that she did not need as many security precautions getting out. But as she reached for the door to the circular area where the fingerprint and eye scanner were located, she was caught. If anyone had been outside on the street in the wee hours before dawn, they would have thought that their nightmares had spilled into the street. The Hanged Man had leaped and rammed the Empress through the heavy front doors of the church, wood and metal splintering and snapping as he went. This was not the cool, calculated assassin that Jenna had known. This was the Beast of legend, a monster unlike anything the world had seen. The Empress landed on her stomach, with her opponent on top of her. She felt him hammer down on her back, his claws digging into her back. Her armor caught the first wave of blows, but she could feel it being shredded. Claws did manage to leave gashes in her neck and just underneath her shoulders. He was so powerful, and he had hit her like a freight train. She snapped her head back, catching him in the nose with the back of her helmet, then bucked so that she could spin under him and at least try to defend herself. She need not have bothered. The Hanged Man regained his feet, grabbed her by the armor, then hurled her into the wall of the church. Jenna's mind exploded in noise and pain, and her back felt like something had just broken. She could still feel her feet, but that was the only good thing. That had hurt. A lot. But she was still conscious, so she could still fight. A cruel fact had, however, already seeped into her thoughts. She would not win this fight. Hanged Man jumped towards her, but she rolled out of the way and he collided with the wall. Jenna stumbled away, then over the small wall separating the sidewalk from the street. Her animalistic foe began to lumber afterward. 'He's not used to this new body,' Empress thought. 'God, if this is him at less than maximum strength --' She ran out of time to ponder, as he had closed the gap that she had created. It was all Empress could do to avoid his claws, dodging as best she could and trying to keep some kind of separation. She certainly did not want to be here when the church came down. And with that, she had an idea. There was a chance, however slim, that she might not die there that night. while her body armor did not offer as much protection as her old stuff, she was suddenly thankful for the added maneuverability, and she ducked and rolled under Hanged Man's outstretched arms before sprinting towards the door. He spun and chased after her, running into the ruined central chamber. Then she turned and again ducked under his grasp, grabbing something off of her opponent's belt. When he spun to face her again, she pointed something at his face and pulled the trigger. Hanged Man howled angrily as the industrial strength pepper spray hit him in the face mask. The non-lethal spray had been designed to put down the toughest opponents and while his mask helped him, it did not save him. And it completely fucked up his sense of smell. Jenna grabbed a chunk of rubble and smashed it against the Hanged man's face, sending him stumbling backwards. 'I've only got a few seconds,' she reminded herself, turning to run. A stray claw took a chunk out of the back of her leg, and she almost passed out from the pain as she lurched through the opening and into the street. Just as she fell onto the pavement outside, she heard the explosions inside. She had personally rigged the place to implode just like in professional demolitions. The neighbors wouldn't be hurt, though there was going to be a lot of dust over everything. Some of the steeple started to fall into the street, and she crawled away just before a large iron bar landed right where she had been and impaled itself into the ground. Jenna wondered if the other Major Arcana had gotten out all right. She felt guilt about the idea of them being hurt because of this, but she had not gone after them. She had not wanted anyone to get hurt. But hurting was what she herself was doing. She was losing blood fast, she could no longer walk, and she could not even see the damage done to her back. Some part of her decided that it was all right. She was no longer afraid to die. She almost wished that the old monotheistic religions had been right. Maybe then there was a chance she could have seen her family again. But she needed to let Nessa know what was happening. As she crawled to the alley across the way, she got out her communicator. There was still a few minutes until dawn, and she knew Nessa loved to watch the dawn through her special, UV blocking windows. "Hey Jenna, how is it --" came the vampire's sultry voice. "Nessa," Jenna gasped. "They . . . found me." "What happened? Are you --" "Can't talk long," Jenna said, leaning against a garbage can. "Have to tell you --" She stopped and gasped in pain as something in her back objected to being moved. "Hanged Man . . . they made him a werewolf . . . hybrid. He's fucking strong. Too strong. I blew up the building on him, but he might survive. He's like a damn tank." "Jenna, where are you now? You sound hurt." "Don't . . . don't worry about me. You'll need to adjust your strategies. If the Nightwalkers --" Jenna stopped and sighed. Things were getting blurry in a hurry. "If they make all the Nightwalkers like that . . . they'll be too strong." "Tell me where you are! I'm sending people to retrieve you." "I'm not important," the Empress replied, gulping desperately for breath. "Just tell Nigel --" "Screw Nigel! YOU are important to ME. Now tell me where the hell you are! Jenna? Jenna?!" Jenna just put the phone down. There would be sirens soon. She doubted anyone would find her right away. It might be a few days before anyone noticed her body. She sat quietly staring at the rubble that had once been her home and her prison. 'At least if fell before I did,' she thought absently. That brought her some joy. She had escaped. It had taken her more than fifteen years, but she was finally free of the place. She closed her eyes and let the end come. A few minutes later, she smelled the sweetest smell she had ever encountered, and she felt her body lifted up towards the sky. She had wondered what dying might feel like. It felt suspiciously like flying. Before the darkness overcame her completely, she thought she heard a voice. "Not yet. You're not done here yet." -------- --------------------- Some time later . . . -------- --------------------- "How long?" "I'm not sure. She suffered a lot of damage." "But --" "Nessa, if you don't stop hovering, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." "It's my damn home!" "It's a very nice home, but that's beside the point. Just remember that it was you who called me. This will tilt the balance of favors back to me, don't ya think?" Jenna slowly opened her eyes, her head aching and her body feeling like it had just been run through a meat grinder. What was Nessa doing in heaven? With all the things she had done, particularly in the carnal respect, Jenna would have thought -- "See, our patient is awake," came a new, rich, masculine voice that Jenna did not recognized. Nessa moved into her view and smiled. "Thank you," she said, her voice directed somewhere else but her eyes on her friend's. She leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Jenna's lips. "You had me scared there for a moment." Nessa's faced suddenly looked vexed. "And if you ever try to die on me again like that, I'll have your hide." "Someone . . . already took it," Jenna gasped, feeling the pain in her back and legs. "What happened?" "You're supposed to tell us that," Avery said, moving into her view. Jenna wanted to look around, but her head and neck were immobilized with some infernal contraption. "Last thing I remember is fighting the Hanged Man. But he wasn't human anymore. I think he was a werewolf." She didn't have much strength, so she relayed the story as quickly as she could. "Could I have some water?" "I'll get some," said the new voice from outside of her field of vision. Nessa was busy stroking Jenna's face, so Avery started to explain. "When you stopped responding, Nessa flew out to the church. She figured you had to be nearby if you were as wounded as she expected." "Flew? That's what that was," Jenna muttered. "I thought maybe the whole 'Heaven' thing wasn't so far fetched after all." "Sorry, but the old Christian Heaven is a pipe dream. Ask the demons about it sometime. But you were barely hanging on. Luckily, Ghede had gotten in late from New Orleans and was available to help patch you up." "The voodoo guy?" "I prefer 'Doctor' Voodoo Guy, if you don't mind," laughed the new voice. He moved into her view. Ghede was about six foot two inches of black god. He had the darkest skin that Jenna had ever seen, and it was stretched tightly over his v-shaped muscular frame. His face has a beautiful symmetry to it, and his eyes stood out in stark, gorgeous contrast. His perfectly white teeth had the same effect, and his smile made it all seem to flow together so well. His sleeves were rolled up, showing extensive tattooing on his chiseled forearms. "You've struck another one senseless," Nessa said jokingly. "Not . . . what? Huh?" Jenna said, not sure what Nessa had said. Reality was still a little messed up for her. "Ghede is also a doctor. Along with his voodoo, that makes him a very competent healer." "How bad is the damage?" Jenna asked, suddenly very aware of her nakedness under the thin cover. "Not bad for the losing end of an auto-wreck. You have broken ribs, severe cuts to the back of your leg and to your shoulders, a concussion, and you had a collapsed lung. Those are the things I've been able to identify without more specialized equipment. Any mortal and most Night Breed should have died from those injuries." "He was so strong and so fast," Jenna said, her body shuddering, causing everything to ache. "Nessa, we need to find out --" "I've had the church under surveillance all day. They didn't pull any bodies out yet." "He's alive. They all are. Hanged Man would have been close to the door, and the other two would have been close to the top. They would have been found. Oh no," she said, struggling to sit up, finding herself unable to do so. "Sit down sugar," Nessa said. "You're hurt badly." "What time is it?" "Eight p.m.. Why?" "I missed coffee." "Sweetheart, I know you love the stuff, but --" "Her coffee date with Nigel," Avery said to his boss. "I've never missed it," she replied. "He'll want to know --" "Shh, I'll get you a land line and you can contact him. I'm sure he'll understand." "But --" Jenna wanted to say more, but there was a new face in the room. She was not going to mention that she had missed a day in her son's life as well with someone she did not know nearby. But boy, was the new guy handsome. "Okay." She tried pulling the covers up to her neck, but Ghede stopped her. "Now that you're awake, we need to finish checking you out." He flashed that brilliant smile. "Medically, that is." Jenna blushed, but she allowed him to poked and prod at her. She managed to remain stoic until -- "Jenna, if you're not honest with me about what is hurting, I can't help you." He brushed some hair from her face with his fingers. "So please, help me make you whole again." Jenna blushed more. That sounded like what Nessa tended to say. "Let her make her call," Nessa said, handing the communicator to the patient. "Then she'll let you touch her anywhere you need to in order to make her feel better." The blonde woman wanted badly to throw something at her vampire mentor. "Ever the tease," Ghede said, kissing the top of Nessa's hand. "You know, getting her blood pressure up is not helping." "Oh, like I'm the one responsible for that," Nessa said, giving him a knowing wink. "Now would you please finish your exam?" Jenna was still on the line with Nigel. "No, no I'm going to live. Yeah, it was bad. Did you know . . . no, I'm not accusing you of anything. I know you didn't know they'd send them after me. I meant did you know that they crossed the Hanged Man with a werewolf?" She paused. "No, I'm not kidding. Nigel, he almost killed me. I'd be dead if Nessa hadn't come and gotten me." She held the phone up to the vampire. "He wants to talk to you." Nessa took the phone. "You're welcome but . . . No, I'm not going to keep her on a leash. Though that might be fun under the right circumstances. Don't worry about that. No, I've got the best doctor around. She'll be good as new. Well, the new new rather than the old new." She put her hand on her hip and looked like she was pouting. "What do you mean, 'That doesn't make sense?' Here, talk to Jenna again." It took a few minutes to assure her friend that she would indeed survive, and he agreed to look into this hybridization that the Fool and the Hanged Man had engaged in. There had been another skirmish between the Nightwalkers and Garon Pegg's werewolves, and many wolves had died. "It just means he's going to get more," Avery said. "He's a moron. He came here to prevent word of our existence from getting out because he didn't trust you," he said, looking at Nessa, "but he's done nothing but exacerbate things since he got here." "Pride before duty with that man," Ghede nodded. "What's your story with him?" Jenna asked. "Nessa did not tell you?" he replied. "She helped exonerate me of a murder charge." Jenna tried to scoot further away, but she was reminded of how much pain she was in. "I was innocent," he told her. "Pegg was the investigator. He was more interested in getting a notch on his belt than pursuing real justice. Pegg had already angered Nessa, which is why she was the only high-ranking sheriff who would represent me. Nessa found out the culprit, who turned out to be one of Garon's less honorable lieutenants." "You really make a habit of embarrassing him, don't you?" Jenna asked. "It's a gift. I wouldn't do it if he didn't make it so easy for me." Jenna winced as Ghede touched a spot on her hip. "Deep bruising. We really should get you x-rayed." "I have a job to do," Jenna said. "Just give me enough pain killers to --" "You're not going anywhere," Nessa said. She met Jenna's look of defiance with one of patience. "You're hurt, and you would be no help to us in the field. Besides, we now need to come up with a new plan. Biologically enhanced super werewolf commandos were not in any of your scenarios." Jenna was suddenly so angry that she was trembling. She had never felt this helpless, not since . . . not since that time of her life that she was trying so hard to move past. "Nessa, her brain still works," Avery pointed out. "Let her plan." "And I hate to be the one to say this," Anabella inserted, "but we need to tell Garon about this. I don't like 'im, but I don't want to see the bloodbath this could turn into." Nessa's shoulders fell. "And we would need to do it soon, because my sources say he plans to move this weekend when foot traffic in that district will be low. Avery, who do we have that Garon won't kill on sight at this point?" "I'll do it," Anabella said. "Garon won't touch me." "He has mages --" "Nessa darling, you've taken more than enough risks for me over the years, and you have all the fun. I'm doing this." "Take Cresil and Kobal with you." Nessa went and grabbed a gray cloth from a chest of drawers. "Take this." "What's that?" Jenna asked. "A flag of accord. If a local sheriff or lord seeks a meeting under the flag and they are betrayed, then the offending party's life is forfeit. You're not supposed to use them that often, so it says I mean business." "Really, I can go with," Jenna said, reaching to pull down the covers, then realizing she was naked. "Uhm, just get me my clothes and --" Nessa sat and the bed and stared at her. "I just need --" "Bed rest," Ghede said. "Yes, I agree. And medicine, and the proper treatments to fend of lycanthropy." "What?!" Jenna said, turning her head suddenly and then wishing she had not. The spike of pain that started in her neck and blazed up to the back of her skull and down through her shoulders was intense. "If this enemy of yours had been infected with lycanthropy, which is the disease that causes someone to become a werewolf or the like, then there are treatments. Unless you want to shave your chest as well as your legs --" "You should've seen her legs when she first got here," Nessa said, but stopped joking when she saw Jenna beginning to tremble. The woman was scared. Avery had been right; Jenna needed something to do so that she did not feel helpless. "Jenna, concentrate. I need you to work with Ghede on getting you healthy as quickly as possible. We may not be able to let you rest on that cute little ass of yours as long as I would like, but I'm not letting you go back in the field until I'm sure you wouldn't be a danger to yourself or the rest of our people." Jenna fought to get her trembling under control, closing her eyes and finding her emotional center. She felt strong hands touching her temples, massaging slowly in small circles. "That's . . . amazing," she said, almost melting into Ghede's hands. "You're using magic aren't you?" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 05 Ghede smiled. "A little bit." Jenna figured that she should be objecting, but she really did not want to. She was also pretty sure that she was supposed to be in a lot of pain. And pissed about something. "Jenna, I'm going to go talk to the troops," Nessa was saying, "so rest up." She leaned in and kissed Jenna on the lips. The girl acted a bit surprised at first, but succumbed to it quickly. "Hmm," Nessa said after licking both their lips, "you must be feeling better. Ghede has that effect on women. Some guys too." "You are too generous in your praise," he chuckled. Nessa could not stop smiling as she left the room. Her friend was going to be okay, and she was putty in Ghede's hands. ------- ------------------ That afternoon . . . ------- ------------------ When Jenna awoke, it was still daylight. She felt sore, weak, and all-in-all unpleasant. She was, surprisingly enough, actually wearing clothes, despite being in bed with Nessa. Her vampire friend was sound asleep, looking beautiful without trying, which Jenna thought should be impossible. Nessa was under the covers while Jenna was on top of them, wearing the softest black silk pajamas she had ever imagined. "Glad to see you're awake, "Ghede whispered. "How are you feeling?" Jenna looked over at Nessa, then put her finger to her mouth and made a "shh" sound. "It's going to take more than the sound of my voice to wake her," Ghede said. "You spend a lot of time around her when she's asleep?" "In my interactions with her, I have rarely made it to the 'sleeping' part. She shares her bed with many, but allows very few to stay with her through the day." "She's . . . I guess she feels sorry for me," Jenna muttered, wishing she could check to see if her hair looked okay. Ghede ran his fingers through Jenna's hair in a way that seemed far too intimate but strangely noninvasive. She knew the touch was meant to convey comfort, and it did. She wondered if she was supposed to be feeling something else. As it was, she would take 'relaxing.' Nessa snorted ungracefully and then rolled over. "She is as delicate as a desert flower," the large black man said. "And I doubt that she feels sorry for you. Well, maybe at the moment yes, but she would not trust you so implicitly out of pity." "What makes you think she trusts me?" "She is thousands of years old, and right now she is more vulnerable than you can imagine. It would not take much for one with your power to end her long life in an instant. You are new to our world, so you probably do not yet comprehend what allowing such intimacy involves. Now, I need to examine you again." Ghede grabbed a necklace from around Jenna's neck, one that she did not remember putting on. "What's that?" "It is a healing charm," he told her. "A powerful one. I am attempting to heal those bones that are cracked or broken first, then we will give your a body a chance to recover before we start on other injuries." "Can't we just get it over with?" "Your body can only handle so much magic, just like it can only handle so much medicine. And like medicine, mixing different magics can have unforeseen consequences. We want to get you better, not cause you to grow gills or scales." For some reason, Jenna thought about how cool it might be to have gills. She had always wanted to try scuba diving as a kid, but had never gotten an opportunity. She shook her head. "Shouldn't you be working on a spell or whatever that will make the Nightwalker program look like a failure?" "I already know how to cast a disease spell that will work. The question is not finding such magic. It is finding a way to pay the price. Magic can give you a great many things, but it always asks for something in return. Nessa and I must agree on the price to be paid." Jenna shivered, the words coming out of Ghede's mouth making her uncomfortable. He mistook the reaction for being cold, so he covered her with a blanket except for the spots he was examining. "You are more jittery than I expected a commando to be," Ghede muttered. "You're better spoken than I thought a voodoo priest would be." "How many voodoo priests have you met?" "How many commandos have you met?" Ghede smiled. "Well played." "Nessa may be used to being poked and prodded by strangers, but I'm not." Then Jenna blushed again. "That wasn't what I meant . . . it didn't come out right." "Yet was oddly appropriate. So tell me about yourself. My talk with Nessa indicated that you have quite a story, but she wanted you to tell it." Ghede could tell instantly that this was not a happy story. His patient stiffened up and her face closed off. "If you want to." "Can we not?" Jenna asked, her voice cracking slightly. "We don't have to do anything you don't want." Jenna tried to smile. "Now you sound like her again." "Is your story so painful?" "I just don't want you to look at me like I'm even more broken than I am." "Would it help you if you knew more about me?" He watched her shrug, almost shyly. 'This is the dangerous Nightwalker I was told about?' he wondered. "Well, I'm from New Orleans. I come from a big family --" He paused when he saw Jenna's expression change, like something was caught in her throat. "-- where I'm the oldest of eight kids. Both my folks were practitioners, so I grew up in the life. Initially, I just wanted to go into holistic medicine, but my folks reminded me that despite some bad press, Western medicine had done so much. So I figured a combination of the two, and a smidgen of magic, would be worthwhile." "You sound very . . . civilized?" Jenna said, not sure of how to clearly state what she meant. "Not everyone in voodoo lives in a hut back in the swamp. I don't particularly like the taste of crayfish, though there's a place on bourbon street that makes a mean alligator sausage. I graduated at the top of my class from the University of Washington, moved back home, and have been been working both sides of the magical divide ever since." He turned around, reached into his bag, and grabbed a small human-ish figure. "A voodoo doll?" "Not exactly. I know you have a story to tell and are reticent to tell me, but if you do feel like unleashing some anxiety, then talk to this." "You want me to talk to . . . a doll?" "Yes. Or think to it. Anything that you're still afraid to admit to me or someone else can just go into the doll. Consider it your own personal stress reliever. I promise it will make you feel better." He looked over when Avery walked into the room and gave him a signal. "Now come along," Ghede told Jenna. "You have something that you need to do." As her doctor rolled a gurney over ('Where the hell did the gurney come from?' she wondered), Avery came over to help move her into it. "I can walk," Jenna said, trying to get to her feet. Her abdomen, neck, shoulders, and leg screamed at her to cease and desist. "I can't walk," she mumbled, settling back down. Even being transferred by two fairly strong men was exceedingly painful. "And now my dignity is shredded as well. Where the hell am I going?" "Heaven." Heaven was the VIP section of Nessa's club, Devil's Night, and it was about twenty stories down from her current location. The gurney was wheeled into the grav-lift, then Ghede got back off. "I need to discuss some things with Nessa when she wakes up, and your outing may take a while." "Okay, what outing?" Jenna said irritably. "What outing?!" came out more loudly as the door closed. She tried to look over at Avery, but her neck was stiff and the agony was quite intense. Avery stood by quietly, almost amused by Jenna's attempts to look threatening. "This is your stop." Stop was right. That was what Jenna's heart did when those doors opened and she saw who was waiting there. It was her old friend Death, and he was not alone. Four other members of the Major Arcana sat with him, as well as a number of Minor Arcana. "What the . . . Death, how . . . why are they --" All her old cohorts were just staring at her. It was the High Priestess, normally known for her quirky sense of humor, who broke the ice. "That's the most that I've heard you say in the last seven years." The curvaceous brunette's voice was teasing, but a little uncertain. "Oh, she's a veritable fountain of conversation," Death assured her. "Most of the time, I can't get a word in edgewise." Jenna's heart was still pounding, so she did not have much left to donate to light banter. "You shouldn't have . . . I mean this is Nessa's --" "Who is Nessa?" one of the Minor Arcana asked. "Why did you bring them here?!" she blurted, looking from Avery to Death to each member of the Nightwalkers present. "Nessa contacted me shortly before dawn and told me what happened," Death explained. "Then the Fool called a meeting where he informed us that we were all going to undergo yet more bioengineering. Those here were amongst those who questioned this. You don't do bioengineering from a syringe. Then the Hanged Man came out," the assassin whispered, "and showed us his new face." "I'm quite familiar with what he has become," Jenna said, thinking of the wounds that kept her from striking out at her former boss. Death's face fell. "I'm sorry for what happened. I had no idea that he was sending anyone after you." "Could someone explain what's going on?" the King of Coins asked. "I know that the Fool is off his rocker, but who the hell are these people you're staying with?" he asked Jenna directly. "What happened?" Jenna was concerned about something. She looked towards Avery. "Nessa said that they should know what's really going on. So it's up to you." "Death --" she started to say. "I trust them," he told her. "They defied the Fool and their government because they didn't want to turn into what he wanted them to be." "I know some perfectly nice werewolves," she told him. "He didn't want werewolves . . . though that's a comment I never thought I'd hear coming from your lips. He wants monsters. He wants killing machines. The Nightwalkers inspired fear in the corporations. These new Nightwalkers will inspire pure terror, and I don't know where he plans on stopping." "I mean, are we actually talking 'werewolves'? They're some kind of corporate soldiers, right?" This was one of the Minor Arcana. It took a moment, but Jenna realized that almost all the Coins had defected. They were a tight bunch, so she was not surprised that they would follow the King of Coins. Jenna took a breath, then exhaled. Then another breath. She was freaked out. She had never seen a single one of these people outside of the command post except Death, and now she was almost completely exposed before them, lying in pajamas on a gurney. "Is she okay?" Strength asked, the big man's voice rumbling like a diesel engine. "She looks like she's doing lamaze," Chariot said. "I'm fine," Jenna said. "Fine. Just fine." "But are you fine?" the High Priestess asked, smirking a little. To her, the Empress had always been the ice queen, and it was amusing to see her flustered. Jenna glared at her former comrade, but there was a sort of quirk to her mouth and sparkle in the woman's eyes that made Jenna realized that she was being played with. "You want to know the truth? Here's the truth," Jenna said, a little angry and a little embarrassed. In as few breaths as possible, she laid it all out for them as it related to the existence of magical beings and the events that had transpired since she had first been discovered by Nessa, leaving out the bits about her own history and her sexual relationship with the vampire. There was an unsettling silence that hung over her story, starting as a dubious cloud and then morphing into something more dire. The Nightwalkers present slowly came to two realizations. The first was that Jenna was not crazy, and the second was that she was not lying. "So you're telling us that monsters are real, the Fool is planning on declaring war on the corporations with super werewolf commandos after he kills us, and there's another army of werewolves looking to kill us and your new boss?" "That just about covers it," she said. "Well, at least it couldn't get any worse," the Three of Coins muttered. Then he found everyone in the room looking at him. "What?" No one responded. There were certain things that were never said or done in their line of work, even by the least superstitious amongst them. At the top of that list was the phrase, "At least it can't get any worse." -------------- ---------- The next night . . . -------------- ---------- The Fool had never felt so very much alive in his entire existence. He could see so crisply, hear so acutely, and he could smell the world like never before. A Nightwalker's sense of smell was acute, but there were layers of olfactory stimuli lying beneath the surface of the world that he had never imagined before. 'Idiots,' he thought, his mind drifting back to the mass defection that had occurred earlier. Under other circumstances, he and his new and improved Nightwalkers would have caught the traitors, but somehow they had already had an escape plan. Someone had been thinking far ahead, and the renegades had fled through a tunnel lined with explosives. The Hanged Man stood nearby, his head bowed in respect as it had been since the Fool had injected himself with werewolf saliva. They had been forced to capture a few more specimens to get enough of the substance for all the remaining Nightwalkers, and they had extra now due to the defections. But he would bring them all back to the fold. Once they understood what they could become . . . what those who had remained loyal HAD become . . . they would come crawling back. "Have you completed the sensory sweep?" he asked of his second in command. The Hanged Man nodded. "Unfortunately, the drives had been set up to auto-erase. I don't think it's a mystery who the culprit is." "Death, oh Death," the Fool whispered. "You will pay for your treachery." "Sir, do you think he has been working with the Empress this whole time?" The Fool stared straight forward. "That is a possibility. Why else have we been able to capture the werewolves but none of these vampires that the Empress told us of? Yes, it makes sense." "So we can trust nothing that he has said." "True. Get the Empress's file." Once it was in his hands, the Fool started to look over it carefully, screen by screen. Her file had been too well hidden from him for there to be nothing, and the only person besides he and the Hanged Man who had seen it had been Death. The Fool slowed the screen progression down to a crawl. It was so simple that he almost missed it. "Got it." "What, sir?" The leader of the Nightwalkers looked up, a dark gleam playing across his eyes. "If the boy died in childbirth, then why did they fingerprint him?" "He could have died shortly afterward." The Fool shook his head. "I want records of every adoption that took place in the Atlanta area within a few months after the birth. Newborns tend to be grabbed up fairly quickly. I suspect that they would have kept his name, so look for boys named William. Find him, and we have leverage over the Empress. And hunt down any relations we can use against Death." The Hanged Man coughed into his hand. "Sir, the only relation that Death had was with the woman he was dating, and she happens to be the daughter of General Levinson. Using her would be most unwise --" "And highly improper," the Fool said. Even if Death and the Empress and the rest had forgotten what loyalty meant, the Fool had not. "Fine. The Empress interests me more anyway." He could not explain his exact reasoning to the Hanged Man. He could not vocalize that the thought of the most powerful female member of the Nightwalkers filled him with a sense of urgency, especially now. She would make a great hybrid, and then she would see what the new Nightwalkers were truly capable of. She would come around. She would be one of his greatest soldiers. Then, she would become his mate. ---------- ------------------ To be continued . . . Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 06 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- Jenna was wishing like hell that it was evening. She was surrounded by nineteen of her former colleagues from the Nightwalkers, and she realized that she had nothing in common with them. The only one of them she had ever spoken to was Death, and he was refusing to act as a buffer. He was smugly waiting for a bed-ridden (okay, a "gurney-ridden") Empress to actually make conversation. Almost all of the other commandos were just as hesitant to approach Jenna as she was to BE approached. For years, she had been one of them, but not really one of them. She had intentionally kept her distance, buttressed by the walls she had built in her own mind to keep herself safe. Those walls had begun to crumble at an alarming rate, thanks to Nessa, but it left Jenna attempting to effectively walk on waters that she did not know how to navigate. Ghede, Jenna's doctor, both medical and witch, seemed to have no problems whatsoever socializing with a number of genetically engineered vampire soldiers. As a point of fact, almost all of the female Nightwalkers present were quite happy to be engaged by the dark-skinned, soft-spoken man. But there was one Nightwalker who seemed interested in breaking the ice. The High Priestess was actually sitting nearby, making herself available but trying to be silent. Jenna thought hard about the Priestess. What was she like? She was certainly an attractive woman. The Priestess was a little taller than Nessa or Anabella, but was still a few inches short of Jenna's six-foot frame. Her hair was as black as Jenna's was pale, and her face seemed built for smiling. It was almost impish. She had a curvaceous physique that made her very popular with the unattached men (and some of the attached ones as well) in the Nightwalkers, but that was it. That was all Jenna knew. "You look like you're trying really hard to be absorbed into the bedding," the Priestess said with a wry grin. "You okay?" Jenna kept her composure. "I'm fine." Then she thought over what she was supposed to say next. "Thank you for asking." Rather than be put off, the Priestess smiled. "My name's Caitlin, by the way," she said, extending a hand. "I always wondered if you ever knew any of our names." Jenna shook the hand softly and briefly. "I knew you as the High Priestess. Wasn't that enough?" She felt bad when Caitlin flinched, but the expression vanished as quickly as it appeared. "It's just one of my names." The High Priestess glanced at the bandages on Jenna's arms. "So you fought the Hanged Man and lived? I wouldn't want to do that when he didn't need to shave his back, much less now. How'd you beat him?" "I didn't beat him," Jenna whispered. "I survived him, and the only reason I was able to do that was because I detonated my house when he was in it. I should be dead. I would be if it weren't for Nessa." "So are we going to meet this boss of yours?" Jenna nodded. "I assume so. She sleeps during the day." "Just like in the old stories?" Caitlin said, her eyes growing wide. "What else can she do?" "I think that I would rather wait for her to reveal her own secrets," Jenna said crisply, then stopped. Caitlin sighed. "You really don't like any of us, do you?" Jenna's eyes pursed. "What makes you say that?" The High Priestess snorted. "Let's see, you answer every question with as few words as possible. You don't care about our names, you never ask us about our lives, you certainly never compliment anyone --" She saw that the Empress was just staring at her, so she threw her hands up, then stood up to walk away. "Priestess," Jenna said suddenly, the name tumbling out like a runaway boulder, "I . . . I'm sorry." Caitlin turned around. "Sorry?" "I don't know how to talk to people," Jenna said softly. "Ask Nigel. I've been having coffee with him every day for years, and this is actually more conversation than he usually gets." "Really?" The High Priestess sat back down. "Because girl, I've met livelier corpses in my life." But she was smiling when she said it, which defused some of Jenna's intended indignation. Jenna suddenly knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she needed to keep talking. She could not handle the awkward silence. "Caitlin --" she started, then paused, then continued, "Do people really hate me? The Nightwalkers, did they all --" "Hate you?" Caitlin glanced at the ceiling, her mind lost in thought. "No, I don't think I would say 'hate.' We've all been afraid of you." "Afraid?" "In some ways, we were as afraid of you as we were the Fool and the Hanged Man. I mean, they were just mean and badasses, but you were --" "It's okay," Jenna said, quietly but firmly, "I want to know." "Cold. When you and Death worked together, it was like you could simply make someone die by force of will, but Death talked to us. It made him a little more human. We knew how to deal with that. I mean, a bunch of us wanted to talk to you, but it was like we didn't even exist in whatever world you were living in." Jenna thought to the castles that existed in her soul plain. "Trust me," she said, "it's better for you that way." "Well, we're in your world now," Caitlin pointed out, "Like it or not." She smiled, her full lips drawn back in what looked on her to be the most natural of gestures. "So why not make the best of it." Jenna felt a blush trying to form. "I . . . I really don't know how." Caitlin's face reflected a set of emotions, starting with irritation, then incredulity, the amazement. "You're serious, aren't you?" Jenna tried to smile, then raised her bandaged arms. "Don't I look serious?" "You look like a mummy that went through a paper shredder." Caitlin grinned and scooted her chair closer. "Okay, you gotta tell me the truth. Are you and Death an item?" "Me and . . . Nigel?!" "Yes?" he said from nearby. He tended to notice when his name got mentioned. "No," Jenna said emphatically. "Really? I always thought you made a striking couple." "I . . . uhm . . . Nigel, could you come over here and explain --" "Nope," he said, looking toward the gathered Coin cards. Somehow, the entire suit had defected at once. "You can explain everything yourself." "Nigel!" Jenna hissed, then saw that the High Priestess was leaning forward, awaiting an explanation. It was a maneuver that put a bit of her cleavage on display, and Jenna had to struggle not to look at it. 'How can she have cleavage while wearing body armor?' Jenna thought. 'Is that armor regulation?' "Nigel is dating a school teacher. He and I are just friends. Honestly." Caitlin raised one eyebrow. "So . . . you're single?" She watched Jenna's face, but the woman had turned to stone. Yet – "Jenna," Ghede asked as he came over, are you feeling all right?" "Of course." "Really? Because your heart's BPM just went through the roof." Caitlin raised her eyebrow, but suppress her urge to smirk. Jenna's face remained stoic. "I believe that your readings must be off." "Really, it shows right here --" Ghede started to stay, then found himself devoid of his portable scanning device as Jenna grabbed it and smashed it against the railing of the gurney. "See? Broken." Ghede looked at his hand-held unit, which was gamely spitting sparks and making an unpleasant whirring noise. "I'll go get a working unit," he said calmly. "You do that." "You really don't like personal questions, do you?" Caitlin asked. She scooted her chair closer to the invalid woman. "Why? Just keeping your professional life separate from your home life? I only ask because right now, the two seem pretty not-separate. Sounds like all our lives are kinda in your hands now. Well, yours and your boss's." "You're a highly trained operative. With Nessa's help --" Caitlin got up suddenly, a look of exasperation on her face. "Never mind." "What?" Jenna said. "Did I say something wrong?" "You didn't say anything, at least not of import. You were giving a standard report. I wanted to get to know YOU, not your assessment of your boss, and you can't even tell me why you won't tell me anything." Caitlin struggled to calm down. "Sorry. It's none of my business anyway," she said, walking away. Jenna's mouth opened, but the only sound she could back was a quick catch of her breath. She had not meant to be so cold. She leaned back and closed her eyes. Once, a lifetime ago, she could have talked to someone like Caitlin. Why was it so hard now? She knew the basic mechanics of conversation. She knew the rules. What would her younger self have done? What would that version of her splintered psyche have done before that horrible day when she was fifteen? "You," Nigel said, taking Caitlin's old seat, "are pretty clueless." "I don't know what I was supposed to say." "You got flustered with her." "I never got like that with you, did I?" "No, but things were different. The scenario was controlled. The conversation was limited. I think you're having problems dealing with life now that it cannot be contained or compartmentalized. And I'm not being critical of you. I'm trying to help you." He smiled. "Have you ever noticed Caitlin before?" "Of course. She's a highly competent agent. I've always been impressed by her skills, her demeanor, her --" Nigel made a tsking sound, then leaned back. "No, have you ever noticed her? How long has she been with the Nightwalkers?" "Five years. Why?" Death looked across the room, made sure that they were relatively alone, then whispered, "Did you know that she has either idolized or had a crush on you since she first put on the uniform." Jenna stared at him. Then she looked over at Caitlin. Then she stared back at Nigel. She looked completely and utterly baffled. "Why?" Nigel chuckled, then covered his eyes with his hands. "Okay. First of all, you are, and this is something that I marvel at how you can be so completely oblivious to, a stunningly beautiful woman. Combine that with your athleticism and your fairly extensive skill set, it makes you rather desirable in the eyes of a great many people." "I . . . uhm . . . did you --" "Did I find you desirable? Of course. I simply respected your privacy, and wound up valuing you as a friend far too much to push the issue." Jenna was stunned. "Well . . . thank you?" She folded one hand across the other. "I never noticed." "If it was social in nature, it could have been an explosion and you wouldn't have noticed." "An explosion is hardly --" "It was a metaphor," Nigel said calmly. Sometimes, Jenna was as dense as a five-year old. "You don't notice things of a personal nature because . . . well, just because. You could probably list off all of the High Priestess's combat scores --" "92 in firearms, 96 in hand-to-hand, 90 in explosives --" "Jenna," Nigel interrupted firmly, "I was being rhetorical. But it makes the point. You know all about her in regards to her being an asset to the Nightwalkers, but nothing about her, or any of them besides me in any way that's personal. They're getting ready to follow you into a hell of a fight, and its one that for them, all the rules of the way things work have changed." "But they're not following me. They would be following Nessa." "It's either a vampire they've never met who is an unknown commodity, or you." "Or you," Jenna pointed out. "You're more powerful than I am. They all know it, and you proved it to me back at the old TACCP." "So what am I supposed to do? Just tell everyone everything?" "No, I don't think so. But it might not hurt to get to know them. Let them know that you appreciate their support?" he said, giving her a knowing look. "And would it hurt to let Caitlin get to know you?" "I . . . I don't know. I . . . she . . . Nigel, am I gay?" For once, something Jenna said had Nigel speechless. "Uhm . . . I don't know. Are you? You certainly seem to like Nessa." She nodded. Then she looked around. Both Nigel and Ghede were reasonably attractive, she supposed. Any number of the males present seemed to fall into the "attractive" category, yet she did not feel the reaction she had when Nessa first rubbed up against her, or when Caitlin had leaned in and . . . well, how was she NOT supposed to look at that cleavage? And then she thought back to Tanya Smithson. She had been Jenna's best friend back before her life had been torn apart. She had not been Jenna's first kiss, but she had certainly awoken feelings that the young Nightwalker-to-be had not known about. And a kiss stolen in the girl's locker room had made Jenna's toes curl. "I think I am," she muttered. For some reason it made her feel . . . better. Like she had made progress somehow. "Could you get me a coffee?" "Is that okay with your physician?" Nigel was going to object further, but he followed her stare to the broken medical monitor, then thought better of it. "I'll get coffee." "Two sugars," she told him. She glanced around. Now that Nigel had brought it up, she saw the nerves in the face of everyone there, and she wondered what she could do. Motivational speaking was not her forte. She would have to think about it. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the High Priestess walking by. "Caitlin?" "Yeah?" Jenna looked at the seat next to her, then back to Caitlin. Then back to the chair. Then back to Caitlin. Then back – "All right, all right, I'll sit!" Caitlin laughed. "It is so strange. You're like an entirely different person from moment to moment." The Empress collected her thoughts and her breath. "I'm really, really screwed up," she said at last. Caitlin's face grinned, which seemed to be its natural state, but her eyes still held some worry. "Well, that's a start." "Over the last several days, I've relived so many bad memories and been dragged through my own nightmares that it's just exhausted me." "Hey listen, I didn't mean that you had to go exposing any deep dark secrets or anything. I just . . . I dunno. This is the first time I've ever seen you out of body-armor. It's the first time you've ever been, you know, accessible." "It's been pointed out that I've been kind of oblivious about how people see me. I never really meant to be that way. I never even thought about it. I've done nothing but be a soldier and a Nightwalker since I was eighteen years old. I've hidden from all social interaction, so I'm just not any good at it." "But why hide?" Caitlin waved off the question. "Never mind. I just said I wouldn't ask, so --" "Do you remember the Messenger?" Caitlin's face grew dark and confused. "The serial killer?" Jenna steeled herself. This was the hard part. If Nessa had not gone into her mind, Jenna doubted she ever would have been able to tell this story. It had gotten a little easier with Nigel, but Jenna did not know Caitlin. Maybe that was the point. "I was the only survivor of the last family he took. He . . . he --" She had to stop for a second, to avoid hyperventilating. Caitlin's face had gone strangely calm. It was the face the Nightwalkers put on when they knew that it was time to get serious. "He kept me for two months. He made . . . he killed the rest of my family. He hurt me," she whispered, feeling like she had just uttered an understatement so vast that it bordered on a lie. "Part of me didn't survive, or at least I thought it didn't." "Jenna, I'm so sorry." Caitlin moved forward and took Jenna's hand. It was a comforting gesture that both Nigel and Nessa employed with her. It felt nice. "I know that must sound so pathetic, but I am. And you were fifteen?" "Yes. When I met Nessa she . . . she has a way of looking inside a person. For lack of a better phrase, she can see into your soul." "That is totally freaky. What happened?" "She saw that I was broken. I wasn't even one person anymore. I was three, and I only really nurtured one of them. The others I just locked up." Caitlin nodded. "It's called Disassociative Personality Disorder. I was a psych major before joining the force," she explained. "It happens when someone experiences a traumatic event, and they create a new personality to assign the guilt or the blame or even the need for revenge to." "That sounds right. Except I just buried it instead of using it. I never spoke with someone else's voice or heard voices in my head. I just couldn't handle what had happened, so I tried to start over. Sometimes I wonder how I ever made it through the psych exams." Her compatriot shrugged. "Probably because they didn't care. Someone in that mental state would have no real moral compass. Not meaning that you were evil, just . . . just morally malleable. You sacrificed your history, so you had no concept of your limits, meaning when they tried to push yours --" "I didn't know enough to tell them when to stop." Jenna closed her eyes. She was the third most powerful Nightwalker because she was too emotionally stunted to realize what was happening to her. Great. "Jenna . . . man, when you drop a bombshell, you don't do it halfway. I was just expect you to say that you'd killed a man in Reno just to watch him die or something." "Reno hasn't existed since the Casino Wars of 2141 and --" "Being facetious," Caitlin said, still holding Jenna's hand. "Listen to some really, really old music by a guy named Johnny Cash sometime. You'll get it." She made her smile as sweet and gentle as she could manage. "Anyway, thank you. For telling me, I mean. I can't imagine what it must have been like living with what you experienced for all these years, but it explains so much. I wish I'd known earlier, because I think I could have helped, or at least gotten you some help. I'm no soul-gazer, but I'm not bad with a therapist's couch and an attentive ear." Jenna smiled. It seemed to be a good smile, because it apparently made Caitlin happy to see it. "Well, you still have the attentive ear, though a medical gurney isn't quite as comfortable as a couch." The smile turned down a bit. "So yeah, I guess to answer your original question, I'm single. Sort of." She could see the next question coming so she headed it off. "I have been . . . intimate with Nessa on more than one occasion, but . . . she and I . . . it's not --" "Exclusive?" "Permanent. What's truly sad is that I actually had to ask her what we were because I had no frame of reference. No precedent to look back on. I don't even know for sure what you call what she and I are. She's my friend, and she's my counselor, and she's . . . well, she's just kind of Nessa." "She's a state of being now?" "You have no idea. You'll meet her this evening." Jenna looked off across the room and thought, 'And when you see her, you won't even be thinking about me anymore.' Jenna heard a clearing-of-the-throat noise, so she looked back. "Yes?" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 06 "So," Caitlin started again, "you are single?" Ghede had just returned, and quickly held the new portable monitoring device above his head. "You can't have this one." Both women looked at him, then at each other. Jenna composed herself and then said, "I'm leaning towards . . . available?" The High Priestess's face broke out into a grin. "I can work with that." She looked around. "But first, maybe you need to talk to them," she added, referring to the uneasy mood of the other Nightwalkers. Strangely, the prospect of explaining the upcoming fight between werewolves, werewolf commandos, and the forces of a multi-thousand year old vampire was less intimidating than discussing Caitlin's potential dating plans. "Could everyone come over her for a minute?" she said, projected her voice enough to be heard throughout the VIP lounge. She waited for everyone to assemble. "Hey . . . okay, I'm probably not going to say this right. Public speaking has never been my forte." "Speaking in general isn't your strong suit," Nigel muttered, then smiled when Jenna looked for something to throw at him and Ghede was forced to hold the portable monitor aloft. Again. Jenna smiled at him. "I guess you're right. But I want you all to trust me. I never wanted this to happen. Nessa, who you'll be meeting in a little while, never wanted this to happen. Nessa wanted peace, I wanted to avert a war, and you all probably wanted to go about your lives never knowing that there are three seven-foot demons wandering around in the bar downstairs." "Demons," the King of Coins said. "There are three demons in the bar, and it isn't the beginning of a joke." "It's no joke. And it's not what any of you signed on for. I know it wasn't what I signed up for. I wanted to serve my country, protect people, get the bad guys that no one else could touch, and just generally have some direction in my life. Well, things have changed. I told you about the monsters. I told you what the Fool is planning. I told you what the werewolf alpha is planning. Now, you need to decide what you're going to do." "What do you mean?" the Tower asked. "All of you need to decide whether to stay to fish or cut bait and vanish. Everything you thought you knew about the Fool, well, you don't know the half of it. He sent the Hanged Man to my home," Jenna added, more than a little angry. "If you have families, if you have loved ones, if you have friends, then there is a chance that the Fool could try and use them against you in order to bring you back into the fold. The longer this goes on, the greater the chance that this will spill over into the rest of your lives." "Oh my God," the Four of Coins whispered. "My wife! We just had our first child!" Jenna's heart jumped in her throat. The Four was scared, but why shouldn't he be? Wasn't Jenna afraid for her own son? "Everyone needs to be given the option to opt out. To go and protect those that need protecting. We may need to take some precautions to make sure that you cannot, should the situation change, lead anyone back here. I promised Nessa that I would protect the anonymity of the Night Breeds, and I will do just that. But the rest of you have fulfilled your promises and your contracts. The Fool and the Nightwalker program no longer represent the best interests of this nation or its people." "I don't think that'll matter to the Fool," Strength added. "If he lives, and if he's truly as buggy as he seems to be, then none of us are safe as long as he's alive. Our families won't be safe." There was a general mumbling of agreement. "But can we really just kill the Fool? What about everyone else? Not all of them --" Jenna cut the Queen of Coins off. "Everyone will be given a chance to surrender, but if they don't, and they willingly collaborate with someone who strives toward genocide, then they will be neutralized." She turned her head. "Strange how that words sounds . . . 'neutralize' . . . when it's used towards one of our own." "You're going to war with the Fool, aren't you?" Caitlin asked. Jenna looked down at her bandaged body. "Yeah. I am." "How . . . what are you expecting to happen?" the Chariot asked. "I mean, even if you kill all the other Nightwalkers or get them to surrender --" "We have a plan for making it appear that the program failed," Jenna said. "It will look like there were long-term complications with the bioengineering that was done, and Nessa seems convinced that she can get someone to make it look like the Fool was covering things up." She gazed at each of the commandos in turn. "I asked the Fool to stop. It should never have come to this." "Why can't we just expose the program? That'd be sure to shut it down." "No it wouldn't," Caitlin said, looking deep in thought. "The government would just package it another way, and keep making more. And if the Fool is still around, he'll still be pursuing his agenda. Just imagine an army of whatever mutant he and the Hanged Man have become." Jenna nodded. "At the very least, the Fool and the Hanged Man must be removed from power, and the only way to do that now is to kill them. Everyone else will get a second chance. I've trained Nessa's troops to fight the Fool. I doubt he'll have had time to change strategies too much since his experiment began, but you can never be too careful. Anyone who's going to help stop this madness, they're going to run some training exercises early this evening. If you'd like to help --" She stopped. She didn't know what to tell them to do. Nigel stood by her. "While you were recuperating," he told her, "I told Nessa that I would help prepare her troops. Due to this complication, we're going to delay our assault for a day. Hopefully, this Garon Pegg character will be reasonable and . . . what?" he said when Jenna rolled her eyes. "Garon Pegg is an ass. He already has plans to make me his subservient little . . . well, bitch, once he takes over Nessa's territory." "Really? You know this how?" "He pretty much told me." "To your face?" Jenna nodded. Nigel raised an eyebrow. "And what did you do?" Jenna blushed a little. "I stabbed him with my fork and then tried to gouge his eyes out." The crowd collectively snickered. "I found his entire demeanor very rude," she said, feeling a need to rationalize her behavior. "Remind me not to piss off the Empress," someone muttered, and everyone got a good laugh at that. Then the crowd dispersed to different areas of the lounge, everyone lost in their own thoughts and plans. Nigel sat on one side of Jenna, with Caitlin on the other. Ghede wandered over to check on Jenna's vitals, then headed up the grav-lift to talk with Nessa once she awoke. "So," Caitlin started, "your home is destroyed, and you're kind of unemployed. Unless this Nessa character takes you on full time, of course. What do you want to do when this is over?" Jenna sighed. "I haven't had much chance to think about it." "Then don't think. Just say whatever comes to mind." "Uhm . . . scuba diving." That stunned her two compatriots for a moment. "Really?" Nigel asked. "You never mentioned it before." "I thought about it when I was younger. I hadn't thought about it at all in a long time until one of my sessions with Ghede." "Sessions? Is that what they're calling it now?" Caitlin asked, wiggling her eyebrows. Jenna looked vexed. "There is nothing between Ghede and myself." Caitlin kept grinning. "Too bad for him." She watched Jenna blush some more, then continued. "And just in case you're interested, I'm a certified scuba instructor." Jenna snorted. "No you're not." "Says who?" "It's not in your file!" "There's more to me than my file, Empress." Caitlin leaned back. "I also play cards games with real cards, I kick ass at 3D pool, I cry during romantic holo-vids, and I'm allergic to cats." "Really?" "Which part?" "You cry during --" "Hey, I'm a girl. We're entitled." "It's not unheard of," Nigel interrupted. "April does it all the time." "So," Caitlin continued, not missing a beat, "we clean up this mess, and then what do you say to a trip to some tropical island fun? We can rent a boat, a couple of air tanks --" "Caitlin, why are you trying so hard?" Jenna asked. "I've been nothing but trouble for you, so why . . . why me?" "Fair question. At first, it was just because I'm a sucker for a pretty face and an athletic body, and you've got both in spades. Then, it was because you were so much of a mystery. Of course, I know a few things about you that I find appealing that might surprise you." "I've barely spoken to you since you came into the program. What could you possibly --" "You're incredibly polite," Caitlin interrupted. "You never push around those of lower rank just because you can. You may be brief and to the point, but you never talk down to anyone. You never had any real aspirations about gaining more rank or power in the organization, which means that it was never about THAT for you. You truly believed in the mission statement, and that's admirable." Jenna smiled. It was a shy gesture, but it was genuine. "Anything else you can tell me about me?" "You're hopelessly attracted to dark-haired licensed scuba diving instructors, and --" "I think I'm sensing a slight bias here." "Hey, unless YOU want to define your own personality, I'd suggest just letting me finish." "My apologies. Please, continue." Upstairs, Nessa was stirring from her daytime slumber. She rolled over, made an unflattering noise while she yawned, then opened her eyes. Immediately, she smiled. "Well helloooooooo --" "If you give me the 'hello nurse' line one more time, I will be forced to punish you," Ghede told her. "Would spanking be involved?" she asked, biting her bottom lip and letting her gaze roll over his tall, dark form. "You're hopeless," he told her. "Puh-lease!" she said, pulling the covers away, exposing her naked body for her visitor to see. "There's always room for hope. I was kind of hoping for that spanking." "Good grief," Avery said, suppressing his own grin. "What he said," Anabella added, appearing from out of the ether now that the sun was down. She immediately went to stand beside Avery. She shot a "don't say a word" glance toward Nessa before the vampire could say anything. Nessa just smirked. "In case you were wondering," Ghede said dryly, "your ward is doing well. She's healing rapidly, and she seems to be opening up." He smiled, wondering how Nessa would react to the next bit of news. "And it seems you may have some competition for her affections. Another young woman has been flirting with her somewhat constantly, and Jenna actually seems to be enjoying it." Nessa scrunched up her eyes. "Is she hot?" "I would say so, yes." "Has anyone else flirted with her?" "Well, I tried a little, but she seemed somewhat disinterested." Nessa lounged on the bed. "She's probably just full blown gay." "Does this surprise you?" "Not so much. I saw how she reacted to her first kiss with a girl." Nessa grinned. "What? You think I was going to be all broken up? I was hoping she'd come out of her shell. If she's still interesting in being with me too, well, you know I'm big on sharing." "So you're not jealous?" Nessa shook her head, then, "Well, maybe a little bit. But I want her to be happy, whatever it takes. The spirits of the old ones know that she deserves it." She saw a strange look on Ghede's face. "What?" "I just find it amazing that even a being thousands of years old can grow up. Sometimes. Well, maybe just a little." He watched her eyes begin to sparkle, and she turned over onto her stomach, looking at him over her shoulder. He swallowed involuntarily. She was turning it on for him, and they both knew it. "Hopefully not too grown up," she whispered. "Good grief," Avery said again. "We'll be downstairs when you're done," he added, taking Anabella's arm. For once, she accepted it without hesitation. The two of them did stop by the bed long enough for Avery to whisper some information into his employer's ear, then he and Anabella disappeared into the lift. This left Ghede alone with the ultimate temptress. "You are a wicked, wicked woman," Ghede told her as he felt a stiffening in his pants. His voice broke just a bit, showing some of that Louisiana drawl that he generally suppressed. For most of his life, he was a respectable businessman and a physician. Whenever he was around Nessa, he did not need to be respectable anymore. He removed his jacket, then started to undo the cuffs of his shirt. As he prepared himself, he stared at Nessa's perfectly proportioned posterior, which she raised slightly off the bed for his viewing pleasure. "You've been so good to me," Nessa murmured, drawing out the "o"s in "good" to make it sound like she was purring. "Taking care of Jenna. Now I just need you to take care of me." Ghede was full staff in his pants, and it was getting painful. "Jenna broke my monitoring device." "I'm sure it had it coming." "You owe me for that." Nessa arched her back and thrust her butt towards him. "You can take it out of my hide." Ghede's eyes feasted on every luscious inch of skin. There was no other creature like Nessa in the world. She was so hopefully devoid of even the notion of shame, and she understood more of what living life meant than those who were actually alive. "Come here," he told her. He knew what she liked. It sometimes amazed him how she liked to be treated, but he always remembered that no one did anything to Nessa that she did not want. Nessa crawled over to him, putting a little sway in her hips as she traversed the silk sheets towards her lover in waiting. Her mouth parted and she turned her head sideways, her lips approaching within inches of the enormous bulge straining to be free of its prison. Ghede reached down and unzipped himself, allowing ten inches of excited flesh spring out and slap Nessa in the face. He did not do anything with it for the moment except for poke and prod her face and neck while he let his expensive slacks fall to the floor. Nessa just waited for him on hands and knees, waiting for him to do what they both wanted. Finally, he grabbed her by the hair and shoved his cock into her mouth. Nessa instantly turned on the suction, forcing herself to breathe through her nose in order to get some lung pressure. She loved Ghede's cock, which she considered to be one of the most beautiful examples of manhood she had ever seen. The crown was perfectly formed, but not so big that it caught on her teeth, and the shaft was smooth and flawless, with only small bumps and ridges indicating where the veins were. And she knew that she could do what few other women could do for him, namely that she could take it all. And she did. Over and over again. "You bring out the animal in me," Ghede growled, fucking Nessa's face with increasing vigor. Her mouth formed a perfect seal, and the effort of forcing himself into her throat just made the act that much more pleasurable. More exciting. He pulled his cock out and slapped her in the face with it, keeping it just out of the reach of those hungry, tantalizing lips until he thrust back into her mouth. Nessa' hand crept between her thighs and began to rub her sensitive mound. She wanted Ghede in there so bad she could almost scream, but it was just one of things that she hoped to enjoy in his company that night. She sank two fingers into the growing warmth of her body, seeking out the special places that she had familiarized herself with over the millennia of her life. "Make me cum," he told her. "So when I fuck you, it'll last longer. You're no short-term whore. You are in it for the long, long haul," he added, making sure she took all his shaft on each use of the word "long." The vampire stopped fiddling with herself so that she could play with her lover's balls, cradling them like warm eggs and coaxing all that sperm into action. After a minute or so of coaxing, she got her creamy reward, with wave after wave of Ghede's nectar spilling into her mouth and covering her tongue. Ghede shuddered as his lover continued to suck on him long after his load was completely drained. Like many men, he was sensitive post-climax, but Nessa knew just how to treat him, keeping her lips around his softening shaft rather than around the crest. He began to slowly chant, using his deep magic to grant him some added vitality. Nessa knew what Ghede was doing, and relished it. She felt him harden in her mouth, striving to stretching her lips like he had before. She was playing with herself again, making herself wet to match her "willing." The voodoo priest pulled his cock from Nessa's mouth, much to her disappointment, But when he reached down and grabbed his belt off the floor, she perked right up. "Time for you to pay for the destruction of that device," he told her. He grabbed Nessa's hair again and turned her sideways. Keeping his hand in those red locks, he brought the belt down hard and fast on the proffered flesh of the vampire's ass. Nessa had three fingers in her pussy at that point, feeling the vibrations of the belt slaps all the way in her vaginal walls. She knew that Ghede would show no mercy. Of course, she would regenerate any damage he did by the time he got his pants on afterwards, but that was beside the point. He knew her, inside and out. It was the advantage of having recurring lovers. Ghede rained down blows on Nessa's "defenseless" behind. A normal woman might whimper in pain at this treatment, but he would never treat a normal woman this way. Nessa was not normal. She probably had not qualified as such even when she was still breathing. 'Speaking of breathing,' the thought, a grin finding its way onto his face. He pulled the belt back but did not let it fall. Rather, he released his grip on Nessa' hair and looped the belt through the buckle, with those unnerving, covetous eyes of the vampire following his every move. He wrapped the loop around her throat and tugged. Again, this was something that he would never do with someone other than Nessa, but she seemed to get off on it. Ghede positioned himself behind Nessa, grabbed the loose end of the belt, then pulled on it hard while pushing all ten inches of manhood into her pussy with equal vigor. He was not gentle with his use of the makeshift leash, yanking hard enough to cause bruises around her neck. She would not care. In point of fact, she would be disappointed if he didn't. With Ghede pulling hard on the belt, Nessa started twisted her own nipples, distending them until the level of pain approached its apex, then releasing them with a snap. And to her glee, her lover began slapping Nessa's ass as he rode her. 'All we need now is a sunset and a Native American sidekick,' she thought happily. Then Ghede pulled harder, yanking Nessa's neck up, spanking the hell out of one side of her ass. Then she came. Oh sweet spirits above, did she ever cum. She was gripping the sheets so tightly that her fingers began to cramp, and her body shook like the Rapture had arrived. And Ghede never stopped. He knew that he could milk her for any number of aftershocks if he kept at it, so his hand never stopped falling on pristine ass cheek and he continued to fill her sex with all the raw force he could muster. Nessa was grinning like a fool when she pushed chest up off of the bed so that she could push back on Ghede's insistent thrusting. She smiled wider when he paused and pulled out, because she knew what was coming next. She knew what he wanted. Very few women were willing to even try to a man as endowed as Ghede in their asses, but Nessa expected it. She loved it, but not as much as she knew Ghede longed for it. It was why she knew that he was going to play the moment she presented the globes of her derriere to him. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 06 Of course, the first part still hurt like hell, as his crown pried open her backdoor like it was a crowbar. He wanted inside so badly that Nessa was surprised at his restraint. She savored the tense pain as he slid inside her. She relished the feeling of his belt around her throat. The very thought of how she was in his "control" made her want to cum again. She knew she would. He would make sure of it. Ghede growled like one of the wolves at Nessa's door as he found himself embedded completely in her ass. He snapped the belt down on Nessa's back as he withdrew slightly and then bottomed out. "Wicked woman," he reiterated as his tempo increased. There was a reason he did not visit her very often. Nessa was an addiction as much as a thinking being. She had gotten under his skin years ago, and there was no cure. Just disquieting bouts of remission, and a steady ache to feel her spread. "Harder! Harder!" Nessa began to chant. She thrust back onto his spear, a willing sacrifice to his desires, and she was met each time by hard, savage penetration. And these vocalizations just became more heated as the pain in her rectum dissipated to be replaced by a mind-numbing pleasure. One hand sought out her clit, and she began to tease it with her nimble fingers. Ghede wanted to drill the vampire into the lower mantle of the earth's crust. A full-fledged war could have broken out in Nessa's apartment and he would not have been able to stop. She was tighter than Scrooge's purse, and she was waiting for a deposit. And she would not have to wait long. He could never keep it up for long when things got like this. Nessa could feel her own climax building. "Soon," she snarled. "Cum with me. Fuck me!" He obeyed her to the best of his ability, smacking her ass with his hand and her back with the belt until he saw the trembling begin. So he slammed his way home one more time, then let himself go. His cock spasmed, then he ejaculated what felt like a gallon of seed into Nessa's ass. And that delightful orifice milked him dry. Ghede was still recovering when he heard a "snick" noise and the belt came free. Nessa had sliced it open with one fingernail. "Bitch," he grunted. "That was a designer belt." "Put it on my tab," she shot back with a tired smiled. She rolled off of the bed, standing and stretching out. "Damn I needed that." She sauntered over to her closet and pulled out a black hot-and-slutty outfit. "So is the spell ready?" Ghede rolled his eyes and started to get dressed. Nessa had gotten laid, now it was time to get on with business. "Yes. It will hook up with the bioengineered bits of the DNA and mutate them. It'll look like it's been going on for some time." Nessa pulled a leather vest over sizable breasts, then poured herself into skintight leather pants. "So we need to set something up in their records to make it look like the Fool has been covering things up to keep the project going." She shot Ghede a grin. "Man, sex with you makes me smarter." "Then you should be a genius by now." "Not so fast. I fuck some stupid people too just to balance things out." She stroked her chin. "Actually, Lawrence is a computer whiz. I can probably get him to do it." "Lawrence?" "My youngest," she said. "I haven't seen him in a while. He's up in Jersey, so we can probably still get him down here on the red-eye shuttle." Ghede looked thoughtful for a moment. "You know, this is the first time I think you've ever mentioned one of your children's names to me." "I don't go advertising them. They have their own lives and their own broods. But since I'm calling in Lawrence anyway, you might as well know his name." "And I won't share that name with anyone." "Thanks. Right now, you, Avery, and Anabella are the only ones who know any of their names. Anabella is the only one who knows more than one, though Avery has the ability to find out if something were to happen to me." "What do you mean?" Nessa gave a smile that was more chilling than he was used to from her. "You haven't been around many vampires, have you?" "No." "Let's just say that Garon knows that he's taking a risk by wanting to kill me. Something happens to me, generally meaning foul play, and my brood will avenge me. With extreme prejudice." Ghede rolled that over in his mind as they headed to the lift. He knew that Nessa had created a dozen vampires over her lifetime, which was a pittance compared to others half her age. She would have chosen carefully. If they only had a fraction of the resources that she possessed – "Yeah," Nessa said firmly, "it would be a bloodbath that would make the Old Testament look like a children's story." A minute later they emerged into the lounge, and Nessa smiled broadly. The room went quiet as everyone turned and stared at their first real vampire. Everyone except the woman who was in a whispered conversation with a very fetching dark-haired Nightwalker. "A-hem!" she said loudly. The two women looked over at her. Jenna blushed a little. The stranger looked Nessa up and down, and Nessa recognized that look. The Nightwalker was sizing up the competition. And in contrast to how most people would react, Nessa gave her a warm, genuine smile. If someone was going to try and win Jenna's affections, she wanted it to be someone willing to fight for them. Someone who valued them. This woman was already showing a desire for the former, and it would take a while for Nessa to evaluate the latter. "Good evening everyone," Nessa started brightly, then made upward motions with her hands, enticing a grumbled "good evening" out of everyone else. "It's nice of you all to join us. My name is Nessa McGowan, and I'll be your tour guide for this evening. Directly in front of you is an amazingly hot vampire. Off to your right is my best friend of the last two thousand or so years, Anabella. She is a banshee, and more than capable of screaming your brains into jelly, so don't piss her off. Next to her is my chauffeur, friend, and chief of security, Avery." Nessa started to prowl the room. "Of course, you all know my dear friend Jenna, who has actually been trying to bring this all to peaceful solution, which is an idea that is now dead in the water. Still, I like people who try to help me. Which is why I'm only going to ask my next question one . . . time." She stopped then made sure to look briefly at least once at everyone in the room. "Who here is spying for the Fool?" There was silence for a moment. Nigel looked a bit perplexed by this line of question. "What makes you think one of us is spying?" "Well first of all," Nessa said with a disarming grin, "I know it's not you, and I know it's not Jenna. Everyone else is suspect. You see, just because this place has enough SigInt blockers and magical wards to prevent any signals getting out, I still know when someone is trying, and Avery told me that someone is trying." She threw her arms open. "Anyone who steps forward now . . . lives," she said, her voice suddenly less friendly. "But make no mistake, I have not survived as long as I have by accident." "Sometimes it just seems that way," Anabella said, lifting a glass of some dark liquor to her lips. "But honestly, you'd best do as she says," the banshee said. "Otherwise, she starts biting people." The was a murmur in the crowd. Some were incredulous, some were nervous, but none of them were happy. "Hey, you brought US here," someone said. "Actually, I brought you here with Nessa's permission," Death interjected. "Though I'm beginning to wonder if that was such a wise idea." Jenna nodded. "Nessa, you can't invite people in and then threaten them." "I'm not going to kill anyone who doesn't try to kill me," Nessa replied. "But I will lock them up until this is over. Now, we can do manual searches of everyone until we find the transmitter, but there's always a chance that it's sub-dermal or that some yahoo swallowed it. Option two is me delving directly into your subconscious. That's where the biting comes in. Option three involves someone being a dear and just admitting that it's you." "Screw this," Strength said. "I didn't walk away from one psychopath to get threatened by another." He turned and walked toward the stairs, only to have his path blocked by three very large demons. "Yeah, you kinda did," Ipos said, punching one palm with a fist the size of a ham. The Nightwalkers circled the wagons quickly, with Nigel staring straight at Nessa. "I never would have brought them here if I'd known you were going to threaten them. I won't let you do this." Nessa glanced at the door, where more of her troops were filing in. "You can TRY to stop me," she said. "Nessa," Ghede said, his medical monitor going haywire. The vampire looked over to find that Jenna had gotten off of the gurney, but she was struggling to stay upright. "Jenna, you're in no shape to be out of bed." "I'm not letting you do this," Jenna replied. Despite the trembling in her arms and legs, her voice was smooth and even, and her eyes had gone cold. "Nessa," Ghede growled, moving to try and get Jenna back in bed, "you're getting her heart rate up, and she hasn't exactly replaced all the blood she lost." The High Priestess interjected herself between the Empress and Nessa. "Jenna, don't do this." "Death is right," Jenna said, trying to push Caitlin out of the way and finding herself unable to. Normally, she should be able to overpower the junior Nightwalker, but apparently it took longer than two days to recover from being mauled. "Nessa, I trust you, but you can't go invading their minds --" "I did with you," Nessa replied. "I let you. They're not. They --" "I'll go first," the High Priestess said. She turned around. "You want to strip search me or --" "Yes," Nessa said quickly. "Can't we go over the options again?" "But I want to choose strip search." Caitlin rolled her eyes. "But what about the whole 'might have swallowed it' thing?" Nessa shrugged. "We could check for that too, but at least I'll have gotten to see you naked." The High Priestess looked over her shoulder. "She's crazy, isn't she?" Jenna nodded. "She can't be serious?" Jenna shrugged. "Actually, yes. She's pretty much a teenaged boy in a two-thousand year old woman's body." "A hot two-thousand year old woman's body," Nessa corrected. "And no matter who goes first, there's going to be a second and a third and so on. I'm not looking for who isn't a mole. I'm looking for who is." Her eyes began to devour Caitlin's body. "But I guess I have to start somewhere." She stepped forward, her fangs extending. Using every bit of her strength, Jenna shoved Caitlin off balance and out of the way, then took an uneasy step toward the woman who had sheltered her for weeks. She was actually feeling dizzy, and wondered what the hell medications Ghede had given her. She had to grip her own knee briefly just to remain upright. "Won't . . . let you --" she started to say, then let out a gasping cough. "I promise I won't make it hurt," Nessa said softly, lifting Jenna off the ground as easily as picking up a child's doll. Jenna struggled, but simply had no strength. "But I won't endanger my house or my people because of --" "You shouldn't have let them come in here then," Jenna said, pulling out of Nessa hand and leaving a scrap of her hospital gown in the vampire's grip. "You should have given them a choice. Now --" "And how would that have changed anything? The refugees would have come, and the spy with them." Jenna stood up straight, pretty much by a sheer act of will. "If they had known you might reach into their souls and rip out their secrets, they might not have. They could have . . . (gasp) . . . made a go of it on their own." She moved into a fighting stance. "I chose. Death chose. The rest --" "It was me," came a voice, drifting in from the back. The crowd parted, and the Two of Coins stood, pale as a bed-sheet. "He . . . the Fool said that if I heard of anyone defecting to go with them. I think he talked to all the Two's." "Why?" Nessa asked. "Because we're the low men on the totem pole. He said that if I helped him, that I would be one of the strong ones. He probably promised the others the same thing. I never realized how much I resented the Face Cards and the Major Arcana until he promised me that I'd be on the elite team this time." "So why confess? I hadn't even gotten to the biting part yet." "Because you were going to. Because the Empress mentioned the part about 'reaching into their souls,' and I'm really not interested in going that route. Besides," he said, looking towards the Empress, who was now being aided back to bed by the High Priestess, "the whole point was to reunite the Nightwalkers as a fighting unit. We'd be unstoppable if --" "If what?" "The Fool said that if we could get the Empress back, we'd be unstoppable. He told me about her fight with the Hanged Man, and said that any woman who could do that would be worthy of . . . of commanding at his side." Nessa looked at Jenna, who just looked shocked. "Damn girl, you just have admirers everywhere." "I believe in the Nightwalkers," the Two said. "And if I didn't speak up, the Empress was going to fight you. None of us know her that well, but I know one thing for sure. She won't quit. You'd have to kill her, and I don't want that." "I wouldn't have killed her, but I like the sentiment," Nessa said. "Ipos," she told the big demon, "take the prisoner up to the holding cells. Avery, go with him and give me an analysis on the bug. If it's something easy to detect, we can scan everyone without having to resort to biting." She started to pout. "But I wanted to bite her," she added, sticking her thumb towards Caitlin. "Well, the night's still young," the High Priestess responded, arching an eyebrow and grinning. Nessa grinned back, then looked around. "Anabella?" "Here." "Good. I need you to take the truce flag and go talk to that moron Pegg. Take a couple of bruisers with you just to show that you mean business." "Why? Dumb-fuck can't hold me, so why --" "Sending my best friend means that I'm serious, but he's still a misogynist. You're a woman, so he still won't take you as seriously as I'd like. Yeah, I know it sucks, because you could turn him into mulch if you wanted, but just suck up your pride and take a big male protector. Okay?" Anabella was mumbling in some language no one except Nessa recognized, but it was easy to tell that the words were probably not flattering. Nessa turned and found Ghede, Nigel, and Caitlin hovering over Jenna. Ghede looked concerned. "What is it?" she asked. "Her heart rate is eratic," the dark-skinned doctor said, "and she's much weaker than she should be. I'm worried --" "What?" Nessa said, the events of the last several minutes all but forgotten. "I'm worried that its the lycanthropic virus. If it had been mutated by her attacker's bioengineered physiology, then the medicines I've given her might not work. They might not work because they were designed for a normal human, which could also be causing problems." Nessa looked down. "You. No more getting out of bed. At all." Jenna met her gaze. "I couldn't let you (cough) do that. Without consent," she added, her voice becoming vague and wispy. "Can't --" The medical monitor let out three short beeps and then a long, continuous drone. "Fuck," Ghede said, "she's flat-lining!" "What?!" Nigel said. "What's happening?" A crowd began to gather, with the one of the demons making sure that the doctor had breathing room to work. There was an uneasy feeling. It was almost tangible, like a layer of fog, and it was chilling. Ghede was pushing the gurney back toward the lift. He had not brought his medical kit down, because he had not been expected to need it. "Crap," he said, letting Nigel take over pushing duties. He ripped open Jenna's gown, then pulled a knife from his pocket and cut his own finger. He began to draw symbols in blood on the dying woman's chest. Finally, he muttered a few words and let the energy flow out of him. The Empress's eyes shot open and she gasped, clutching her chest in obvious pain. Ghede pushed her back down to the gurney, whispered the words again, and sent another surge. The rhythm of the heart that he had restarted began to stabilize, and the beeping of the monitoring device returned to normal. Thirty minutes later, Jenna was resting comfortably back up in Nessa's apartment. Nigel and Caitlin had both been allowed to accompany them, which was the first time any of the Nightwalkers except Nessa had been into the inner sanctum. Ghede was going over the report he had sent in from a lab back in New Orleans. "This strain of lycanthropy is far more aggressive than anything else I've seen," he told Nessa. "The medicines I'm giving her will only delay it for a little while. Maybe a couple of days. I might be able to come up with an accelerated counteragent, but not if you want me to have that bio-spell ready for your enemies." "Damn it," Nessa growled. "Maybe she should go to the hospital," Caitlin said. "No offense," she told Ghede, "but if she isn't going to be your first priority --" "She can't be," Nessa said. "And don't look at me like I'm some sort of fiend either. The Fool and his men are far too dangerous now. They're carrying an insanely dangerous virus with no concept of the damage it can do. They probably just see it as a weapon, but all it takes is one of his flunkies scratching the wrong person, and we could have a citywide epidemic, and that's not even the worst case scenario. I have to stop him, not matter the cost," she finished. She had tried to keep her voice calm, but she hated her own words. She did not want to sacrifice Jenna. "Are there no other options? Suspended animation perhaps?" Nigel asked. "It might work, but even Nessa doesn't have a spare cryo-tube sitting around," Ghede said. Nessa's land line began to ring. "Now what?" she said, her eyes drawn to Jenna's pale face. She stared, just for a moment, and her eyes softened. She was not prepared to let Jenna go. Then she picked up the phone. "Anabella, what . . . babe, slow down. Who's there? Damn it! No, just move to the roof. The troops are on their way." Nessa grabbed a priceless statue off an end table and threw it into the wall. "The Fool and the rest of the Nightwalkers has Garon and his men surrounded." Nigel scowled. "He doesn't want to risk facing all his foes at once." "But this is still awfully aggressive for him," Caitlin said. "He never would have moved so openly with so many of the Arcana." "He's an animal, and he's just going to get worse. Normally, the different weres have a pack leader or whoever turned them to help learn and control their impulses. The Fool doesn't, therefore his people don't." Nessa scowled. "I have to go. I've got to end this tonight. We'll stack up the bodies somewhere that no one will find them, and we'll work the frame-up out later. Ghede, keep Jenna alive for the night. Things have changed, and we may not need subtlety after all." Nigel stepped up. "I'm with you," he told the vampire, "if you're willing to trust me." Nessa smiled at him. "Any of your people that are willing to come can come. Everyone else will have to stay in one of the holding cells until I get back. You understand." "Perfectly." It turned out that there would be no need for the holding cells. A few well-placed phrases such as "bloodbath" and "werewolf outbreak" spurred the rebel Nighwalkers into action, and they moved fast. Nessa got everyone into vehicles and headed towards Garon Pegg's headquarters. She had a veritable army with her, including a dozen or so Nightwalkers, three demons, lycanthropes loyal to her rather than Garon, and a slew of highly trained human security. She had sent out for more reinforcements, but she was in a hurry, so they'd have to catch up. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 06 "Nessa, we need to keep the humans away from the Fool," Death told her en route. "We don't want that new lycanthropy virus to spread to your people." "Crap, you're right. If you've got snipers, where would you put them?" They spent the next few minutes talking strategy, then Nessa took a call from Anabella, who was holed up on the roof of Garon Pegg's warehouse. It was actually a little higher than the surrounding buildings, so she was not particularly exposed to snipers as long as she did not go near the edges. Her guard, a couple of minor demons, were still with her. Then Anabella informed her friend that the fight had begun. Nessa's troops pulled up short of the combat zone and moved in on foot. It was an isolated part of the warehouse district, but it would not stay that way. All of the Fool's men would be using silenced weapons, so it might be a while. Unless – An explosion rocked the horizon as Nessa surveyed the area. It appeared that the Fool had gone low, using the Nightwalkers superior training and martial arts skills to keep control of the situation, and control it they did. There were already a dozen werewolves down, and that was just that Nessa could see. What made matters worse was that some of the defending wolves, and some of her own lycanthropes, were fidgety. "What's going on?" she asked a werewolf who had come with her, who seemed reluctant to move away from the transports. "There's something in the air," he replied. "Gods, I can smell it." Nessa stared at him for a moment, then her eyes widened. "All werewolves and other lycanthropes, back in the transports and get out!" "What? Why?" Strength asked. "Pecking order for Nightwalkers is determined pretty much due to strength of will, right? Same thing with werewolves. And if you've got someone as nasty as the Fool turned into a werewolf --" "Exponential increase in power," Death said. "What would he be able to do?" "You're looking at it. Werewolves as a rule will be terrified of him, and any other wolf that much more powerful than them. The Fool could probably cow most werewolves into submission and, if he's tough enough, maybe some other lycanthropes. I'm not going to just hand him more troops," she said, signaling her own shape changers back into their cars. "Go defend Devil's Night." She saw one of the werecats from her restaurant. "Follow Jason's lead," she said, pointed to her man. "I'll be back soon." She seeped into the darkest shadows cast by the combination of street lights and metal buildings, her demon guard falling in behind her along with a couple dozen other Night Breed. Her human guards and her allied Nightwalkers took to the rooftops, and all of them were armed with silver bullets. Nessa found Garon Pegg holed up in a building, surrounded by armed guards in their half-wolf forms. There was a definitive air of unease surrounding them, and it did not take long for the vampire to place it. Fight or flee. They did not know which to do, and that kind of sensation was toxic for a wild animal. "What are you doing here, you undead slut? This is my operation!" Garon snarled. "Your operation? You've got a hundred or more werewolves, and you're hiding in here like a rat. And you know what? You should be." "I should --" Nessa rushed forward, knocking guards out of the way as she put a hand around Garon's throat and lifted him off of the ground. "You should what?" Garon snarled and spit, but he had nothing to say. He looked surprised when she put him down. "And normally, you wouldn't have just hung there like a rag. You would have at least tried to claw my eyes out. The leader of the fake vampires is now some kind of mutant uber-werewolf, and he's exerting influence on all of your wolves, and you as well." "Bullshit," Garon growled. "I am the alpha, and my troops --" "Are going to wind up dead or in the control of the enemy if you don't get them the hell out of here!" "You'd like that, wouldn't you? Make a fool of me in front of the Council? I will never run!" Garon shouted, his voice breaking just a bit. "I want to . . . oh never mind," she muttered, then threw Garon Pegg through a wall, knocking him unconscious. Nessa turned to Simon Glicker, the twit had run the Atlanta pack until Pegg had shown up to "fix" things. "You're in charge now. You don't like me, but you know me well enough to know that I'm serious. Get your wolves out of here, or I start looking for the next back-up alpha. Got it?" Nessa knew that there would be hell to pay for laying hands on another agent of the Council, but she simply did not have time to waste. As Simon nodded and got on his radio, he had hate in his eyes, but it lived along side a healthy dose of fear. He might try to kill her at some point, and she knew that Pegg would, but not today. Not now, and that was all she had really been hoping for. "Now what?" Ipos asked as most of their "allies" began to flee. Nessa stared out into the patchwork darkness that was her world. "I'm going to go find this problem and kill him." "Boss --" "I'm going to try and draw him out in the open so that our guys can shoot. He may not know about the vulnerability to silver. You demons are with me. Someone get a hold of Anabella and tell her to stand by." "Stand by and what?" Nessa did not say the first thing that came to her mind. 'Tell her to get a song ready for someone, and let's hope it isn't me.' Instead, she just strode out into the darkness, following the smell of blood and smoke. She knew how to hunt a mega-predator as well. She did not go towards the gunfire, but rather towards the silence. The real killers were the quiet ones. The stench of pheromones permeated the air, and she knew she was getting close. Her enemies were new to the game. Their minds might be collected, but their bodies were excited. They wanted to hunt. They needed to kill. It did not take as long as she thought. She stepped into a small unloading area behind one of the warehouses, and she heard . . . nothing. Absolutely nothing. "Come out, come out, wherever you are," Nessa chanted. "You are not like the others," growled a voice from behind a metal storage pod. "Are you? You smell . . . dead. One of the dead, covered with perfume, but dead nonetheless." "It's not perfume, it's body wash, but otherwise a good guess," Nessa replied, sauntering out into the middle of the streetlight's glare. "Why don't you come out here so that we can . . . talk?" she hissed. "Now why would I want to come out when we can just talk from here?" "Because you'll never control your pack if you don't," Nessa told him. "Because hiding means that either you're not the Fool, who's the one I want to talk to anyway, or you're a coward." "You think that insults will alter my thinking?" "Yes," was the honest response. It turned out that Nessa was right. She rather wished she wasn't. The creature that jumped up to the top of the container was unlike any werewolf she had ever seen, and Nessa had seen quite a bit. He resembled a steroid-filled gorilla more than the half-form wolves she had know, he was simply so huge. Fur sprouted from underneath his body armor, and claws protruded from his gloves. His head, the one part of him that was most definitely wolf-like, had a sneering maw, full of teeth and the promise of a painful death. The beret he wore would have looking comical under other circumstances but here, it just identified him. And the Fool reeked of power . . . raw, primal, terrifying power. Nessa now completely understood why all the werewolves had been freaked out. The Fool was so alpha that he made them want to wet themselves or hump his leg. None of them were going to challenge him and if they did, they would lose. "You," the Fool said, still familiarizing himself with the art of talking while shifted, "You are the one they talk about, aren't you? Vampire?" "Right on the first guess," she said, moving forward with the erotic grace that only she could pull off. "And you're the Fool. You're a big boy, aren't you?" He cocked his head as he slowly prowled the top of the container, comfortable in his position at the top of the food chain. "You aren't afraid of me," he stated. "Interesting." He sniffed the air. "I do not recognize the smell of those with you, but they aren't like you." "Demons," she told him. "There aren't many vampires around. We're kind of territorial, and so the only ones I allow are no threat to me." "You seem very free with information. Is that usual?" "You're not making it out of this alive, so I don't see the harm in telling you." The Fool growled. "I would not be so sure of that." "I've been alive a lot longer than you. I've picked up a few things." She jumped straight up when a Nightwalker werewolf came charging out of an alley, bringing her foot down on its head with a satisfying crunch that sent it down to the concrete. It probably didn't kill the thing, but it certainly made it see stars. The Fool was still sniffing the air. "You smell like . . . like her," he said, his voice angry. "Why do you smell like her?" Nessa cocked her head. "Who the hell . . . Oh! The Empress?" "She was the strongest of our females," he replied coldly. "She will be again. Bring her to me, and you will be allowed to live. As a prisoner of the United States Government, of course." 'Okay, now you're getting creepy on me,' Nessa thought. 'She will be again? What the hell –' She was forced to dodge as another Nightwalker came charging out of the darkness. She wondered if she should point out that hiding in normal shadows did nothing to her, so they might as well quit. 'Nah.' "Hate to break it to you, but the Empress doesn't exactly want to have anything to do with you," she said, spin-kicking her most recent attacker into a wall. "She shall be made to see reason." That got Nessa. After what Jenna had been through, Nessa was not going to let anyone make her do anything. "Why would she want to go with you when she can have all --" Nessa paused and traced one hand down her body, "-- of this?" The Fool's eyes narrowed, and Nessa knew that something was coming. Something bad. He howled, and she was quickly proven right. From the roof of the building behind her, there was a responding howl. She glanced back and saw an equally impressive werewolf specimen standing there looking down, a noose dangling from his neck. Behind him, a dozen more Nightwalkers made their presence known. In front of her, another dozen had come up to support the Fool. "She will be mine," the Fool growled, a dark and sinister tone that caught even Nessa by surprise. "Soon, she will be begging to come back where she belongs." Nessa did not like the sound of that threat. Not at all. Ipos, Kobal, and Cresil helped Nessa circle the wagons, along with a smattering of other magical beings. Because all the lycanthropes had been forced to retreat, Nessa found herself outnumbered. The thought actually made her smile. "Never bring puppies to fight with the mother of all bitches," she said, then launched herself forward. Street fighting was an ugly business on the best of days, but when you throw werewolf commandos, a plethora of Night Breeds, and small arms fire, "ugly" just did not cover it. A number of hybrid Nightwalkers attempted to end Nessa's life on her way to the Fool, but they were hopelessly overmatched. At first, Nessa made it look easy. One attacker came in and swung low, trying to taking out Nessa's knees. She stepped back, grabbed his arm, then snap-kicked him in the elbow. As he howled in pain, she jumped, spun in mid air, and came down thrusting the palm of her hand into the back of his neck, breaking it instantly. "This is what happens when the dogs act up and I'm all out of rolled up newspapers," she said, loud enough so that the Fool could hear her. "She's mine," he growled to his underlings, and a path instantly cleared between he and the vampire, with the lesser werewolves going after Nessa's people. 'I need to kill him and break his forces before the body count starts to rise,' Nessa thought. She jumped to the top of the storage container, only to have the Fool swing a claw at her immediately and rip her coat as she swirled out of the way. 'Fuck, he's fast!' she thought. She shot a couple of kicks at his knees, but he avoided them easily and also sliced her feet off at the ankles. He was faster than any werewolf that Nessa had ever seen, and was likely stronger. Behind her, the demons and Nessa's other allies were having a tough time of things, as the attacking werewolves were tactically sound and used to working together. On the other hands, demons were demons, and they were born and bred for war. A number of the hybrid Nighwalkers were forced off of the rooftops as Nessa's human and pure Nightwalker allies approached the fray and lay down some covering fire. Despite their training, the clawed hands of werewolves in their half-forms were simply not as adept at handling weapons as human fingers could. Nessa knew that she needed to avoid the Fool's claws, so she took to the sky, flying over his head and striking out with her heels. He ducked and his eyes narrowed as he assessed this new ability and determined how best to deal with it. He pulled a gun from his belt and brought it to bear. Nessa could either just keep dodging, or disarm him. She chose the latter, swooping in and kicking for the gun. The Fool had been expecting the attack, so his other hand came over with lightning speed and grabbed her ankle, then swung her around until she collided with metal lid of the container. Nessa was hurting. She had not hurt like this in a long time, and could not even remember the last time she had encountered something with this kind of strength. But she was much stronger than her appearance let on, and she was crafty. She lay limp in his hands, playing possum. While the Fool did not let go, he did make an exaggerated movement as he swung the vampire over his head and towards the container again, which gave her time to – The Fool almost lost his balance when the vampire disappeared from his hand. Just before she was supposed to collide with floor, she had vanished. Now, a cloud of red mist floated just off of the ground. 'No,' he realized with a sniff. 'Not mist. Blood.' Nessa quickly coalesced into her normal body, coming up under the Fool's chin with a massive upper cut that lifted him six feet off of the ground. She spun and planted a heel into his kidneys as he fell, then spun around again and planted a punch to his face just before he hit the ground, driving him down like a tent stake. But it did not stop him. He rolled out of the way before she could land her heel on his throat, causing her foot to dent the metal container. The Fool kicked at her leg, but she flipped backward and escaped with only the most minor of contact. The Fool kept low, as some of the traitorous Nightwalkers opened fired nearby, then chose to jump down to the ground. Nessa turned to follow, then stopped to survey the battlefield. There were dozens lying on the ground, dead or dying. "Nessa, look out!" Ipos shouted. He was looking behind her, and took a step forward to support her. That was when Nessa saw a shape shoot out from the alley, claws extended. The Hanged Man ripped Ipos's throat open, then plunged a hand into the demon's chest. "No!" she screamed. She felt heated breath behind her and began to spin, but was not able to escape the claws that raked down her back. She screamed again, and saw the Fool standing over her with a gleam in his eyes that she had never seen before. He was utterly insane, and he was going to kill her. Then, a bullet ripped through the Fool's armor, penetrating just under the arm as he raised his hand. He snarled in incredible pain as the silver bullet began polluting his bloodstream. Madness, however, was a formidable anesthetic, and he turned to finish off the vampire woman. But as tough at the Fool was, Nessa was every bit his equal. When she looked up at him, she could see his blood, and she was going to take it all. She stood up, missing her initial mark of the Fool's heart as he twisted his body, but she was able to continue her strike and very nearly rip his lower jaw off with her own fingernails. The blow sent him flying upward and back off of the crate. In the background, the sound of sirens echoed through the air. She and the Fool both heard it, but the air between them was thick with vengeance. It was the Fool who broke their stare first, letting out a gutteral howl with what was left of his face, and the hybrid Nightwalkers broke out of combat and vanished into the savage night. Nessa wanted to give chase, but she needed to rally the troops. She needed – If her heart had been beating, it would have stopped. If air had graced her lungs, her breath would have caught in her throat. Anabella, looking like she had not shied away from the fight herself, was floating over Ipos's still form. Tears fell freely from her eyes, and her mouth moved, making sounds that no one could hear. It was the death song of a demon. That was when it hit home. Ipos was dead. Demons were nigh-invulnerable, and the Hanged Man had made it look easy. Nessa had known Ipos for a century, and now – "Gods above," she whispered. Ipos was dead, and Anabella was singing him to the next world. It was not possible. It just was not fucking possible. Death appeared next to her, his gun still firmly in his hand. "Nessa, we have to go." She snarled, spun, and picked him up by the armor. "Don't tell me what I have to . . . to do," she said, her vision going slightly dizzy. "You've lost blood, and you're losing more," Death told her, his voice colder than she remembered it being. "I didn't save you just to let you die from grief here. Sound the order. Only you can." Nessa realized that it was Death's bullet that had saved her from even more serious damage than she had already experienced. She knew she should feel grateful, but she could not muster the energy. She raised her communicator to her lips. "Gather the dead. Burn the evidence. Fall back." ------- ----------------- Hours later . . . ------- ----------------- When Jenna had finally opened her eyes, she had known something was wrong. None of her closer friends were around. All she could see was Avery sitting in a corner, talking quietly with Anabella. He looked grim. What had happened? Ghede had wandered over and she had gotten the full story, or at least as much as the medic had been able to glean from the combatants. Although she had barely spoken with the demon, she felt tears in the corners of her eyes. Ipos had meant something to Nessa. All in all, the vampire had lost fifteen people in the skirmish, though the Nightwalkers casualties had been greater. After defections and deaths, the Fool probably had only twenty or so commandos under his control. "And to top it off," Ghede told her, "we have about six of our people that were scratched. Humans. We've had to quarantine them in the holding cells until we find out if the counteragents we gave them for the lycanthropy will work." "Hopefully they'll work better for them than for me," she whispered. "I've come up with a new batch that will hopefully --" "No," she told him. He furrowed his brow. "No?" "You can't keep wasting resources on me," she told him. "Just let me . . . let me change. Nessa should not lose any more friends because of this war. It's --" "It's Nessa's job to do this," Ghede told her. "Ours is a savage world, Jenna. This is not the first time that Nessa has had blood on her hands, and it will not be the last. Once she has recovered from her wounds --" "She's wounded?" Jenna almost barked, sitting up and looking around. "Why didn't you say something?" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 06 "Because it would have got you excited, and your system simply cannot handle that kind of excitement. And we are NOT taking you off your medicine." "I'm useless to you," she hissed, though she had little energy to put into her objection. "I will not just lie here. Do you know what it is like to be helpless?" she asked, her voice cracking. "I do. I know it far too well. I won't do it again." Ghede sighed. He knew of her story, but only because Nessa had told him. He had hoped she would speak of it on her own, but she had not. Death, Caitlin, Nessa, Anabella, and Avery were the only ones who knew it. Anabella and Nessa only knew because it was Avery who had uncovered the truth. Ghede knew that in the end, Nessa would be able to help her more than he could. It did not mean he was not going to try. "Do you know what would happen if we allowed you to change?" "I would become --" "You would become a thing like the Fool. They discovered tonight that he is an alpha. That means that others like him, especially the wolves, will either want to run from him or serve him. Unless you came out stronger, he would either likely kill you or --" Ghede stopped. Normally he was not quite so careless. "Or what?" she asked. A feminine, sorry, angry voice floated across the room from a dark corner of the room. "He would take you for his mate." Nessa stepped out of a darkness that Jenna's Nightwalker eyes had been unable to penetrate. "He made his intentions very clear. He figured that since you were the most powerful female Nightwalker that you would be the most powerful werewolf hybrid. The animal part of him is seeking his mate. You." Jenna shook her head slowly in disbelief. "This is no time for jokes." Without so much as a sound, Nessa was standing over her, the vampire's face contorted into rage. Jenna had never seen this side of her friend. It was ugly. And for a moment, Jenna was afraid. "Do I look like I'm joking?" Nessa asked coldly. "And you want to just give up? You want me to hand you over to him as his new bitch?" "Nessa, that is not helping," Ghede said. "No, let her continue," Jenna said, her voice low and shaking. "I've invested a lot in you," Nessa continued. "Letting you change means making the Fool stronger." "I didn't realize you had so little faith in me." "You've been weak before," the vampire shot back, and instantly regretted it. She saw a wound open up in the young woman that was deep and bled in a way that no bandage could stem. "Jenna, I didn't mean --" "I know what you meant," Jenna replied, bitterness filling the cacophonous sounds coming from her lips. "I let the Messenger do what he did, so why not the Fool? That's all I'm good for, right? Being raped by a stronger --" "That is NOT what I meant!" Nessa said. "Jenna, I . . . I'm sorry. I'm just so angry I don't know what to do, and I needed to take it out on someone." She was trying to figure out some way to counter the damage that she had done, but she just saw Jenna shrinking away from her. She was going to open her mouth when her intercom came on. One of the doormen was telling her that someone named Lawrence had arrived. "Send him up," Nessa said, speaking to the ceiling. She did not know why she did that. It was not as if her intercom were actually godly. "Jenna," she added, her gaze drifting back to the woman in the gurney. But there was no conversation to be had. The injured Nightwalker had shut down. She cursed herself, then looked at Ghede, who just shrugged, with an unspoken "This is your fault, fix it," floating in the air. A few minutes later, a new man appeared from the lift area. He was very . . . British looking. Immaculately pressed slack, a dress shirt complete with sweater vest, and very proper-looking circular glasses. He was built lean and was handsome in an unassuming sort of way, and his eyes sort of sparkled as if he was enjoying some hidden joke. "Nessa," he said warmly, though he pulled up when he sensed her mood. "I came as quickly as I could. What happened?" She hugged him, then turned and walked out to the balcony, closing the door behind them. "Lawrence, I find myself in a very . . . unique, situation." "Unique? For you?" "Yes, apparently I have in fact NOT seen everything," she said, her mouth trying to smile, but her spirit not truly feeling any real joy. "I'm glad you're here," she told him. He sat next to her and put an arm around his maker's shoulders. "Nessa, tell me what's going on. She did. At great length. From the moment she got orders from the Council until the fight of a few hours previously, including her the events surrounding Jenna's presence. "Wow," Lawrence said, rubbing his glasses. He really did not need glasses, or to clean them, but there were some habits that were hard to break. Even after being dead for a century. "You really don't have normal problems, do you? Did you ever consider calling us?" "I can't show weakness," she said. "I didn't want to." She rubbed her hands on her pants. "I don't know why. It's not like I really need the hassle of running a territory." "You do it because you do it better than anyone else. You like being in charge, you LOVE being the center of attention, and you don't want someone like Garon Pegg taking over and abusing power." "I don't know how I'm going to deal with him. But first, I have to deal with the Fool. Lawrence, I've never seen anyone move like that. One on one . . . I don't know if I would have been able to beat him." "Well, his organization has been weakened. I know you wanted to avoid it, but you need to just wipe him out. If you move quickly --" "He'll be ready. He's fucking smart, and he adapts. He's already learning to control his alpha status. I just have to figure out what he's going to do next, and my best insight into his mind is lying on a hospital gurney, barely hanging on to life, and I just basically set her therapy back to where she started." Lawrence looked out over the New Atlanta skyline, holding Nessa close. "What were you trying to tell her?" "That she needs to stop giving up on herself. Gods above, I just got her to the point where she didn't blame herself for getting tortured and raped, and then I tell her that she was being weak again. I really don't think well when I'm angry." "Then don't get mad," he told her. "Like the saying goes, get even. I can help with the computer part of your plan, assuming that Ghede can pull off the magical part, but we'll need to move quickly if your assessment of this Fool character is correct. Can you talk to one of the other Nightwalkers about possible courses of action?" She nodded. "I can talk to Nigel, or maybe that new girl Caitlin. I should bring them up to seen Jenna. Maybe they can do something for her." Lawrence stood up and offered Nessa his hand. "Let me know if you want me to call the others. We could have an army here within 24 hours." "That's exactly what I want to avoid. Besides," she said, looking towards door, "this has become very personal." Lawrence paused at the door. "Nessa, have you considered --" "Considered what?" "Your friend. There is another way you could save her. There is one way to counteract any lycanthropy virus that exists." Nessa's eyes popped open. "You're not serious? I . . . she's way too injured. I'm way too injured --" "Speaking of which, were you going to tell me about your wounds?" He spun her around like she were a child and pulled her coat down, revealing nasty, jagged scars down her back. "I'll heal, but it is going to take time." "You need to feed, preferably from a fresh source." "So you want me to feed off Jenna and then --" "I would probably be forced to stake you myself if you tried to feed off of her right now. But there are others around who can donate a pint or so. And then yes, you might want to seriously consider that particular option with Jenna. She obviously means something to you." "You haven't seen the inside of her soul," Nessa explained. "You can't understand. I couldn't trap her in that state." "You said she had started to heal." "With 'started' being the operative word." "It would not be the first time that you saved 'damaged goods' though, would it?" That earned him a smile as Nessa said, "You were pretty fucked up, weren't you?" "I was dying. So is she." "There's a difference between contracting cancer and ripping your own soul into sections and then living alone with if for fifteen years." She kissed Lawrence on the forehead. "I need to go fix things with her." "Think about it," he told her. "Promise me." "I promise," she said, then slipped back inside. There actually was not much to think about. It made perfect sense. She walked over to Jenna, who was sitting as still and quiet as death, a nearby heart monitor being the only thing to break up the oppressive silence. She sat quietly next to her friend for a moment. "Jenna, please open your eyes. I need you. I need your head in the game. I want to get you and Death and the High Priestess to help me figure out what he's going to do now. And I need you to forgive me for being an insensitive bitch." Jenna slowly turned her head. She looked like hell, and felt much worse. And she was crying. The tears were small, but the hurt that caused them was huge. "You just lost a friend," she whispered. "You're entitled." "No, I'm not. Not for saying something like that to you. I just want you to stop giving up on yourself, because I haven't." Jenna gripped the sheet covering her from the waist down. "I don't want to die. Dammit, I hate sitting here like a child, with my only options being to let the virus potentially turn me into a slave again, grow weaker until the medicine kills me, or hope you can kill the Fool before I die so that what? I can turn into a werewolf that might be dominated by something else somewhere down the road? There are really powerful lycanthropes that could do it, right?" Nessa nodded. "It's possible. Lycanthropes can live a long time if they're powerful. Some of the oldest are called Primals, and they can make pretty much anyone their bitch if they choose. So yeah, it would always be a threat." Jenna took a deep breath and then wiped her tears away. "Thank you for being honest." "It's the least I can do." "Nessa . . . I just got used to the idea that I could actually have a life." "You still can. You will." Nessa cocked her head. "The guy that came in here a second ago . . . his name is Lawrence. He's one of mine. I would like you to do something for me, and it requires a lot of trust, more than I probably deserve right now." "What do you want?" "I want you to let him in, like you let me in." Jenna shivered. "Why?" "Because I want a second opinion. I want to see if your spirit is recovering the way it should. Because . . . because there's a way I can give you a fourth option." "What is it?" Jenna said, trying to sit up, then falling back to the bed with a slight coughing fit. Nessa gripped Jenna's hand. "I could make you like me." "Like . . . what?" "You wouldn't have to pretend to be a vampire anymore. I can give you the real experience." Jenna stared at her. "Are you serious? I thought . . . but why --" "It just didn't occur to me to save you from one disease by infecting you with something else. That's why I gave the gift to Lawrence. He's probably the smartest person I ever brought over." "I thought --" Jenna stopped. "That it was always about sex?" Nessa smiled. "No. Oh, I had sex with him all right, but that's not the driving factor for me in making my choices. And before you ask, there is no one thing." "Why me? Why now? Wouldn't that weaken you? I won't risk --" "And that's the 'why'," Nessa interrupted. "Because you think of others, and you deserve time to think of yourself. Now is because if we wait, the other options suck. And it will only weaken me for a day or so." Nessa gripped a little tighter. "For the first year, you would be a bit susceptible to my suggestions. I can't help that. It's sort of a fail-safe for if a new vamp goes all blood lusty. You grow out of it." "But you're hurt --" "I'll heal, and faster than you." Jenna smiled weakly. "So what's the catch?" "Besides being under my influence? That we don't know what will happen. You've been bioengineered to the point where . . . well, you saw what happened with the Fool and the others. They're stronger, yes, but --" "They're also completely insane?" Jenna turned her head. "I don't know. But he's got to be stopped." Her head came back around. "How many did you say he lost?" "After deaths and defections, he's maybe got a couple of dozen. Why?" Jenna's eyes fluttered a bit, and her breath became ragged. As Ghede hurried over to adjust her medication, she whispered, "Ask Death about . . . (cough) . . . Roanoke Protocol." She was trying to explain something else, but her body rejected the idea of staying conscious a moment longer. "Nessa, we need to do something about her soon," Ghede muttered. "I'm running out of variations of healing and medicine, and she's getting so weak she might not survive changing into anything." The vampire nodded, then took the lift down to the lounge. The Devil's Night had been closed for the next several days, making it the official headquarters for the "war" effort. She found Nigel and Caitlin conferring with their fellow Nightwalkers. She waved them over. "Yes?" Nigel asked. "How's Jenna?" Caitlin added. "She's . . . well, she's not good. She's out again. But I asked her what the Fool might do next, then she muttered something about the Roanoke Protocol. Do you --" Nessa had been planning on asking if they knew what it meant, but the glance the two exchanged indicated they did. "Why would she bring that up?" Caitlin asked her comrade. "It's not as if he suffered complete --" Nigel paused mid-sentence and began to roll over ideas in his head. "Okay, anyone want to clue in the non-military person?" "It's not standard military," Caitlin said, still looking confused. The DoD always thought there was a chance that the corporations might figure out about the Nightwalkers and move against them. We're good, but we could stand against all of those special forces combined for very long. It's expected that we'd suffer severe casualties. Any survivor could send a coded signal to HQ, and then the DoD would --" She stopped and looked at Nigel. " Oh crap." "What would they do?" Nessa asked, looking from one fake vampire to the other. "They would send a full contingent of special ops forces to a pre-defined location. A whole new set of Major and Minor Arcana. They'd be given fangs, but otherwise wouldn't be bioengineered. They'd meet up with survivors, take over, and pretend like nothing had happened," Nigel explained. "Just to help give the corporations a sense that the Nightwalkers were immortal. It's all weird PsyOps crap. Even without the bioengineering, they'd be a pretty damn formidable group." "Wait. So you're telling me that a bunch of new commandos are going to show up?" Nigel nodded. "A bunch of highly trained personnel that will do whatever the Fool tells them too, who have no idea what's been going on here, and will make perfect new recruits." Nessa rubbed her face with both hands as if trying to scrub the notion of yet more hybrid werewolves from her brain. "This isn't good. Where is this meeting place?" "It would be at the original base – Caitlin started. "And we know where that is," Nessa interrupted. "Good." "-- unless the Fool specifies somewhere else in the distress call." "Fuck!" Nessa began prowling in a circle, stopping every now and then to wince in pain. "Have you had one of the medics check out your wounds?" Nigel asked. Nessa absently waved the comment off. "I'll live. I just need to eat." "Eat? As in --" Caitlin asked, pointing at her neck. "I don't need fresh, but it would help. If the Fool is looking for more recruits, I need to get get back into fighting trim. How long do we have?" "If the Fool sent out the message today, then you have about 72 hours. He'll hole up somewhere until then --" Caitlin explained, only to be cut off by Nigel. "No, I don't think he will. Some of what he told you," he added, looking meaningfully at the vampire, "disturbs me." "Which parts?" "The parts where he seemed convinced that Jenna would come looking for him," was the grim response. Nessa's eyes slowly widened. "You think he knows?" "Yeah. I think that he knows." "Either one of you want to clue me in to what's going on?" Cailtin asked. "I would, but it's Jenna's story to tell." "But she told me about what happened to her," the High Priestess argued, then remembered to keep her voice down. "How much did she tell you? Exactly?" Nigel asked. When Caitlin was done. "She trusted you with a lot, but she has many secrets." Caitlin looked from one to the other. "I want to help, but it's going to be hard to do if no one talks to me." "I'd rather Jenna do it," Nessa said, getting an affirming nod from Nigel. "And to do that, I need to save her." "Save her? I thought you just said she was out --" "She is. And she's dying." Nessa sat down on the ground. "No medicine we have seems to work for her. It was designed to help normal humans against the normal lycanthropy virus, neither of which apply to her. Keeping her on the medicine will stave of transformation, but it looks like it would also kill her. The other option is letting her turn into one a hybrid werewolf, which might very well make her more susceptible to the Fool's influence, and he made it pretty clear what he wants her for." "You're not serious?!" Caitlin hissed. "He's an alpha werewolf now. Before, he just wanted her back because she's a good asset. Now, he sees her as the only choice for his mate. And I won't let her go through that again." Nessa straightened her back. "And that's why I need to get healed up. The sooner I get my strength back, the sooner . . . well, the sooner I can bring her all the way into my world." Nigel furrowed his brow. "Wait, what do you mean?" "I've offered to make her into a vampire. The vampiric virus will kill absolutely any other type of pathogen, and I'm pretty damn confident it'll work for her. But I have to do it soon, because she may not survive much longer." "It's that serious?" Caitlin asked. Nessa nodded. "Vampires can't even turn their own baby vamps until they're almost fifty years undead, and then only once a year. It's helped keep our numbers in control. I haven't turned anyone in a century, so I've got enough juice to bring Jenna up to speed quick, but it takes a toll on me." "And you need blood, preferably fresh, in order to heal?" Caitlin asked. When Nessa nodded, the Nightwalker female began removing armor. "Take mine, if it'll help." Nessa smiled slightly. "Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, I can guarantee it won't hurt --" "That's good." "-- but it will allow me to know you," Nessa continued. "In a very deep way. You don't have any secrets, do you?" "I'm sure I do, but nothing worth Jenna dying for." Nessa moved forward and touched Caitlin's face. "You aren't even vaguely afraid, are you?" "Actually, I'm kinda scared shitless," was the response, "but being afraid isn't going to do us much good. Will I be enough?" "Perhaps," Nessa replied demurely, and she was not just talking about her blood. "Come with me then." "Why? Can't we --" "Are you a screamer?" Nessa asked, arching one eyebrow and giving a wicked, decadent smile. "Am I a . . . oh. I see," Caitlin replied. "So the stories are --" "Can be quite correct in that regard. Some vampires thrive on pain, but I only know one way to feed," Nessa purred. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 07 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- For Nigel "Death" Edmundson, it was turning out to be an awkward and tedious day. The demons were sitting to one side, conversing with Avery and some of the other locals and mourning the loss of their friend. Nigel was surprised that a couple of seven foot tall, red-skinned, and overly muscled demons could actually have emotions, but he had been surprised many times in the last few weeks. As it was, his close friend and former colleague was lying deep beneath the earth, and she was dead. This was to be a temporary condition. Jenna had been faced with three choices: die, turn into a werewolf and potentially fall under the control of her enemy, or be turned into a vampire. So when the sun set, she would rise from the dead. 'I wonder if I'll even recognize her,' he wondered. Glancing around, he saw the remaining renegade Nightwalkers, bioengineered super soldiers made to look and act like vampires, intermingling with lycanthropes, demons, and other creatures that they had never known existed. Some were on another floor, receiving medical treatment after the previous nights scuffle and preparing to change into werewolves. It had been discovered that the medicines that normally fought off lycanthropy actually caused harm to the Nightwalkers, meaning that they were faced with the same options as Jenna, except vampirism was not available to them. Nessa could only turn one person every few years, and she had chosen to save Jenna. Jenna was the one that the Fool wanted anyway. The other Nightwalkers facing the change would be protected until their new werewolf status could be controlled. Then he saw Caitlin, also known as the High Priestess, sitting alone, her back against a wall and her gaze drawn to the window that overlooked the club floor. He wandered over and stood next to her. "Penny for your thoughts?" "Got change?" Nigel smiled. "How are you holding up?" She sighed. "I'm way out of my league," she said humbly. "I wouldn't say that. You're still alive, still fighting the good fight." "I wasn't talking about that," she muttered. "I was talking about Jenna." She met his gaze. "I've seen Nessa. Hell, I've had her teeth in my neck. I can't compete with that. Nigel, I've never felt so hopelessly outclassed in my life." She frowned. "Are you laughing at me?" "I just am amazed that a woman with your beauty, brains, education, and physical abilities is actually suffering from insecurities." He slid down the wall until he was seated next to her. "And I completely disagree with your assessment of the situation." "How so?" "Because Nessa isn't right for Jenna. Don't get me wrong, she was exactly what Jenna needed, but as a savior rather than a girlfriend or even a long-term lover." "She seems to be a pretty good lover from what I hear." "Probably, but being good at sex is one thing, while Jenna needs someone who is good at a lot of things. I know from the tales of your exploits that you are no slouch in bed --" "True, true." "-- but you could also give her a little bit of stability. Sanity. Nessa lives a life where she burns the candle at both ends. I think Jenna needs someone with a little more patience. Someone who still remembers what being human is like, because she has forgotten that. She likes you, I'm willing to say that she's attracted to you, even surrounded by all of these strange, magical creatures, and she has trusted you with information that very few know. Nessa and Avery uncovered Jenna's secret, but I was the only one she actually willing told before you." "But she doesn't trust me completely, does she? She mentioned that she would never get to see 'him' again, but she wouldn't tell me who. No one will." "That secret is known to even fewer people than know about what happened between her and the Messenger. And there is a reason. Would you have ME tell you?" Caitlin growled. "No. I want her to tell me." "Then when she . . . emerges? Wakes up? I'm not sure what to call it. Anyway, when she comes around this evening, ask her again. You know, when she's not on the verge of dying and/or having an emotional breakdown." "Nigel --" "Caitlin," he said, his voice mocking Caitlin's whine, "I know that you're not going to give up, so stop feeling sorry for yourself and just be . . . well, you. And you are capable of competing WITH any woman FOR any woman." "You know, I see why April likes you so much. You've got a future in motivational speaking." "I thought it was my mysterious good looks." "I'd stick with the talking." "I am so under-appreciated in my time," he muttered. Then his phone began to buzz. "I thought that they had signal blockers," Caitlin said, almost petulantly. "They gave me the bypass code. Hello, Ms. April. How are --" Nigel said, then quickly shut up. His face grew concerned, then grim. "Thanks for calling. No, you did the right thing." He flipped his communicator down, then stood up. "Avery?" he said loudly, waving for the man to join him. "What's up? Is April in trouble?" Caitlin asked. Nigel glanced at her and looked conflicted. "Dammit Nigel, I'm trying to --" "I know, I know. You're trying to help. Remember all that stuff I just told you about 'asking Jenna' and that I should just keep my mouth shut?" "Yeah?" "Ignore that." He led her to the lift area and, once Avery had joined them, closed the door. "What's going on?" "April called. She said that there were a couple of 'unusual characters' hanging around the school asking for students that fit a certain description." Caitlin's eyes shot open. "You think the Fool is going after April to get to you? Knowing who her father is?" "No, I think April's got nothing to do with it," Nigel replied, holding up a hand to fend of Avery's objection. "I just asked her to keep an eye out for unusual characters. SHE thinks that she might be watched, but the Fool would never move against the daughter of a general, no matter how insane. It would be a matter of loyalty for him." "Wait, this has something to do with Jenna, doesn't it?" Avery and Nigel exchanged a glance, then Avery sighed and gave Nigel a chance to speak. "It's about Jenna's son. The one she had as a result of what happened fifteen-plus years ago. I just found out about him a week ago." Caitlin clamped her hand over her mouth, stifling a gasp. "Oh my --" "When we realized that the Fool might try to hunt down people from her past to bring her back into the fold, she almost went nuclear on him. Her exact words were that she would 'burn the world' before she let him hurt the boy." "Does he --" "He has no idea that she is alive, much less who she is. She's been looking in on him for about thirteen years or so. And if something happens to him, well, I'm not sure what she'll do, but there will a trail of bodies and blood involved. And it will hurt her more than almost anything, which alone is reason enough to get involved." "So what's the plan?" Caitlin asked, her mind still reeling. Everyone had assumed that the Empress was made of ice. It turned out that she had more going on in her heart than anyone could have guessed. "We could take out whoever the Fool sent looking for the kid, but he'd just send more." "Which means," Avery said, "we need to get the young man somewhere safe, and somehow be able to explain his whereabouts to his parents." "Which could be tricky," Nigel said. "We'll discuss it on the way over. I think we three should handle this. The fewer people who know about Jenna's son, the better. At least for now." Avery let the demons know that he would be out for a bit, then he, Nigel, and Caitlin headed down to the garage. They hopped into a nondescript hover-car and headed toward the school. "How about a bomb scare?" Nigel asked. "It would get everyone out of the school, and there's no way anyone would be able to find one kid in that chaos." "Including us," Avery pointed out. "And it would only be a temporary fix." "Why don't we just grab him and hide him somewhere?" Caitlin asked. "And how would we keep him for an untold amount of time without alarming his parents?" Caitlin nodded, sighed, the scrunched her eyebrows. "Then let's alarm them." Nigel looked over at her. "What are you thinking?" "Simple. Honesty is the best policy. We kidnap him, take him somewhere safe, call his parents to tell them we have him and to be expecting our demands. We have Jenna's son, we can take care of him better than anyone else, and his parents will be surrounded by police until the whole thing is over, just in case the Fool decides to use them as leverage." Avery glanced at her through the rear view mirror. "Not a bad plan. Elegant in its simplicity. Only two problems that I see." "Which are?" "First, Jenna will kill you very, very dead. Then me, and then Nigel." "At least I'm last," Death said. "That's just because she's known you longer." "What was the second thing?" Caitlin asked. "What do we tell the boy?" "Nothing. Keep him somewhere away from all the weird creatures and let him think that he's been kidnapped. Then give him the opportunity to escape once this is all over." Avery thought it over. It would work. "As long as we can do it without hurting the boy. Maybe we could just not tell Jenna --" "You mean withholding information from her about what we've done with her son?" Nigel said. "Remember option one where she spent time killing us?" "Good point." They pulled up to the school. "So we still haven't figured out how we're extracting the target," Caitlin said. "And neither of you have even told me what he looks like." "You'll know him when you see him," Nigel explained. "Imagine a fifteen-year-old male version of Jenna." "He's that pretty?" Caitlin asked, then fought a little bit of a blush. "That didn't come out right." Nigel grinned. His friend was positively infatuated. "I think we find the mysterious characters that April told me about and keep an eye on them. Then we just wait for school to let out. I know the route he takes to get home." "How do you know that?" He smiled. "Because of coffee dates. Years and years of coffee dates." Despite Caitlin's inquisitive look, he left it at that. Finding the men that April had mentioned was not all that tricky. The transport's windows were tinted, so they could see out while no one else could see in. And since the Fool's men were not expecting interference, they were not trying to hide. "Crap," Caitlin said. "Over there, leaning against the building. It's Star and Moon. He sent two Major Arcana to kidnap a teenager?" "Why not? We have," Nigel pointed out. Caitlin had to admit that Nigel had her there. She would have problems with Star or Moon by herself, but she knew Death could handle them. "We want to take them out?" "I'd rather not start a fight in broad daylight." "Well, class lets out in thirty minutes, and we don't want them grabbing Jenna's boy before we do." Caitlin looked at Avery. "I don't think either of them know who you are," she muttered, then began to smirk. "Pull over at that shop down the street. I've got an idea." Star and Moon were getting irritable. They had been standing outside that damn school for hours, ever since the principal and that annoying teacher had asked them to leave. But since they were under strict orders not to make a scene, they had left. They could have taken their quarry and been gone by now, but they found themselves standing in stifling heat while wearing suits. "Finally," Star growled when the school's bell went off, indicating that the day was over for the students. He took another look at the picture. 'Damn, he looks just like her,' he thought. "Excuse me sirs, but could you help me --" The two Nightwalkers turned to find a man in a Hawaiian shirt holding a smart phone displaying a map. "Sorry, but we're kind of busy." "I was just wondering if you could tell me how to find the theater on Roswell Rd. I've been up and down this street, and I don't see it." Realizing it would be faster to point the guy in another direction than to keep trying to put him off, Star chose to talk. "Which theater, and which Roswell Rd.?" "There's more than one?" Moon snorted. "There's a dozen Roswell Roads, and most of 'em have theaters on them." The man looked confused. "Why is there more than one Roswell Rd? And . . . hey, those friends of yours?" Star and Moon actually smelled a couple of familiar scents, and they turned to look back down the alley they were standing near. They both began growling as they saw Death and the High Priestess sneaking down the alley – 'Wait a minute,' Star thought. 'They would never be this clumsy. What the –' His thought was cut off as both he and Moon were hit in the back of the neck with industrial strength stun guns. Being werewolf hybrid commandos or not, no one was standing upright after getting hit with that much juice. "You owe me," Avery muttered, putting his smart phone away. "I hate these shirts." "It's a good color for you," Caitlin told him. "It compliments the scowl on your face." The three of them moved the two unconscious Nightwalkers back into the alley, then hurried out to the street. Kids were beginning to come out the front gate. "This is so odd," Nigel said. "I sat at that Starbucks every weekday for years, and never even saw him. I never got it. I even asked Jenna why we had to come to this place. She just smiled. It was one of only times she ever did. Now --" "Now what?" Caitlin asked. "Now I don't see how I missed it." He was staring across the street, his eyes locked on a particular face in the crowd. "My God," Caitlin murmured. The slim, athletic build, the pale blond hair, the light blue eyes . . . how could Nigel NOT have seen it? The differences only became evident when the young man turned to a female walking next to him, flashed a cocky grin, then said something that had them both laughing. Jenna never laughed like that, or at least not that Caitlin had ever seen. But then he began walking, and the easy grace of his movements brought back pictures of his mother to Caitlin's mind. "Uhm, should we be following him now?" Avery asked as the boy rounded a corner. The three of them hurried back into the parked hover and pulled into traffic. They passed the boy and set up an ambush a few blocks from his parents home. "This is so weird," Caitlin muttered. "We're about to kidnap the Empress's son. For his own good. So my ex boss can't kidnap said child in hope of coaxing said Empress back for the purposes of mating. And she's probably going to kill us for this. I should've just fled to the Bahamas." "But you would have missed the summer movie and wine festival at the Fox," Nigel replied. She looked at him, then tilted her head and shrugged. He had a point. "So how to we grab him?" Avery looked over Caitlin, and it was his turn to grin. "Remember how it was your idea for me to wear that horrible shirt?" The High Priestess was getting a bad feeling about this. A few minutes later, William Monroe came wander around to find himself face-to-face with almost every teenage boy's wet dream. Well, face-to-butt might be more appropriate. There was a shiny red hover settled on the curb, and a rockin' set of legs and nicely rounded tush were sticking out from under the hood. Very few people knew how to change the coils on their own hover, much less look so good doing it. And when the woman came out from under the hood, with nothing covering her sizable boobage except for a thin undershirt, he thought he had hit the jackpot. "Hey, you any good with hovers?" the woman asked, flashing him a grin. "I can never remember which connection is positive and which one is negative." THAT was a question that he could actually answer! "Sure," he said, answering her smile with a shit-eater of his own. He put a little swagger in his step, his brain already skipping ahead to the part that he would tell his friends on the internet. That would be the part where he helped out the hot older woman, though hardly old old, and then she saw past his young yet exceedingly handsome exterior to the mature soul inside. 'Piece of cake,' he thought. He looked under the hood, his eyes drawn to that ample set of tits that leaned in at the same time he did. "Okay, well here . . . actually, they're both connected in the right places." "Really? Well, what's that wire?" William leaned over a little more to see what she was talking about. He felt the hover shift a bit, like someone was getting out. "Hey, you gotta WHAT THE --" he started to shout, then found a hand over his mouth. The woman had wrapped one arm around him, trapping one of his arms and pulling her tight against that curvy body, while her other hand kept him from shouting. She spun, easily woman-handling him towards the back door where a very dangerous looking – 'Wait a minute!' he thought. 'That's Ms. Levenson's boyfriend.' Whoever he was, he was holding the door open and looking around. 'Holy shit! I'm being kidnapped!' "Get him in oof," Nigel started to say, then got kicked in the stomach. It did not actually hurt, but rather just took him by surprise. "That will be quite enough of that young man." His hands shot out and grabbed the boy's ankle as he tried kicking again, then grabbed the other ankle when the young man instinctively tried to kick his way free of Death's grip. "Okay," Caitlin said, trying to keep the young man from gouging her eyes out with her free hand. "Now what?" Avery looked over from the driver's seat. "Are you two going to get him in the car sometime soon? We're bound to have someone come by soon." Nigel started to back into the vehicle with William's feet, but the boy's thrashing was making things difficult. "I guess we could just stun-gun him," he said calmly. William's eyes shot open. "Got your attention boy?" Nigel wished he had not said that last part. The "boy" apparently objected to being patronized, and started to struggle again. "You asked for it," Caitlin muttered, then shifted her arms so that William had both hands free, but now one of her arms was wrapped around his neck and he slowly began to lose consciousness. He went limp for a moment. "Nice try," Caitlin told him. "I know that it takes longer than that to go out." She felt his muscles surge, but he was going nowhere. "Now that we've got that out of your system, we're going to take you somewhere. This will be much simpler if you stop struggling." A muffled "Screw you" attempted to creep out from between her fingers. Nigel was able to get his feet inside the back of the transport, then Caitlin moved forward. He was mostly passed out, so she let go of her sleeper hold and shoved him in, then climbed in behind him. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 07 "I just want you to know," she said, glancing towards Avery, "that I'm feeling very demeaned right now." Avery just grinned, then pulled onto the street. "Who the fuck are you people?" the boy asked groggily. His head was spinning, and the inside of the transport was being annoyingly unstable in his vision. "Believe it or not, we're the good guys," Nigel responded. "Not." "Excuse me?" "You said 'believe it or not,' so I'm choosing not." He flopped against the door and tried to open it. "Yes," Death said, "because locking the doors would never have occurred to us." He sighed. "Mr. Monroe --" "I am telling your girlfriend all about you," William growled, trying the door again. "And the security forces. Why the fuck are you kidnapping me?" "So no one else can." William snorted. "Yeah, like there's really a line forming to kidnap a high school student." Avery spoke up from the front. "We're being tailed." Caitlin looked out that back. "Are you sure?" "Yeah. That hover did a full u-turn and started to follow as soon as we pulled out onto the main drag." "Who the hell would be following us? The . . ." Nigel stopped and looked at William. "The employer of those last two gents we dealt with would have stepped up earlier, and --" "It's one of . . . uhm, MY employer's adversary's men. They would know whose vehicle this is. The question is, why are they following us?" He got a bad feeling, and turned on his ear communicator. On the handset, he dialed the number for the Stone Table, Nessa's restaurant. It took a while for anyone to pick up, but when it did, he got a frantic voice, and his face grew grim as he listened. "This isn't good," Nigel muttered as he glanced at Caitlin. "Okay, what the fuck is going on?!" William said, strangely offended that he was being ignored when HE was the one being kidnapped. His three captors exchanged glances, then the two men shrugged and woman rolled her eyes and sighed. "First, we're not going to hurt you. No matter what. We WILL," she said knowingly, "incapacitate you if you make a bother of yourself. There are forces at work beyond your comprehension, and beyond our paygrade to explain in full. What you need to know is that the people we kidnapped you to get away from will probably not be as nice as we are. These other guys . . . well, we have no fucking idea what they want." "I think I know what they want," Avery growled. "I'll explain later." Caitlin nodded. "Anyway, if we didn't pick you up, some guys that we left lying in an alley would have tried again. Possibly tonight at your home." William's eyes opened wide. "Mom? Dad? I have to --" "We're going to call in your kidnapping, and then the police will be all over the place. The guy that we're having issues with is practical. Since your folks won't know where you are, he'll leave them alone. It's you he wants," she said, then thought, 'Sort of.' "Why me?" "Can't say?" "Who can say?" "Can't say." "What CAN you say?" "I already said it. And even some of that was probably pushing it." William closed his eyes. "I can't believe this is happening." "If it makes you feel any better," Caitlin started to explain, "this will probably increase your popularity at school tenfold." "If I live through it." Caitlin glanced at Nigel again, and they shared a thought. If William did not survive this, then they sure as hell knew that they wouldn't. She scooted forward and whispered to Avery. "So what happened?" "Garon Pegg went nuts. After Nessa provides him shelter, he realizes just how much face he's lost by getting out dominated by another werewolf in the field of battle. So he loses it. He gutted one of Nessa's kitchen staff, beat up a waitress, then took off with as many men as will still follow him. The kitchen guy will live, since he's a were, but the waitress will be out of action for a while." "What an ass!" Caitlin hissed. "And the idiot just signed his own death warrant. Nessa granted him sanctuary. The moment she tells the Council, then Pegg's life won't be worth a hill of dirt. My guess is that he's going to try and take Nessa out so that she can't." "But that clown isn't capable of going against the Fool and he knows it! He'll never succeed without --" "I know that, and you know that. But he's desperate, and that never ends well for someone like him." Avery glanced at mirror again. "I'm going to call ahead. I don't know exactly what they're up to, but it's not going be good. Let's just hope Nessa wakes up in a good mood." ------------ ------------------------------ Deep beneath Devil's Night . . . ------------ ------------------------------ Nessa had awoken in a now-familiar place, namely the bleak and featureless plain that made up Jenna's soul. The three castles still sat at the 120, 240, and 360 degree marks on a great stone circle, with a single doorless tower sitting right in the middle of it all. That was where Jenna kept the memories of her son, and protected them fiercely. There was no door because Jenna would not allow herself to interact with William. She would only watch. But not everything in this plain had remained stagnant. The chains were gone from around the plastic castle where Child Jenna lived. A pile of toys and other childish things sat in a pile out front. Sitting in plastic chairs next to the pile were Ghost Jenna and Spirit Jenna. These versions of the woman lived in the other castles, but at the moment they were rifling through the pile. 'They're trying to connect with their own past,' Nessa thought. She smiled as all the Jenna's noticed the newcomer and smiled. "Am I dead?" Ghost Jenna asked. This was the Jenna that lived in the modern castle, the one made of sterile plas-glass that matched the basic design of Jenna's former church home. Visually, she most closely matched the Jenna that Nessa knew. "Yes, but just for a little while." "I'm not afraid to die this time," Spirit Jenna said. "None of I is." Nessa had to do some mental maneuvering to keep up. Even though there were plural Jenna's, they referred to each other as if they were all collectively first-person. "You don't need to be afraid. Not of me." "I'm not afraid of you," Child Jenna said, skipping out of her castle and kissing Nessa on the cheek. Then she looked alarmed. "Tea!" "Tea?" Nessa asked with an arched eyebrow. "I'm supposed to offer you tea," Child Jenna muttered, running back inside. "I've been like that for a while," Ghost Jenna said. Nessa went over and peeked inside. Child Jenna was putting a child's tea set on a tray, but kept looking towards the living room. There, both Child Jenna and Nessa saw the ghosts of Nessa's family. They saw Jenna's father sitting at the dining room table while his wife served tea to a guest whose face was lost in Jenna's memory. That was part of her life back then . . . a tradition in their home. Jenna was trying to recapture that. So Nessa returned to the other two Jenna's and sat down in an offered chair. She took a moment to look around, and saw other positive signs. Things had begun to appear in the mists outside of the circle. Things remembered stood behind the plastic castle, and things desired stood behind the modern castle. Only the castle of stone, that church where Jenna's life was torn asunder, stood alone. Nessa suspected that it always would. That single memory could be deadened, but it would never be destroyed. It would never be merged. It would always stand alone as a defining moment. Nessa promised herself that it would not be the ONLY defining moment of this remarkable woman's life. "Here," Child Jenna said, offering the tray. Then she whispered, "There's not real tea. It's just pretend." Nessa raised the glass to her lips. "Best pretend tea I've ever drank." Child Jenna grinned, then offered cups to her other selves. They smiled at her politely, but went back to rooting through all the old memories. The items and images seemed to haunt the older two versions of Jenna, and it broke Nessa's heart. "What am I becoming?" Child Jenna asked. She reached into her pile of memories and pulled out a paperback version of Dracula by Bram Stoker. "Am I this?" Nessa smiled. "It's not as far off as you might think, but we're not monsters. Vlad Dracul, the inspiration for that book, was a very bad man before he was ever a vampire." "Was he badder than --" Child Jenna paused and looked towards Spirit Jenna's stone fortress. "Than Him?" "Yes. Even worse than Him." "I told Me this already," Ghost Jenna whispered. "I'm a little dense sometimes." Child Jenna, the "I'm" in this equation, stuck her tongue out at her older self. "I just want to know what it will be like. What I will be like." "And I'm going to show you. I want you all to come with me." "I can't leave," Spirit Jenna whispered. "Yes, you can," Nessa replied. "The Man in there is nothing but a ghost. He can't hurt you anymore. I want to show you what your life can be like now. I want to show you mine." All three Jenna's seemed to consult with one another in a way that Nessa could not identify. "And He won't get out," Ghost Jenna said firmly. It was not a question. The man who had victimized Jenna all those years ago was being put to rest. "He won't get out," Child Jenna agreed, then looked to the third. Spirit Jenna hesitated. She had been the one living with the memory of Him. He was as much a part of her, to some extent, as her other selves. She looked at her home, then her face hardened. "HE . . . WON'T . . . GET . . . OUT!" she bellowed. A wind came from outside the circle and battered at the stone castle. Nessa actually had to cover her ears to protect herself from the shrieking, howling air that seemed to seek an unnatural vengeance about the structure that stood in its way. Slowly at first, rocks began to come loose. Then the chunks got bigger and were hurled up into the air, crashing down nearby in a symphony of fragmentation. After a minute, Nessa opened her eyes and looked out to see the stone castle had been reduced to its component parts and was lying in a heap upon the ground. Nessa turned to see what Spirit Jenna thought of what she had wrought, but she was gone as well. In fact, only Ghost Jenna remained. 'No,' Nessa realized, 'That's not quite right.' For a moment, she saw Ghost Jenna flicker, and hiding inside was the Child. "I feel . . . better?" Ghost Jenna mumbled, looking curious. 'She's become whole again,' Nessa realized. "Okay, time to go." She stepped forward and took Jenna's hand. "No biting this time?" "I think that there's another woman out there who would like to nibble on your neck," Nessa said with a chuckle, "so this will have to do." As she sank her fangs into Ghost Jenna's wrist, a figure wafted across the courtyard. A memory of Caitlin, or maybe a fantasy of her. Either way, the Nightwalker had gotten under her skin. Deep, deep under. Nessa felt a little jealous, but mostly she felt joy. Her little girl was growing up. And apparently, her little girl was picturing Caitlin in a slinky black dress. Once Nessa's fangs went all the way in, she and Jenna were transported to a world as different from the one they had just been as the blackness of space was different from the sun. Jenna gasped as she looked out onto a plain that stretched for so far in every direction that there seemed to be no end to it. At the moment, they were standing in front of a primitive hut made of sticks and mud, and the sound of people talking emanated from inside. The door opened and a three-foot tall, red haired girl came charging out holding some kind of meat, still on the bone, high over her head. Soon after, a posse of young boys and an older woman came charging out after her, each trying to catch the little hellfire and reclaim what was probably supper. Ghost Jenna glanced over and saw a strange, almost sad smile play across Nessa's face. "You?" "Yeah." "So you've always been a trouble maker?" "From the moment I was born." Jenna looked back at the hut, seeing a gruff bearded face poke its way out and mutter something in a language that Jenna could not even recognize. "Your father?" Nessa nodded. She rarely got to see her memories this way. She knew that she never actually forgot something but, with so many memories, it was hard to keep all of them in line. "You miss them, don't you?" Nessa's smile dipped slightly. "Every day. Things were so simple back then. All we needed was each other." "You lost your family," Jenna whispered. She understood that. Nessa embraced her friend. "It's okay. I remember them, and that's what matters. And I made a new family." The world blurred as they followed Nessa's life path down to the spot where she had been discovered by her maker. The memories of him were less fond, but still poignant. Jenna watched the man of Asian descent wheedle and seduce a now ravishing young Nessa. 'This was when you were still human,' Jenna thought. It was a bizarre thought for her, since "Nessa" and "vampire" were firmly attached in her head. She watched him take her to a cave somewhere and give her eternal life. They skipped forward again, and Jenna got to see her mentor meet Anabella for the first time at a swimming hole near where Nessa and her "master" were staying. They had gotten into an argument that Jenna was unable to follow but assumed it had to do with who had gotten their first, and had spent the next thirty minutes dunking each other. They had been best friends ever since. It was Anabella who had uncovered the plot of Nessa's creator to dispose of her when she ceased to be interesting. It was Anabella who had beaned Nessa's creator over the head with a rock so that the younger, less powerful vampire could drive a steak through his heart. And another through his skull. She was getting ready to drive a third one in when the memories shifted again. "Don't need to see that," Nessa said, almost embarrassed. "To be fair, I was just making sure." This time, they had flown down what looked like a Roman road until they were on a cliff, looking out over the water under a beautiful night sky. A fully vamped out version of Nessa was being quite amorous with quite possible the most beautiful, physically perfect human male that Jenna had ever seen. And considering she had accepting that she was a lesbian, it was impressive that he could have that kind of effect on her. "Marcus," Nessa whispered. "My oldest." There was something in her voice that made Jenna turn and look. There was a longing there, and more than a little lust. "This was?" "Two centuries after I had been turned. It was in Sicily around the time that Rome began to fall." "Two thousand years?" "Just about," Nessa murmured fondly. "He was the most perfect man ever, so I couldn't let him go." "Perfect?" Jenna asked, her lips curling up in a well-meaning smirk. Nessa grinned then pointed her chin towards the table where the memory of Nessa and Marcus were enjoying themselves. "I haven't seen a better body on a man in all that time, and I've seen a few." "He is impressive." "Now I KNOW you're gay," Nessa said. "If you had a straight bone in your body, so to speak, you'd be drooling." The memory showed Nessa leading a temporarily spent Roman god back into the depths of the villa-like structure they were near. "I was so afraid I wouldn't do it right," Nessa admitted. "But you did." "I did. And he's been my strong Roman warrior ever since. But taking the first step is always hard. Being a grownup is hard, whatever that entails." She took Jenna's hand. "I want you to meet the others." Down a rocky trail, Nessa began the journey through her memory to see the dozen of Nessa's "children" who wandered the earth. They literally came in all shapes in sizes, from her Roman warrior to a Japanese sumo wrestler to a Dutch milkmaid to a geeky computer programmer from upstate New York. All of them had found their ways, by hook or by crook, into Nessa's life and heart. And then she had taken each of them into the darkness, and they had risen again. "Nessa, have you . . . have you lost any?" Jenna asked quietly as she viewed the memory of Lawrence rising from a tomb very similar to the one she knew that she was in now. "A few," Nessa replied sadly. "Some were hunted, some died in the course of Night Breed politics and --" "And?" "I had one dark daughter who simply decided that eternity was too long, and she missed her mortal loved ones too much." "What happened to her?" A single tear materialized on Nessa's cheek. It was more a memory of her grief, but she knew that she would feel the loss when she woke up. "She sent me a letter, knowing it would not arrive until it was too late. Then she lay on the side of a mountain, took a strong pain-killer, and waited for the sun." "Would you have stopped her?" Nessa looked away, and for a moment she saw a beautiful, slim woman from northern Africa drift in and out of her sight. "I would have tried. But in the end, it was her life. I had no more right to force it prolonged as I would have to end it prematurely. I can give second chances, but I can't force people to take them." Jenna straightened up a bit. "How long did it take you to forget her?" The elder vampire put a hand on Nessa's face. This was not entirely a question about Nessa's loss. It was Jenna looking for some glimmer of hope that her own memories would be easier to handle. "I never forgot," she said. "I just decided how I wanted to remember her. She did not die because she had to. She did not die because she deserved to. She died because sometimes, living is just too hard. I don't fault her for that, but I do miss her." Nessa wrapped her arms around Jenna as the woman with an angel's face began to cry. "I miss them so much," Jenna whispered. "But missing them doesn't have to hurt like this. It's time for you to live again." Jenna's eyes matched those of her friend. "Now?" "Now." Jenna's eyes opened, and it took her a moment to realize that it was so dark because she was in a grave. A very pretty, very comfortable grave, but a grave nonetheless. It did not bother her though, since she had slept in a sensory deprivation tube for years. But she had never woken up in one with a beautiful woman nursing on her neck. Had she been like that all the time? It was then that Jenna realized that she was not hurting anymore. She was not tired or dizzy like she had been. She was hungry. Very hungry. But otherwise, she felt . . . fantastic. Her eyes drank in the darkness as if it were a liquid. The blackness that inspired terror in children now comforted the brand new vampire. And the fabric that lined the coffins before had felt soft. Now, it felt soft and cool and gentle and . . . and she could almost feel the thread count. It felt so decadent against her skin that it bordered on arousing. Nessa's fangs retracted. "You're awake?" she asked. "I can feel everything," Jenna murmured. The woman next to her chuckled. "Welcome to life after death. And it can be beautiful, I promise you." She felt around and found the controls for the lid, which began to rise after the push of a button. "Cover your eyes." Jenna was almost too late. As soon a sliver of light from the exterior room appeared, it was like a spike of ice aimed at her eyes. She had walked out of dark places into the sun before, but never experienced anything like this. "You'll learn to flex your lenses to help control that," Nessa explained. "For now, it'll become bearable slowly and --" "Beautiful," Jenna interrupted. She was peeking at Nessa, and it was like seeing her for the first time. She could see every ripple along the skin, the outline of every muscle, the way her red hair reflected light like a rich wine. And the smell! Nessa smelled like earth and roses and – Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 07 "Smoke and whiskey," Jenna whispered. "You still smell like smoke and whiskey." She put her nose closer to Nessa's skin, at that sexy patch of skin where the neck met the shoulder, and she breathed in deeply. Nessa's skin rippled with barely contained pleasure. Jenna was adapting, and quickly. 'I wonder if this was why she was so powerful as a Nightwalker?' she wondered. And it made her want to throw Jenna down and make love to her, but she needed to resist. Jenna needed her as a friend and mentor now. Maybe someday, the would be lovers again. The gods knew that Nessa could not keep her hands off of Marcus when they got together, but Jenna was a different beast. "Are you hungry?" Nessa asked as her newborn daughter sniffed her skin again. "Famished," Jenna replied, her eyes meeting Nessa's. 'Holy mother of –' Nessa thought. Jenna's eyes were so clear that they resembled the daytime sky of her youth. They were the kind of eyes one could look into forever and never find the end. If anything, they made Jenna even more beautiful, which was just not fair, since the woman had been breath-taking before. "Then let's get some nourishment in you," she muttered, sneaking a kiss on those pale, delicious lips. She spun away before any further physical contact was able to get out of hand. Pushing off of the floor of the coffin with her shoulders, she landed on her feet outside. When she turned to help Jenna up, the coffin was empty. "Should I get back into my hospital gown?" Jenna asked from behind her. Nessa actually jumped a little in her own skin. "How did you . . . that was fast," she said, looking at the naked woman standing behind her, then back at the coffin. "Could you do that again?" By the time Nessa's eyes fell on the coffin again, Jenna was lying inside it. She shook her head. Vampires were supposed to be able to move so fast that mortals could not see them, but to move so fast that a vampire couldn't see? This time, when Jenna leaped up from, Nessa was actually able to follow, but it was like watching a fast-forwarded recording. "Amazing." "I'm hungry," Jenna said, and everything in her body showed signs that her hunger was intense. Nessa nodded, then led the way down the hall. She and Jenna were both nude, because the first feeding was often a bit messy. When they got through security and back to the lift, Nessa turned and saw her friend staring at everything with a childlike wonder. "Are you ready?" "Everything is so bright and clear," Jenna replied, staring at the buttons that operated the lift. Then she was mere inches from Nessa. "You're beautiful. You've always been beautiful. I saw how you effected those people. They fell into your heart." Nessa put hands on Jenna's face. "Are you okay? You're acting kind of frazzled." "It's just that my head is so busy," Jenna whispered. "I saw you as beautiful, but now --" Nessa smacked herself in the face. "It's okay," she said warmly, a little embarrassed with herself. "Remember how I told you that I'd have a bit more influence over you?" She held her ground as Jenna moved closer to Nessa's body, smelling her hair. "Well, I think that's what this is. You're a little more . . . attentive to me," she said. 'Damn, she's really, really turned on right now,' she thought. Jenna's general arousal level was as high as Nessa had ever seen or smelled it. Jenna thought that her heart should be pounding in her chest, but that would never happen again. "I . . . need . . . I don't know what I need," Jenna said heatedly. "I just know that I need," she hissed. 'Crap,' Nessa thought. 'If I don't get some blood in her, she's going to hump me right here. And I'm really not sure I would be able to stop her. Or even want to stop her.' It seemed that everything with Jenna was a hyped up version of what it was supposed to be. Nessa was blindly hitting the "up" button behind her while also trying to keep Jenna from burying her fangs in Nessa's neck. Among other places. The lift began its upward movement, but it was not going fast enough. Jenna's eyes were practically glowing . . . 'No,' Nessa realized. 'Not "practically." They ARE glowing!' Sure enough, the whites of Jenna's eyes were giving off a soft, low glow. In all her years, Nessa had never seen anything like it. "I can still see your memories," Jenna whispered, tracing a finger around Nessa's chin. Nessa could not remember the last time that she had, sexually speaking, been on the defensive. But those eyes, those beautiful glowing eyes, let her know that if she did anything with Jenna, she would both regret it and probably never want it to end. "I didn't know you could taste smells," Jenna was whispering, her voice a shade huskier than normal. "I never knew smoke had a taste." Nessa hit the "up" button a few more times for comfort, even though they were already in motion. "Jenna, I need you to step back for a moment." The blonde vampire cocked her head, exposing the soft, beautiful neck. "Why?" 'She doesn't even know she's doing it,' Nessa reminded herself. "Honestly, because we're still not sure what turning a Nightwalker into a vampire will do, and I'm on the verge of jumping your bones right now." She had never been so mixed up after a Turning, and she was hoping Jenna would respond to honesty. "You don't want me anymore?" Jenna said, sounding confused and hurt. Nessa steadied herself. 'Damn it, you're not some first time mother, so stop acting like it,' she told herself. "I do. But I can influence you, remember?" She slowly pushed out with her will, "encouraging" Jenna to step back. Jenna did. "And until we can share a bed as equals, I'm afraid that you'll have to find your physical gratification somewhere else." Jenna looked surprised, then . . . relieved. "You really wouldn't abuse your power, would you?" "No," Nessa said, feeling a tremendous pressure lifted from her shoulders. "I would never forgive myself, and neither would you. Jenna, you may very well be the most beautiful woman that I've ever seen, so don't think its from a lack of desire. Besides, once things calm down, I'm always up for threesomes." "Threesomes?" Nessa grinned. "Just in case things progress nicely between you and a certain Nightwalker." "Nigel?" That got Nessa rolling her eyes. Then she stopped. "Wait, you just made a joke!" Jenna's mouth turned up slightly. "I'm nervous." "Don't be. You can --" Nessa stopped when the bell rang and the lift doors opened. Cresil and Kobal were standing at the top of the lift, but so were Anabella and Avery. The latter two looked worried. "What's going on?" Nessa asked. "Hungry," Jenna said, looking at all the fresh blood that she was suddenly surrounded by. "She needs to eat first," Nessa said, then looked at the demons. "I'll do it," Kobal asked. "Just let me ACK!" Jenna had gone from standing in the elevator to attached to the demon's neck faster than anyone could blink. She knew where the blood was, and she wanted it. "Holy fuck!" Anabella exclaimed. "Oh oh oh oh," Kobal muttered. "Boss, I know you said no sex, but oh oh oh oh --" Nessa glanced downward and saw that her demon friend was at full mast. Jenna had no control over her bite, and Nessa doubted the woman even understood the effect she was having. She needed to remember and give Kobal a raise for resisting what was undoubtedly a tremendous urge to throw Jenna against the wall and fuck her senseless. "Hold that thought," Nessa said. "Jenna! Jenna, I need you to control your hunger." She exerted her will again, but it was harder this time to get through. Every new vampire's first hunger was intense, and everything with Jenna seemed to be souped up. "Kobal?" "She's . . . she's letting up a bit," the demon gulped. "Damn boss, I ain't never been hit like this." She glanced at his engorged member. "I can tell. Well, I guess I could take care of that for you." "Not until after you've eaten," Kobal shot back. "A hungry vampire is not going anywhere near my equipment." Nessa had just been reminded that her demons were not as stupid as they looked. She glanced over at Cresil. "You ready?" When the other demon nodded, she slid up his body and extended her fangs. "Nessa," Avery whispered, "we really, really need to talk to you when --" He stopped and watched as she bit into Cresil's flesh and began to drink. When this demon started to become aroused, the vampire struggled to get his pants down without relinquishing her hold, allow him to slide up into her waiting sex and pleasure himself with Nessa's body while she fed. "Crap," Avery said worriedly as his boss got pounded. "She is really not gonna be happy." "Don't you fret," Anabella told him. "You did the right thing, and I'll back ya on it." Despite everything else going on, Avery had to smile. "You? Defending ME? Against her?" The two-thousand plus year old banshee actually blushed. "Don't go readin' nothing into it. I just happen to think ya were right." "Of course not," he said, taking her hand and kissing it gently. For someone who prided herself as a Scottish barmaid, he knew that Anabella reacted best to gentlemanly behavior. Nessa was already achieving release, as her body was especially sensitive right after turning someone. She loved the feeling of one of her demon lovers inside her, and hated that Ipos had been taken away from her. For a moment, she did more than drive Cresil with her own desire. She drove him with her love. It was not the big white picket fence kind of love, but it was one that her demons understood. Devotion. Friendship. Cresil slowed his pace as he thrust into her, savoring the feelings that she was imparting on him. He missed his friend, and Nessa was just letting him know that she missed him too. Kobal's hand had found its way into his trousers and he had just successfully masturbated to orgasm. His body was in a state of physiological arousal that he had not even thought possible, and he had needed release. But to his own dismay, his member did not begin to shrink. Not even remotely. If anything, it felt harder than before. "Nessa!" he said, beginning to panic. "I think you need to tranquilize her or something." Almost instantly, he felt a rush of relief. "Sorry," Jenna said, sounding vaguely ghost-like in her apology. "You just taste so good." Normally when a woman said that to him, Kobal kind of liked it. When Jenna said it, he began to worry about making it out of this feeding alive. Jenna turned her head. "Nessa, I feel fuzzy. Is that right?" "It means you're full." She felt Cresil's member twitch inside her womb, jettisoning a gallon of seed inside her. "And so am I, apparently." Her brain was a little wired now, but drinking from demons did that. The only reason that she was not completely buzzed was that she had lost a lot of energy when created a new vampire. Cresil slowly pulled her off of his cock and set her down, and she quickly helped Jenna remove herself from Kobal's neck. "Are you okay?" Nessa asked. Jenna nodded. "You're still very sharp though," she whispered. 'Well, at least her eyes aren't glowing anymore,' Nessa thought. "Sharp?" "You're edges are perfect. Like a cut-out." Then Jenna shook her head. "Okay, does any of what I'm saying make sense, because it's confusing the heck out of me." Nessa grinned. "Just the fact that you know it doesn't make sense makes me feel better." "You know what would make ME feel better?" Kobal muttered, his rod still sticking out angrily. "Hold that thought," Nessa said, then quickly moved to take the demon's cock into her mouth. "Nessa!" Avery said excitedly, glancing at Jenna who was just standing there, staring at her hands as if she had never seen them before. His boss just held up a finger, indicating she did not want to be disturbed until she was finishing giving a blowjob to a demon. 'Sometimes, I really don't understand my job,' he thought. He glanced at Anabella, who just shrugged. 'C'mon, come to momma,' Nessa thought, stroking that ridiculously large shaft while sucking on the crest, coaxing another load of cum from Kobal's balls. When he grabbed her head and grunted, she knew that she had succeeded, and the splash of warm jizz in the back of her throat confirmed it. "Never . . . been . . . so . . . hard . . . in my life," the demon finished with a gasp, each word accompanied by a spurt into his boss's mouth. Nessa swallowed what she could, then wiped her chin off on Kobal's pants. "I needed that." "So the turning went well?" Anabella asked, looking at Jenna who still seemed a bit . . . flighty. "Well, she's faster than any vampire I've ever seen and seems to be exponentially more powerful and aware than any new turn should be, but --" "She's really that fast?" the banshee asked, glancing over towards Jenna again. Actually, she glanced toward where Jenna HAD been. "Where the hell --" She paused when she saw the new vampire standing clear across the room, staring out through the window at the stars. "Holy hell," she mumbled. "Yeah, tell me about it," Nessa said, then found Avery grabbing onto her arm. "What?" He began whispering into her ear, and what he said caused her eyes to shoot open. At first, she looked furious, then resigned, and finally nervous. Very, very nervous. Her eyes, Avery's eyes, and Anabella's eyes all fell on Jenna again. "She's gonna kill somebody," Nessa said. "You had to bring him back here?" she hissed, drawing Avery further away. "What were you --" Nessa's jaw almost dropped off her face when she noticed that Jenna was now standing right next to her. "Bring who back here?" Jenna asked. Just then, the alarm sounded. "What the hell?!" Nessa shouted, strangely relieved to find a distraction. She did NOT want to tell Jenna what had apparently transpired while they were asleep. *Nessa, we've got intruders,* came a voice over the intercom. *Looks like Garon Pegg's men.* "Oh," Avery said, "I forgot to mention that Garon attacked two of your people at the restaurant after you gave him sanctuary and is probably planning on trying to kill you before you can report his behavior to the Council." Nessa fixed him with a glare that could have melted steel. "He . . . hurt my people?" "Yeah, he did." "After I saved his sorry ass?! And now he's attacking ME in my HOME?!" 'Oh boy,' Avery thought, 'This is gonna be awkward. And violent.' Jenna pressed herself against Nessa's back and sniffed her hair again. "You smell of rage and brimstone," she whispered. "I feel it in my blood. Do you want me to kill them?" 'Okay, she's creeping me out,' Avery thought. But the next thing he heard was far more terrifying. "Yes," Nessa whispered. "I'm tired of playing games with him. Tonight, we kill them all." Avery and Anabella's gazes met, and it was Anabella who spoke up. "Boss, there are some of Pegg's men who are just following him because he's alpha. You can't seriously be considering --" "I have tried to be patient and I have tried to be as non-violent as I could," Nessa interrupted, her voice trembling, "but I have had enough. They have come into MY sanctuary and threatened my new child?" Avery was going to object, but a hand appeared on his shoulder. He looked over and saw that Lawrence was awake. "Trust me, you're not going to win this one. Just get some trash bags and a mop." "Lawrence," Nessa said, "meet your new sister." "Welcome to the EEP!" Lawrence felt a little undignified at his yipping noise, but Jenna appeared in his face and he had not even seen her move. "How did you --" "Talk later," Nessa said. "Killing now. Avery, where's that armor that I asked for?" Downstairs, the main dance floor for Devil's Night was pure chaos. Garon Pegg's werewolves had broken in and had attempted to take the Stairway to Heaven, the staircase that led up to the VIP lounge as well as the lift to the upper levels. But Nessa's people, led by Ghede of all people, had blocked them. Creatures were snarling, spitting, and in one case glowing, and bodies were flying everywhere. Nessa's troops were keeping Garon Pegg and his men close to the entrance. Caitlin and Nigel had a good crossfire set up, but it was mostly just keeping things from getting even more out of control. All the humans had been pulled back behind the reinforced bars in order prevent lycanthropic infection. The demons came charging down the Stairway and plowed into the fray. They had been itching for blood, and this was as good a time for satisfying those cravings as any other. They tried to clear a path to Garon Pegg and Simon Glickler, who were barking commands from the back of the crowd. But as strong as demons were, wading through a wall of almost a hundred werewolves was simply not going to happen. "Just give me the vampire and I'll let the rest of you live!" Pegg shouted, managing to make himself heard over the din. The lights went out and from above, a voice filtered down. "Remember that old saying about being careful what you wish for?" "McGowan, I have come too far to fall victim to whatever lies you have told the Council. I will not let you destroy me!" Pegg shouted, his voice practically crackling with desperation and insanity. The lights came back on, and Nessa was floating down to the ground floor, bypassing the lift entirely. "Oh, I'm not going to destroy you, Garon Pegg." "You're not?" Kobal asked, his meaty hands wrapped around a pair of furry throats. Nessa's smile did not reach her eyes, but rather took on a predatory feel. Lawrence floated down next to her as she responded, "No. I think that I'm going to let Jenna take care of destroying you. You know, that woman you've been threatening to take away from me to make an example of? The one who stabbed you with a fork and sent you scurrying with your tail between your legs?" Pegg howled. "You think you can send one of your pet commandos to stop me? I'll--" Whatever Pegg was going to say, it was eclipsed by the wooshing sound of a body hurtling towards the ground. Any onlooker in the building would swear that a ghost had crashed to earth from the heavens. A figure crouched in the middle of the dance floor, a white hooded cloak disguising its features. The entity had touched down on the ground with such force that the floor had cracked, but the figure seemed oddly unphased. Then, it stood up. "You!" Pegg screamed, remembering the sickening silver poisoning that he had suffered because of the blonde woman standing before him. But she was different now. It took him a moment to realize, "You're dead." Jenna stood, surrounded by silence. Every werewolf, human, or Night Breed stood back as those eyes opened and gazed out upon the mob. Her cloak, made of a tough, fireproof, impossible-to-stain material parted to show that perfectly lean, hunter's body encased in pristine white body armor. Her face was so smooth and perfect that even in fear, Pegg found his breath caught in his throat. Those pale blue eyes were locked on him, and they did not look happy. Rather, they looked hungry, like they were going to draw him in by force of will and rend flesh from bone and blood from vein. "I want you to meet my new angel," Nessa said from above. "Are you sure she's ready for this?" Lawrence whispered. Below, Jenna moved. As she stepped forward, the world looked frozen in place to her. A drop of blood nearby was suspended in the air, or a body falling to the floor stopped inches above the surface. Like molasses on an inclined surface, these things slowly began to regain some momentum, but they moved excruciatingly slowly when then did. Jenna felt like she was snaking her way through a statue garden as she approached Garon Pegg. He had brought betrayal and blood to Nessa's door. He would leave both on the floor in Devil's Night. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 07 Pegg felt her coming more than saw her. His eyes were attempting to track, but it was like trying to watch a single snowflake fall in a snowstorm. Nessa's "angel" was everywhere, yet nowhere. And before he knew it, she was in front of him. When she came to a stop, it scared the crap out of Pegg's bodyguard. Glickler turned to grab the specter that had appeared in their mist, but he was far, far too slow. Jenna grabbed Glickler by the wrist, twisted that wrist all the way back to the arm in a sickening snap, then hurled him head first into one of the steel beams lining the dance floor. Garon Pegg had a frantic look on his face as his clawed hands stretched out to rake the angel's face, but they whistled harmlessly through the air. Jenna had vanished. Then, Pegg felt hands on either side of his head, pressing hard against his temples. He enemy was behind him. "Get her!" he snarled through sharpened teeth. Several more of his guard tried, but it was like fighting a whirlwind. Without ever removing her hands from Pegg's head or releasing the pressure, Jenna used her legs to keep everyone at bay. More specifically, she used them to kick any would-be rescuers into the middle of next week. And her hands kept squeezing. It only took a few more seconds before everyone heard the cracking as Garon Pegg's head imploded. Jenna twisted, snapping the werewolf's neck for good measure. And the room went quiet. Nessa looked down with sad satisfaction. True, she had hated Garon Pegg, but she had never wanted it to come to this. But even Nessa was surprised. He had been an alpha werewolf, and Jenna had brutally dispatched of him as if her were nothing but an afterthought. She opened her mouth to address the crowd, but another voice beat her to it. From the top of the Stairway to Heaven – "What the fuck is up with you people? Did that ghost just kill a werewolf?!" Everyone's eyes shot up to see a fifteen-year-old boy staring out at the chaos. "Hey," Kobal said, "that kid looks a lot like --" He stopped when Nessa, who had floated down to the ground, shot him a "speak and die" glare. "Never mind." Nessa turned towards Jenna, who had gone still as the grave. She hurried over. "I didn't know that they'd brought him here," she whispered, but Jenna turned away. "He can't see me," the new vampire whispered, bloody tears touching her eyes and dripping down her cheeks. "How could you do this? I didn't want him involved!" she hissed. Nessa got in front of her new child before she could do something drastic, like run screaming into the night faster than anyone could possibly catch her. She looked around. "Everyone, establish a perimeter. Send a crew to the Stone Table and make sure everything there is fixed and up to standards. And any werewolves who participated in this attack, get down on the floor right now as a sign of surrender, or I will start killing people." The sound of furry bodies hitting the floor was almost deafening. "Demons, get a capture crew together and put these mutts into confinement until I can get an alpha out here to take charge." She glanced up and saw Avery ushering young William back into the VIP lounge. "Why . . . is . . . he . . . here?" Jenna asked, still hiding her blood-stained face. "The Fool sent a couple of people to get him at school," Nessa said. "Avery wasn't able to explain everything, but they brought him back here because there's nowhere else that's safe for him until this is --" "Safe?! This war was brought to your doorstep! You brought him here!" Jenna said, her eyes taking on that ethereal glow once again. Nessa needed to stop this and stop it now. Jenna's soul was too raw and her mind to fragile to let her spin out of control. She stepped forward. "I was asleep. I didn't know about any of this until we woke up. But if you want to know, I would have approved it. Nigel and Avery and Caitlin have a plan --" "You!" Jenna growled towards her oldest "friend." "How could you --" Nessa picked Jenna up and pushed her against a wall. The only thing keeping her there was the shock of being manhandled, since Jenna could probably kick Nessa's ass at the moment. "He saved William," Nessa said. "Now let's go somewhere a bit more private and we can discuss this." "I should go," Jenna said, haunted eyes drawn to the door to the VIP lounge. "He can't see me! He can't ever see me." "He's already seen you," Nessa whispered, her voice soft and calm. She led Jenna over towards the bar, where Nigel and Caitlin were waiting. Caitlin's eyes were drawn to the bloody tears on Jenna's face. 'This is the moment where we find out what stuff she's made of,' Nessa thought of the newcomer. Caitlin looked terrified. Yet, she grabbed a napkin and stepped forward. Jenna just stared at her as the Nightwalker began to clean off her face. "You're kind of a mess," she said. "Jenna, I'm so sorry. They said he was in danger, they told me who he was --" "You shouldn't have brought him here," Jenna interrupted, trying to find her anger again. But she just felt too hollow. "If we hadn't did what we did, he'd have been out there, unprotected," Nigel said. "Do you really think I would have done this if I thought there was a better way of keeping him safe?" Nessa sat on the bar, and she held Jenna's hand. Partly, it was to comfort her youngest, but it was also so that she couldn't just take off running without some kind of warning. "Jenna, he's here. Let them explain why, and then we figure this out." Jenna straightened her spine, then stood there and listened. And the more they spoke, the more she begrudgingly admitted that there plan did not suck. But it still left them in an enormous quandary. "Nessa, I can't let him get hurt," Jenna reiterated, her voice conveying how close she was breaking down. "And we won't let him. I promise you. The Fool had forty-eight more hours before he's likely to get any reinforcements, right?" "Less now," Nigel said. "If we're going to move against him, it should probably be within twenty-four hours." "Dammit." Nessa looked back to Jenna. "And we still need to figure out what to do about William." "What do you mean? We finish off the Fool, then William escapes. What's the problem?" "And William will say . . . what? That he was held captive by vampires and werewolves and a banshee --" "Leave me out of this," Anabella said. "I just came down to get some bourbon." She grabbed a bottle and headed upstairs. "Whatever you folks decide, ya better do it quick. That boy's gettin' a might nosy, and he ain't stupid." Nessa glared at her friend, then went back to her concern. "I can't let him leave knowing what he knows and seeing what he's seen." Jenna's entire being started to buzz. "What are you saying?" "Well, I have to go into his mind and erase the memories. Anything that's happened since the moment he was kidnapped." Nessa saw Jenna flinch almost instantly. "Of course, there's option B." "Which is?" Nigel gripped Jenna's hand. "We tell him the truth." "What?! No, we can't do that!" "Jenna, he's right here," Nessa reminded her newborn. "And he's been looking for you. Don't you think he deserves to know the truth?" Jenna's eyes turned hard as steel and sharp and broken glass. "The truth would do nothing but hurt him. How can you even suggest --" "Then we can go with the other option and I'll rifle through his brain," Nessa said. She was worried now how Jenna would react, but the new vampire was not the only one upset by this line of questioning. Caitlin looked pretty pissed. "Jenna, why don't you think about this. Please, just consider what I've said. Okay?" Jenna's eyes had not grown any softer as she backed away. Nessa had just given her two unacceptable options, and it was clear that the situation was not setting well with her. Nigel walked with her, hoping to prevent her from doing anything rash. "You have an opinion?" the vampire asked, turning to face Caitlin. "I know what you're doing," the Nightwalker replied cautiously, "but have you truly considered the repercussions?" "She's been watching him for twelve or thirteen years. I think her son should have an opportunity to get to know her, and --" "And what if her son rejects her?" Caitlin said, glancing in the direction Jenna had gone. "Have you actually contemplated what would happen if, after all she's been through and all she's tried to recover from, he just can't handle it? His father was a rapist and a psychopath. That's a hell of a pill to swallow. I dare say it wouldn't even make him a bad kid if he just wanted nothing to do with her if he found that out. What if he's just bitter that she never tried to contact him despite sitting across the street every time he got out of school? Yeah, Nigel told me all about that." Nessa took a step back. Caitlin was right. She had not thought about what would happen if William denounced his mother or, worse yet, hated her for what had happened. After all, Jenna had hated herself for so long despite having done nothing wrong. "But the fact remains, those are the two options. Unless you or any of the brain surgeons that brought him here in the first place can come up with a cover story. Or did you actually tell him that you'd kidnapped him for his own good?" Caitlin's skin flushed a bit. "No need to be snarky." "Every need to be snarky. It's called 'deflection'. I figured you'd know all about this, Little Miss Therapist --" "You've been alive for thousands of years, and you never even contemplated --" Caitlin stopped and just threw her hands up in the air. "Okay, I'm not going to belabor the point. And no, I don't have any backup plan that'll make sense of all of this." "Well then," Nessa said, giving her companion a wry smile, "Why don't we --" "Nessa!" Avery shouted from the top of the Stairway. He looked . . . well, terrified. And not much scared Avery. "I . . . uhm . . . he's missing." Before Nessa could even contemplate moving, Jenna had appeared at the top of the stairs. "WHO is missing?" Nessa hurried to get up the stairs before Jenna disassembled her chauffeur. "Please tell me you're kidding," Nessa said, talking to Avery as Jenna had him pinned to a wall. "How . . . this building is secure!" "He went into the bathroom --" Avery said, not liking the look of pure mayhem in Jenna's eyes. "I mean, no one sneaks through air ducts anymore!" Nessa sighed, then looked at Jenna. "Put him down. Even the air vents in this place are locked down. He's not going anywhere, so don't worry." "My . . . son . . . is lost in the air vents of a multi-story building, and you want me not to worry?!" "Hey," Nessa said, taking a step back, "don't yell at me. Avery lost him!" "You're loyalty to your employees is underwhelming," Avery croaked. Nessa looked around and spotted Lawrence. "Take to the vents," she told him. "He's climbing, so we should be able to catch him. Anabella, I . . . Where's Anabella?" "I'm a comin'," the banshee said as she approached. She seemed to be struggling with a lace on her bodice and – Nessa stepped up to her and sniffed. "What were you doing?" The banshee began to stammer, then glanced at Avery, who was a bit occupied by praying to whoever might be listening to let him survive Jenna's anger. "You smell like . . . oh good grief, NOW you decide to have sex with Avery?!" Jenna's eyes snapped to the banshee, and then back to Avery. "You . . . what?" "Well, tah be honest, the fight had just broken up, and he was lookin' all manly and such --" Nessa rolled her eyes. "I've been trying to get you two together for years, and . . . and . . . Aurgh!" She took off flying towards the mens' restroom. "Jenna, please --" Avery said, trying to catch his breath. Jenna put him down, then closed her eyes. "Find him," she said. "Please?" Avery was on his way as soon as his feet hit the floor, mobilizing the foot soldiers as they initiated a manhunt for a teenage boy. "He's going to be okay," Caitlin said, stepping up and taking Jenna's hand. She could swear that if Jenna still needed to breathe, she would be hyperventilating. "How could this have all gone so wrong?" the new vampire whispered. "All his life, all that I ever wanted was to keep him safe, and I drug him into this --" "No, you didn't," Caitlin said sternly. "The Fool did. Now you have the opportunity to make things right." "How? Caitlin, I'm terrified. What if he hates me?" The Nightwalker sighed. This was what she had thought might happen. "Then he hates you. I may have only known about this whole situation for a day, but I know one thing for sure. You won't let someone go in and mess with the boy's mind, so maybe the only option you have is to come clean. Maybe he can handle it, maybe he can't, but you have to stop taking all the blame for everything, and you need to stop being afraid. And even if talking to him hurts like nothing else, it'll be better than if you torture yourself until the end of time wondering 'what if?'." "I heard you talking to Nessa," Jenna said, looking confused. "Apparently, my hearing is a bit better than normal. I thought you didn't want me to --" "I didn't want you to feel you were being forced into it or tricked into it," Caitlin said. "Because that wouldn't be fair to you or to your son. But answer this, Jenna, and you're the only one who can. Do you WANT him to know you?" Jenna's forever-stilled heart seemed to want to climb into her throat. Her mouth opened, but she could not vocalize her fear or her hopes or her – Caitlin kissed her. Out of the blue and with the force of a tidal wave, the Nightwalker planted a long, soft kiss on Jenna's lips. Jenna did not understand it. She also didn't want it to stop. But eventually, Caitlin simply ran out of breath. "What was that for?" Jenna said. "Well one, I've been wanting to do it for years," Caitlin said, a blush creeping over her face. "Two, you seemed nervous, and a kiss always seems to help. You know, in the movies and stuff." Jenna stared at her. "Movies?" "Yeah, in --" "No wait, movies! In the movies, people always escape by crawling through air vents, right?" "I guess --" "And where do the vents always seem to end up?" Caitlin cocked her head. "You want to base a search for your son on the architectural imaginings of 'Lethal Weapon 42'?" "Who watches movies like that?" "Just teenage . . . oh." Caitlin said. "The roof, then?" "The roof," Jenna said, glad to finally have a plan. She turned towards the lift, then turned back, grabbed Caitlin by the front of her armor, and kissed her right back. Her attempt was still a bit clumsier than Caitlin's or Nessa's might have been, but it was certainly earnest enough. "Okay, that was . . . unexpected," Caitlin said at last, licking her lips. She was not-so-surprisingly a bit turned on, even as she watched Jenna crouch and then headed upward at great velocity. The Nightwalker couldn't tell if Jenna had just jumped or was flying, but either way, it was pretty damn cool. "I think she likes you," Nigel said. "Yeah," Caitlin said with a grin, "though that probably just means that she'll kill me last if anything happens to the kid." Jenna made haste to the roof as others scoured the vents, access tunnels, and every room in the privately owned skyscraper. Apparently getting into the building was hard, getting out was hard, but getting lost was easy. She emerged onto the roof and immediately found herself awestruck by the night sky. The darkness of the heavens, broken only ghostly illumination of the city lights reflecting off of low-hanging clouds. And oh how the lights of New Atlanta shone, hi-tech firefly in a world of steel and glass. She had never experienced the night quite like this. It was so beautiful it made her want to cry. But something inside her clicked on, and she remembered what she was doing up there, and it wasn't sight-seeing. She explored the roof completely, which at the speed she was moving took only a minute or two. She stopped and examined every door, lift, or vent big enough to accommodate a young man could possible slipped through. Then, she began to listen. She was convinced that she could hear everything! The hawks perched in a nearby skyscraper might as well have been sitting on her shoulder, and the thriving hum of mechanical and human traffic drifted up from below. Her city was not quite asleep, experiencing electronic REM and wicked dreams. She smelled the life of the urban jungle, and found it intoxicating. Then, something caught her attention. Jenna ripped the grate off of a cooling vent, reached inside, and pulled her young quarry out in a swift series of movements. "Don't kill me!" William said when he flipped over. He instinctively covered his face but, when he peaked through his fingers, did not see anyone. "Hello?" His heart was pounding like an blacksmith's hammer, as whoever had grabbed him had done so with such speed that they had pulled him out and then vanished so quickly he had not even seen them. "You shouldn't have done that," came a voice from somewhere on the rooftop. "It was very dangerous." "Dangerous?! I just saw a friggin' ghost crush some furry guy's head, and you think getting away from this place is dangerous?" "No one here will hurt you. I promise you." "Oh, and I'm just supposed to believe a mysterious voice on the roof?" William looked around. He wasn't even sure why the hell he'd come up this way, except that it always seemed to work in the movies. Now, he was trapped with an unknown being with no communicator and a really long fall in four directions. All he knew was that whoever was up there with him was female, based on her voice, and really damn fast. "Yes. Think about it. If anyone had wished you harm, they could have done so easily by now." "Not so easily," William shot back, trying to get some of his swagger back. "I'm a black belt in Taekwondo and --" "Brown," Jenna said from the safety of her hiding spot, the word coming out before she could filter it. "You're a brown belt, not black." William stopped. "How long have you people been spying on me? What the fuck is going on?" "Language," Jenna replied. "Language?" William scoffed. "What, you think you're my mother or something?" Jenna froze in place. She knew it was just an expression, the typical response of a rebellious youth against any kind of authority. But it hurt her heart so much to hear him say it, particularly with such scorn and disregard. She slowly sank to a sitting position and put her face in her hands. "If no one's going to hurt me, then why won't anyone explain what the hell is going on?" After receiving no response, he began to get a feeling that maybe he'd been abandoned on the roof. 'No,' he thought, 'She isn't going to have chased me all the way up here and then just leave me. Getting reinforcements maybe?' He laughed at the idea. Whoever this was would have no problems with him. He began to look around the rooftop. "Hello?" For some reason, the idea of being left alone up there was almost worse than dealing with this phantom woman. "Are you going to explain what this is all about?" Jenna fought to regain her composure, but another voice answered for her. "I will," Nessa said, floating out of another duct. "You, young man, are a squirrelly little rascal. I like that," she added with a grin. She knew she had his undivided attention now. "What the hell are you?" he asked, his eyes now fixed on the smoking hot, floating redhead that appeared in front of him. "Me? I'm a major league babe with very few scruples and a wonky moral compass, but that's beside the point. I'm also the owner of this building and the boss of everyone in it. I will be your captor for the next few days, so if you have any questions . . . well, please direct them to my staff, since I'm really busy." Nessa looked around, then sniffed the air. "Are you coming out?" she asked, her voice softer than when talking to William. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 07 Silence. "Okay, then I guess I'll have to --" "Stop," came the ghost voice. William's jaw dropped as a figure, cloaked from head to toe in white, appeared next to the floating redhead. "She can turn invisible?" he asked. "No, she just moves faster than your eyes can follow," the redhead replied. "Actually, faster than my eyes can follow, and that's saying something." "Holy crap! That's the chick who crushed that guy's head!" "Succinctly put. My name is Nessa, and this," she continued, pointing to the other woman, who's face was still hidden from William, "is Jenna." Nessa looked at the young man. "And we're vampires." William looked at the woman. "Bullshit. Okay, so the guy with the deflatable head looked like a werewolf --" "Because he was," Nessa interrupted. "-- and what SHE did was wicked beyond all reason," he continued, sticking his thumb out at Jenna's back, "there is no way that AUGH!" William screamed in a most unmanly fashion as Nessa floated closer and exposed her fangs. "Stop it Nessa, you're scaring him!" Jenna said, turning to pull her mentor away. Then, her eyes met William's. The young man fell backward onto his ass, and it wasn't because the woman before him was probably the most beautiful he'd ever seen. She just seemed so damn familiar. Her hair was the same pale blonde color that his was, and her eyes . . . powder blue against pristine white . . . he had only seen one other person whose eyes looked like that. Himself. "Who are you?" he muttered. The look of fear and pain that crossed that beautiful face did not belong there, yet it seemed intent on taking up residence. "I just wanted to keep you safe," she whispered. "You . . . you're --" Nessa kissed Jenna on the cheek, then stepped aside. This was not her moment. William's heart was in his throat, his lungs were gasping for any spare bit of oxygen available, and his mouth had gone dry. His parents had told him when he turned thirteen that he had been adopted, and he had spent two years trying to find out where he had come from. What were his parents like? Why had they given him up? He had gone through the gambit of orphan fantasies, but never in his wildest dreams could he have come up with a scenario like this. The woman before him got on her hands and knees and bowed her head to the floor. Again, this was not what he was expecting, particularly when he saw a drop of blood drip from her eye, trickle down her cheek, then splatter unceremoniously on the rooftop. "You're my mother?" he said, finally getting all the words out through a mouth that did not want to work properly. "I . . . I gave birth . . . to you," Jenna said, a pain she had tried to bury manifesting itself in her voice. "Your mother is Michelle Monroe. I couldn't . . . I couldn't --" "I thought you were dead! I called and wrote letters and . . . and I got a friend to break into the foster care system's database, but nothing! Emails bounced . . . Wait, you know who my mom is?" Jenna just hung her head. "Your mother is Michelle Monroe, owner of one of the few local clothing chains left in New Atlanta. Your father Ronald is a successful copyright attorney. You were born on November 3rd, fifteen years ago, at Emory Hospital. You've played soccer since you were old enough to run without running into everything, and you're first crush was on Jenny Trantham, a girl two years older than you." "But . . . you . . . you've been spying on me? Why didn't you say anything?! You knew I was --" "Because people around me die," Jenna interrupted, though with less gusto than she had expected. "I just wanted you to be happy." "What about my father?" William asked. "Is he --" He stopped, because the woman's . . . his biological mother's face took on an expression that he could never have guessed. He had thought pain of loss or happy memory, but all he saw was hatred, pure and deep. "He isn't in the picture anymore, is he?" Jenna was so angry, she was trembling. Her hands were so tense that she actually ripped a chunk of the roof off. "Please, just . . . just tell me what's going on? You know everything about me, and I barely know your name. Don't make me keep guessing. Damn it, you drug me into this, so you owe me a damn explanation!" From her hiding spot on the other side of a cooling unit, Nessa froze. This was what she had feared the most out of this confrontation. Blame. Jenna stayed quiet for several moments. As her son regained his feet, she looked up at him. "Think of all I've done to keep you out of my world," she whispered. "Do you really want to know?" William was left in a position he never though he would be in, namely possibly volunteering to have all his dreams dashed. How bad could it truly be? "Tell me." With tears in her eyes and her non-beating heart heavy in her chest, she did tell him. Everything. From the moment that evil came to her parents' front door to the second their eyes met on an Atlanta rooftop. Fifteen years of heartbreak, most of it born alone for a very long time. And when it ended, all that was heard was one young boy's breath and the hum of machines. Then, William turned and walked away, his footsteps echoing like thunder in Jenna's ears. Jenna felt numb. 'What did you expect?' she thought. 'You abandoned him. Now it's time for payback.' William stood overlooking the edge of the building. A heavy sheet of clear plastic encircled the top of the building, so it was not as if he was going to fall. He placed his hands against it, then stared out into the neon-broken city night. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that he had been joined. "What do you want?" he asked. Nessa shrugged. "Just standing here." "Stand somewhere else." "It's my building. I'll stand where I damn well want." The redheaded vampire turned. "But if you want to be left alone, then fine. I'm just going to say my piece." "I don't really want --" "Tough shit. You have every right to be mad, hurt, confused, but you do not have a right to hurt Jenna." "She could have --" Nessa put a finger to the boy's lips. "For as long as YOU'VE been alive, SHE'S been alone. Until she met me, she had one friend . . . ever, in all that time. She didn't have anyone looking in on her to make sure she was okay. No adoptive parents to kiss skinned knees, and no one to help her deal. She had a broken system and a corrupt government that had no idea how badly she was hurt. No one to put a broken heart and shattered spirit back together." The vampire started to turn away, but stopped for a moment to look back. "And despite it all, she loved you. She once called you the 'one good thing' that she ever did. Maybe she didn't do everything the right way, but maybe it was because she didn't know how. You think this is hard for YOU to deal with? Just imagine what it was like for her." Nessa walked away. William growled. He had wanted to be angry, but even before the redhead had spoken her mind, it had been hard to hold on to hatred. At least, it was hard, if not impossible, to hate Jenna. His biological mother. It was just so hard to wrap his head around it. He walked back to where Jenna had been kneeling. She had not moved. "Please, stand up," he asked. When she didn't move, he put his hand on her should. "Please?" Jenna regained her feet. She looked confused, but her hands had a mind of their own, reaching out and touching his hair and coming within inches of his face. It was like she was trying to memorize him. "I'll finish this mess," she whispered. "Then I'll go. No more stalking. I'll leave you alone." "I'll still know," he replied. "That you're out there. What you did. What you're going through. I . . . I just don't know what to say. I mean, most kids in my situation figure that there was a story behind why they were put up for adoption. But this? My mother is a vampire?" "I've only been a real vampire for a few hours," Jenna mumbled, still fascinated with some part of William's face that only she seemed to see. "Listen to yourself. A 'real' vampire. Whereas before, you were a bioengineered super-soldier pretending to be a vampire. And you're fighting werewolves? Or werewolf commandos?" William through his hands out in disbelief. "You can't make shit like this up, and you're saying this is who you are? This is where I come from?" Jenna touched his face. "This shouldn't be your world. I . . . I can make you forget. When we send you home, you don't have to remember any of this. You'll be happy again." "I don't want to forget you," he said, then threw his arms around her. "I just want to understand you." Jenna felt a warmth that she thought the grave should have robbed her of, and she wrapped her arms around her son for the first time in fifteen years. She smelled his hair, listened to his breathing, and just absorbed as much of his essence as she could in that brief moment, afraid that she might never experience it again. "Me too," was her response. -------- --------------------- A few hours later . . . -------- --------------------- When Jenna finally appeared back down in the VIP lounge, she looked like . . . well, Nigel could only equate it to Atlas finally being able to put down his load, even if only for a little while. She actually seemed to stand a bit taller, which was impressive for a woman who already stood six feet tall in flat shoes. "You've been gone a while," he told his friend, giving her a quick but meaningful hug. "William and I had a lot to talk about. He had a lot of questions." "And you?" "I pretty much knew everything about him already." She looked around until her eyes fell on Caitlin. "Did you really flash William with your boobs?" "That was entirely Avery's idea. I'm not old enough to be a cougar." "Or a MILF," Nigel suggested. "Okay, I am missing both references," Jenna said, flopping down on one of the overly comfortable sofas with an un-Jenna like lack-of-grace, sinking into cushions like she was planning on staying there for a while. "Where's William?" "It's well past his bedtime," Jenna explained, "and he was pretty much exhausted. Nessa has a secure room in the floor below hers that he'll be staying in. And she's already locked the vents," she added, almost proudly. She saw Caitlin standing next to the couch, so she moved her legs and motioned for her new friend to sit down. Caitlin agreed, and even got Jenna to put her feet up in the Nightwalker's lap and succumb to a nice foot rub. "I'm sorry I got so angry," Jenna continued. "I just --" "Don't apologize for that," Nigel said, pulling up a chair. "We knew that you'd be mad, and for good reason. We tried to think of everything else that we could do, and this was the safest option. We figured you would understand that. We're just glad you didn't kill us before accepting it." He stared at her. "I'm still a little shocked that you're taking this so well." The look Jenna gave him was one of pure wonder. "I held my son," she whispered. "I never thought --" She paused, feeling hot liquid at the corner of her eye. "Holy crap," Caitlin said, "You cry blood?" "That she does," Nessa said, floating over and landing behind her newest child. She kissed Jenna's head, and the newborn vampire seemed to bask in the glow of her sire's affection. The elder vampire saw a flash of something on Caitlin's face that resembled jealousy. The poor woman was probably wondering how she was supposed to compete with Nessa, not knowing that for the next year, it would be impossible if Nessa so willed it. But Nessa would not do that, not to Caitlin or to her newest child. Jenna needed to grow. Jenna was oblivious to anything but that warm feeling that went from where her son's head had tucked itself into the crook of her neck to where his hands had grasped her waist. Caitlin had asked the right question . . . "Do you want him to know you?" 'Yes,' she thought. She did. She looked at the woman who had killed her . . . who had saved her. "We need to move against the Fool tonight," she whispered, her very voice pooling with blood and anger. "He went after William. No one harms my son." Nessa nodded. "Nigel, I would like for you and Avery and possibly Ghede to develop a plan of attack. Use whatever daytime resources I have available to scout out and confirm the location of the Fool's new headquarters. He and his will probably be moving towards a nocturnal schedule without even knowing why, since werewolves are every bit as much creatures of the night as vampires. I am still willing to take prisoners if possible, but the Fool and the Hanged Man must die." Part of the ancient vampire still raged at the thought of the Hanged Man's hands breaking the neck of a demon. The neck of a friend. Yes, it was war, but that didn't mean that she was not going to take it very, very personally. Nigel nodded. "I'll make sure that the Nightwalkers get some rest." "You get some rest too," Nessa said, then glanced at the two women on the couch. "Jenna, why don't you go stretch your new legs, and see the city with your new eyes." When it looked like Jenna might object, the senior vampire said, "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to him. Now hurry, you've only got a few hours until sunrise, and you need to be back by then." Then, trying to make it sound like an afterthought, "Why don't you you take Caitlin with you? She can make sure that you don't lose track of time." Caitlin looked a bit perplexed, but she felt relieved. "I'd be happy to," she said. It meant some actual alone time with the Empress, which was something she had been after. Jenna nodded, but she did not leave immediately. She glanced at her maker and stood up, noticing that Lawrence had moved up beside Nessa. "You're . . . hurt?" she asked, trying to seek a name for what she was sensing. Nessa smiled softly. "You're as in tune with my feelings as I am with yours. No, I'm not hurting, just very tired." She allowed Lawrence to pull her up against him. The now-second-youngest vampire held his maker and kissed her cheek. "This is why she has to be careful with who she makes into a vampire. She is still strong, but not as strong as she should be." "You should not hunt --" Jenna started to say, worried about Nessa's participation in the fight with the Fool, but a quick wave of anger flooded her feeling. Jenna backed away, her eyes down. As quickly as it arrived, the feeling vanished, replaced with love. Nessa, pulled Jenna to her, bringing her into an embrace with her creator and Lawrence. "I cannot stand by for this one," she said. Not after Ipos." She moved Jenna's hand to Nessa's face, then to Lawrences. Jenna felt a tingle. "I can feel that you're one of hers," she told the handsome young-ish vampire. "Her blood runs through all of us," he replied. "It makes us family." Jenna's still heart caught in her throat. The word "family" had for so long filled her with a fevered dread and sense of failure. She did not want that again. "It wasn't your fault," Nessa reminded her. "You didn't hurt your family. You won't hurt us. Let us love you." Jenna buried her face in Nessa hair and breathed. She felt like a child going on for her first day of school, afraid to let loose of her mother's apron strings. "I'm . . . God, I'm still scared." "Don't be," Nessa whispered into her youngling's ear. "Go out, enjoy the night. I'll see you before sunrise." Jenna tore herself away from the vampires, from her family, and headed outside with Caitlin almost literally on her arm. Instantly, she could smell things that she had never imagined before, some pleasant, some not, but all new. The faux brick of the building across the alley seemed to shimmer in her sight, and she could see every insect crawling in and out of its crevices. "What do you see?" Caitlin asked, her eyes sparkling as she watched the Empress investigate everything like a tourist for whom the entire world was a curio shop. "Everything," Jenna said, turning to look at her companion, who was standing under a corner streetlamp watching the new vampire. "I must seem like a complete idiot." "You seem like a lot, but not an idiot. I don't know how I would be dealing with all this if I were in your shoes," Catlin replied, walking down the street with Jenna beside her, staring at everything but always bringing her eyes back to the Nightwalker. "I'm not sure you want . . . what's that smell?" she said, stopping and sniffing the air. "French fries? Oh, those smell so good," she added, almost sadly. "What's wrong?" "Can't eat fries anymore." Caitlin's eyes shot open and her face contorted to show exaggerated fear. "You traded French fries for immortality and superpowers? Are you mad?!" Jenna smiled. "Laugh it up. Hey, can we get some fries?" "You want to get food that you can't eat?" Caitlin chuckled when Jenna nodded excitedly. "Okay. Weirdo." The two of them found themselves inside of a twenty-four hour burger joint, where every food item was capable of causing a heart attack all by itself. Caitlin figured that she burned calories like it was going out of style, so she loaded up her tray and sat in a corner booth with Jenna close by her side. It was the strangest date that the Nightwalker had ever been on. Jenna sniffed the fries when Caitlin wasn't eating them, and she also took some long, slow draws on the burger itself. She could still drink liquids, so Jenna was slamming back some soda while the two talked. It wasn't the first time the two had conversed, but it was still odd for Caitlin to see Jenna opening up. The poor girl had effectively missed out on fifteen years of her own life, existing in the dismal, murky shadow of a trauma she had gone through as a teenager. Caitlin had a wealth of stories, and she was more than happy to tell all of them. "So what are you going to do now that the Nightwalker program is over?" Jenna asked. "Honestly, I haven't had a whole lot of time to think about it. I guess that I could always disappear from the government's radar and go into private security somewhere." She sighed. "Doesn't sound real rewarding, does it? Ooh, maybe I could open up a dive shop down in the Keys!" "Will you teach me to dive?" Jenna asked again. "I know we talked about it --" "Absolutely! Hell, I'd do it just to see you in a bathing suit." That was where Jenna normally would have blushed, but she no longer had that response. "Wait, I can't go out in the day!" "Don't stress it. You can dive at night and, if you go somewhere like the Bahamas on a full moon, the view at night can be amazing. What about you? I mean, is this thing with Nessa a permanent thing?" Caitlin blushed a little, but she grinned and continued with, "I mean in regards to your job this time." "I really don't know. I guess I need a job, but not for a bit. I have a lot of savings. Too bad the church wasn't insured --" "Church?" Jenna blanched. "I lived in a church," she said, her voice and eyes haunted. "It's where . . . it's where --" She couldn't finished. Caitlin was confused, but she didn't want to see Jenna upset again. "It's okay. You don't have to talk about it." Jenna felt like she should sigh, but she had no breath. "It's where my family died. It's where He held me --" "Wait, and you were living there?!" "I thought it would make things right. That it would mean I didn't abandon them. I know, I know," Jenna said, cutting off an interruption from her friend, "In retrospect, it wasn't a healthy thing to do. I just couldn't let them go. Now, it's like I'm trying to figure out where I'm going without having been anywhere." "But you have been places," Caitlin countered. "You may interpret your life differently now, but it was yours. You still have a son who wants to know his biological mother. You have friends, or at least people who want to be friends, and some of us --" For the first time, it was Caitlin who seemed a little shy. "Well, you have a place to start." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 This story is a bit wordy and fairly long, so if you are looking for immediate gratification, you might want to look elsewhere. The following story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance between these character and events and any real person or events is strictly coincidental . . . and pretty darn impressive seeing as it is a science fiction story. Do not reproduce or copy this story without the consent of the author. In my magical, mixed-up world, characters don't worry about STDs or unwanted pregnancies except occasionally as a plot device. The author encourages the practice of safe (and hopefully satisfying) sex. While this is a science-fiction story, it may at different points contain sexual behavior that might fall into other categories. You can rest assured however that there will be NO depictions of Non-Consent, Mind Control, or Incest for any purpose other than as plot devices, and certainly not for sexual arousal. Anything else is fair game. ------------- ------------------------- William Monroe, fifteen years old, resident of New Atlanta, awoke with the sun well into daytime sky. It was his first official day as a victim of kidnapping. Strangely, this was not quite as bad as it sounded, as it turned out he had been kidnapped by biologically engineered commando vampires, who were trying to protect him from being kidnapped by biologically engineered commando vampire-werewolf hybrids, all on behalf of his biological mother, who he had never met and thought was dead, who turned out to be a biologically engineered vampire commando turned into a REAL vampire the night before said kidnapping. All in all, it had been a full day. And night. He peeked out of his door, only to find a long hallway that appeared empty. William wasn't fooled, as he had seen the security this place had the night before. He had evaded it for a while, trying to escape, before his mother had caught him. A lump formed in his throat. He had finally met the woman he had been looking for in the years since he'd discovered that he'd been adopted, but the reunion had been bittersweet. It turned out that his mother had been a child and a victim of rape, and that William's biological "father," though it sickened him to use that word, was one of the most notorious serial killers in history. His mother had been watching him almost his entire life, looking over him but afraid to approach him. And he had come so close to walking away from her, because he didn't want to hear the truth. It wasn't the clean-cut, fairy tale story that all adopted kids dreamed about. He still wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about any of it. He felt bad for his parents, his adopted parents, because they were probably terrified right now. They had been given a ransom call to ensure that they were surrounded by police, just to help keep them safe in case the people who were after his biological mother wanted to use them as leverage to get to him in order to get to – "Okay," he said to himself, "it's beginning to make my head spin." He went down the hall to the lift that ran up and down the twenty some-odd story building, all of which was owned by a woman, a vampire, who was more than two-thousand years old. She was totally hot too. "Well hello there young man," someone said, the moment William arrived at the VIP lounge of Devil's Night, a club that catered to all the creatures which, until last night, had not been part of William's world. "Hi . . . uhm, Nigel?" he said, struggling to remember the man's name. Up until now, he had just been "that dangerous guy dating Ms. Levenson," William's English teacher. He was another pseudo-vampire commando, and he was apparently really, really fucking dangerous. The other commandos who had defected from the group who were after William's mother all called Nigel "Death." Nigel had been one of William's kidnappers. Nigel, along with Avery, the hot vampire's chief of security, had used one other person in helping with his kidnapping, and she was meeting with the other two at that moment. She was an insanely hot commando in her own right, though right now she was looking fairly annoyed. "Hey," William said, his eyes looking at the woman's curves without asking for any permission from his brain. He was a teenage boy. What else was he going to do? "Uhm, where's . . . uhm --" "Jenna will be sound asleep until dusk," Avery explained. "I'm assuming that was who you were wondering about?" "Yeah. So that's a hard and fast rule then? Vampires and sunlight?" Avery nodded. "And Jenna will be particularly susceptible to the call of daylight for a while, being brand new to the world of the Night Breed." "Okay, it's so wicked cool the way you say that. 'The Night Breed' . . . like an old movie or something." Caitlin grinned. William sounded so unlike his biological mother, but resembled her in so many ways that the differences were just darn amusing. "So, how are you doing now that your world's been rocked?" William tried to think of something cool and manly to say, but drew a blank. "I'm freaked." "If it makes you feel any better, so are we," the Nightwalker said, glancing at Nigel. "We started out by imitating a legend, only to wind up surrounded by them." She looked around, noticing that the Nightwalkers that had defected, along with with a few dozen lycanthropes and fae, were running the daytime show. The demons were downstairs, standing guard over the entrance to Devil's Night, and the vampires were all asleep. "Does she really trust us?" Avery shrugged. "You mean Nessa? I think she is in a situation where she either trusts you, or fights this alone. She's powerful, but not stupid. And since Jenna trusts you, you're in." Caitlin smiled slightly. Now, she was thinking about Jenna, and the brief time they spent together just before dawn. She found herself craving sundown like a junkie. 'When did you become a teenager again?' she thought to herself. "So what are your plans for the day?" she asked, trying to shake the image of Jenna lying naked on the bed they had shared. "I dunno. Maybe go diving for the Loch Ness Monster?" "Don't be silly," Avery said, still looking at the map covering the table. "Nessie hasn't lived in the Loch for a few hundred years. Things were getting a bit crowded." The two Nightwalkers and one human standing next to him just stared for a moment. "Seriously?" Nigel asked. Avery nodded without looking up. "She decided to try the deep ocean. She still pops up from time to time. She and Anabella are old friends." "And the world just keeps getting weirder," William said. "Hey, can I help?" "I'm not sure that your . . . that Jenna would approve." "I know she wouldn't," Caitlin agreed, glancing at Avery, "but that's because he's her son. I say we give him something to do, or he'll do what he's already shown himself capable of." "Causing trouble?" "Yep." Avery sighed. He looked around, then motioned for William to follow him. He took him back to the lift, then up a level to what looked like a security office. "Mabel," he said, calling to a large black man wearing a head-mounted display. "This is William Monroe, a very special guest of Nessa's. We need to keep him out of trouble, and I thought he might be good at piloting one of the surveillance drones." "Drones?" William asked, his curiosity piqued. "Yeah," Mabel said, taking off his display and giving the young man a once-over. "Nessa's got a number of state-of-the-art hover drones with negligible radar signatures that she sometimes uses to scout things out, usually when she's sleeping and can't go look for herself. She's kinda hands on that way." "Indeed," Avery said. "Well, I'm willing to bet that young William is an adept video-game player --" "Only one of the best," William interrupted, breathing on his fingernails and then buffing them on his shirt. "-- so why don't you get him started." Avery looked straight at William. "Mabel will tell you the kinds of things we're looking for. We are trying to confirm the Fool's location . . . that's the man who wanted to kidnap you and use you against Jenna . . . and find out what he is up to. Within the next twenty-four hours or so, we are expecting a large number of highly trained operatives to arrive to replace the Nightwalkers who they believe were injured, but are actually walking into a trap. The Fool will turn them into what HE is, and they will be under his control. The bloodbath will then get worse, possibly even beyond Nessa's ability to control." William gulped. "This isn't a game, is it?" "No. It's no game. Your mother's life, as well as the lives of a lot of innocent people, will be decided by daybreak tomorrow. So if you're not going to take this seriously --" "I will," William shot back defiantly. "I just found my biological mother. I'm not going to lose her again." "Good man," Avery said, then headed back down to the VIP section, which was effectively now the command center. "How's he holding up?" Nigel asked. "He's a strong young man, I think," Avery replied. "So, what do you think?" "I don't like this," Caitlin, also known as the High Priestess, said. "The Fool isn't just going to sit around. He'll have contingency plans on top of each other." The land-line that Avery tended to use for business affairs began to ring, so he picked it up and listened. After a few minutes he put it down, his face a darker reflection of his already sour mood. "We have a problem." Nigel was almost afraid to ask. "Which is?" "Kidnappings." A number of other Nightwalkers quickly closed in. "What? Family members?" the Tower asked. "No, nothing to do with you all specifically. Criminals." Strength looked confused. "Why is that a problem? For us, anyway." "My friends in the local security forces didn't think it was a problem at all, at least at first. Since early this morning, a number of the less savory members of our population have been reported as missing, though no one was doing much about it seeing as they were both undesirable and had not been missing for very long. Still, some reports began to come in that some supposed criminals were being taken." "Taken?" one of the Coins asked. "By who?" "By the accounts of a witness, they were taken by a 'scary bunch of mother fuckers.' They were described as dressed all in black, incredibly hairy, and seemed almost more like animals than men." "The infected Nightwalkers," Nigel hissed. "What is the Fool up to?" Caitlin pursed her lips. "He isn't waiting. Maybe he's afraid that the new Nightwalker wannabe's won't be enough, so he's building up his army now. And if these 'undesirables' are weak spirited --" "They'll be easy for the Fool to control," Avery hissed, "especially if he's dominant and alpha enough to boss around someone like Pegg. Fuck, this is bad." He walked away and got on the horn with the security center and made sure that everyone in the organization knew what to look for. Find the kidnappers, find the base, find the Fool. Easier commanded than done. "Is Jenna going to be ready for this?" Caitlin asked of Nigel. "This morning, she zoned out completely when dawn came." "I have a feeling that once the bullets start flying, it won't last until dawn," he replied. "And --" A buzzing noise from the downstairs intercom interrupted Nigel's train of thought. Since Avery was otherwise indisposed, Ghede took the call. "Yes?" *Uhm, this is Cresil. You know, downstairs?* Ghede rolled his eyes. "Cresil, we've met dozens of times. I know who you are. Everyone knows who you are." *Yeah, sorry, but . . . this is kind of weird. What exactly did Lawrence order?* Avery and Caitlin and Nigel all looked at one another. Lawrence, Nessa's second youngest vampire child, had not mentioned anything about any orders. "Cresil," Avery started slowly, "maybe you should --" *It ain't a trap. Trust me, I know his sigil. Whoever magically sealed these crates has his say so, and they were delivered by armored car. You know the kind.* Avery's eyes opened. "Cresil, what kind of packages?" *Big. Three of them, and the shipping addresses are from all over the damn globe. Weird thing is the driver said that he had seven more deliveries scheduled for today.* There was a pause at the other end of the line. *Holy crap! Ten deliveries? By magical armored transport? Avery, do you think --* "Are the boxes eight feet long, three feet wide, and at least as deep?" *Two of them. One of them is WAY bigger.* Avery was rubbing the bridge of his nose. "She's going to kill him." "What?" Caitlin asked. "Who's killing who?" "Nessa is killing Lawrence," Avery growled. "I thought that they were both asleep." "For this, she'll wake up, risk light exposure, and kill him." Avery hit the intercom button. "Cresil, put all the cases in the safe rooms." He looked at Caitlin. "I need for you to do some damage control." -------- ------------ Sundown . . . -------- ------------ Jenna's eyes shot open when the sun sank below the horizon, to find that she was the last one away, and that the bed was crowded. Nessa's arm was hooked around her waist, and the elder vampire was whispering to the bed's other occupant, namely Caitlin. The Nightwalker's face was looking at Nessa, but her eyes quickly found Jenna's when that woman woke up, and both women smiled. "You're here," Jenna whispered happily. "I said I would be," Caitlin responded, her face breaking into a goofy grin. Then the grin went away. "But we need to get to work. Things have evolved." She recited what she had been telling Nessa about, namely the Fool's new "community outreach" program. Jenna's countenance became thoughtful as she slid out of bet(bed) and began to armor up. Halfway through the explanation, she noticed that neither of her companions had moved. "What?" Caitlin smiled again. "I was just really enjoying the show." "Yeah, I kinda agree with her," Nessa contributed. "Could we get back to the matters at hand?" "Spoilsport," Nessa said, hopping out of bed in her skimpy lingerie and heading towards her closet. She stopped halfway there and held her head, causing Avery, who had been waiting nearby after leading Caitlin up to the bedroom, and Jenna to hurry to the redhead's aid. "Are you --" "Fine," Nessa whispered. "Just a little --" Avery interrupted his boss, something of a rarity. "Nessa, you're still weakened. Between the energy spent creating Jenna and the fight with Pegg, you're not 100 percent. You know that, right?" "I'm fine," Nessa growled back. She hated that Avery was right, but she couldn't rest. With the Fool on the move, growing his army, and with Nessa unable to call on her own lycanthropes, she had to use whatever assets she had left. "Have we located the Fool's base?" Caitlin nodded. "It took us until an hour ago, seeing as he decided to move around until, somewhat ingeniously, he went back to where he started." "Approximate numbers?" Avery rubbed his eyes. He seemed to be doing a lot of that lately. "With moonrise, he probably had more than a hundred wolves. Most of them will be confused, barely more than wild dogs in their ability to plan, but if he's as strong as we think he is, that kind of mob could still be dangerous." "And if the commandos show up, he may be able to coerce them into helping him, even without changing them. That would give him up to seventy guns." "Any chance of defections?" "If we had a few days to talk to them, before the Fool gets his claws into them, maybe. But we know that won't happen, because the Fool wouldn't give them a few days before changing them." Avery looked at Caitlin, grimaced, then looked back at Nessa. "Boss, there's another . . . situation." Nessa glanced up, not liking Avery's tone. It wasn't fear, but something else. Resignation maybe? "What?" "Maybe you should come down to the VIP lounge. It will save some explanation." "Avery, tell me what's going on." Avery was already on his way to the lift. "Jenna, this is something for you too." "Avery," Nessa growled again, throwing a robe on and following her security chief. "This is not the time to try my patience. She got no response, even though she glowered at the man until Caitlin was able to throw her armor on and join them. Halfway down to the VIP area, Anabella materialized in the lift along side the rest of them. "So, what'd I miss?" she asked, then glanced at Avery and blushed a bit. "How are you?" "He's a dead man if he doesn't tell me what's going --" Nessa started to say, but then the lift arrived at its destination. The moment the doors opened, Nessa sensed something distinctly off. Not bad, not dangerous, or at least not to her, just . . . different. The lounge was dark, and the Nightwalkers were all somewhere else. But the vampires' eyes focused quickly, and they saw very distinct shapes. They were shapes that Nessa was very, very familiar with. Her eyes focused first on Lawrence, who stepped from the edge of the shadows to the center of the room. "I'm sorry if this is a blow to your pride," he said softly, "but you are facing an unknown enemy, a threat to all Night Breeds? Without your lycanthropes? And you DID create a new sister. What did you expect me to do?" "Obey my wishes," Nessa said, stepping forward angrily. "How could you --" She stopped, her dead heart beating just so that it could skip and get caught in her throat. A second voice came from the deep darkness at the edge of the lounge. "Would you really strangle our baby brother for telling us something that we should have heard from you?" This voice was like a full-bodied coffee, strong and deep and one could not helped but feel a little bit energized by it. And the owner of that voice was every bit as scrumptious to look at as he was to listen to. And even Jenna knew who he was. She had seen him in Nessa's soul. "Marcus?" Nessa whispered, her voice lilted up at the end like a question, though it really wasn't. "You're here." Marcus was the epitome of what a Roman god was supposed to look like. Even in his designer Italian suit,, it was easy to see a body sculpted from marble, his smoothly shaven skin glowing with an olive hue. In Nessa's thoughts, he still had long, black, curly hair, though the modern incarnation of him was a little more Euro, with a short black ponytail, and his eyes shone with a mischief and desire that was almost physical. "Where else would I be when my Nessa needed me?" Nessa forced an eye roll. "Since when do I ever need . . . oh hell," she muttered. She cut off her denial and flew to the center of the room, allowing herself to be wrapped up in Marcus's powerful arms and be kissed as if time itself were coming to an end and that these two were going to make that last moment count. Jenna had seen her creator naked, in the throes of passion and lust, and in every other unabashed circumstance, but this was the first time she had seen Nessa wholly and truly . . . intimate. Lawrence grinned. When he had called in Nessa's brood to help, he had known she would be pissed. Putting Marcus out first was at tactical move, seeing as the flame that existed between the two of them had been burning for two thousand years. Every time they got together, Nessa remembered what it had been like on that Mediterranean cliff all those years ago, and she remembered that she had, and still did to a great extent, love the man. Jenna felt strangely out of sorts. This was Nessa's first, and she felt an irrational twinge of jealousy. She knew that her creator was not the settling down type, but . . . but she didn't even know what was bothering her. Already being made part of the past? But her jealousy evaporated when she felt a strong hand take her own, and looked over to see Caitlin. Jenna smiled. Caitlin was not the type to accept being second best to anyone, and Jenna would not treat her as such. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 Finally, the embrace between Nessa and Marcus ended. "Ahem," came another voice from the circle, as a dark-skinned man with kind eyes stepped forward. "Aaron!" Nessa said happily, hugging the man almost as enthusiastically as she had Marcus. Jenna went back to her journey through Nessa's soul as each of her creator's vampiric children stepped forward to embrace the woman who gave them eternal life. Marcus was the oldest of course, followed by Aaron, who had been a Byzantine merchant when he and Nessa had crossed paths. Next came Abayomi, an Egyptian Farmer, then Theo, a Germanic trapper. The first of Nessa's female children was Costanza, a Spanish dancer, then Hildr, who may well have been the exemplar for the notion of a valkyrie. Then came Margaret, a British tavern wench, and then Leon, the Renaissance painter. The ninth of Nessa's children was quite possibly the largest once-human being that Jenna had ever seen. Shinmatsu was six-and-a-half feet tell and weighed close to six hundred pounds. Jenna remembered from Nessa's memories that he had once been yokozuna, or grand champion of sumo. When Nessa hugged the behemoth, who still dressed in the ceremonial robes of his sport and the rank he had achieved, she approached him with a more quiet dignity than the others, but her face showed just as much love, and that love was returned. Nessa moved on to hug Cilia, a Dutch actress, then turned and slugged Lawrence in the arm. "We'll talk she said, glowering at him. He grinned as he rubbed his arm. The wind had mostly been taken out of her sails already. She loved all her dark children, making sure to talk with each of them every month no matter how busy things got. Each of them had a brood of their own, except Lawrence who was taking his time. But all of them always made time for Nessa. Finally, Nessa addressed them as an assembled unit. "Well, since you're all here," she started, then turned and looked at Jenna, "I would like for you all to meet Jenna Owens," she said, holding out her hand and inviting Jenna into the circle. "She has only been a vampire for a few days, so go easy on her." Like a warm breeze, Marcus swept over to Jenna and took her hand. "Lawrence," he started, kissing Jenna's hand, "when you said that Nessa's new daughter was a beautiful woman, you fell far short of the reality." Jenna glanced nervously over her shoulder at Caitlin. "Compliment or insult?" Caitlin laughed. "Compliment." When she saw Marcus's confused expression, she explained, "Jenna has never really seen herself as pretty." "Doesn't she own a mirror?" She looked at Jenna. "Do you?" "No." "Well," Marcus said, "take the word of a man who knows the subject matter, young Jenna, you are an angelic vision." Jenna looked back at Caitlin, who rolled her eyes and said, "It's a compliment." "Thank you?" Jenna responded. "Can . . .can I have my hand back?" Marcus smiled and let her go. One by one, the other members of Nessa's brood came over, smiling and giving her a hug and often a kiss on the cheek. Nessa's people were apparently very touchy. Well, all of them except Shinmatsu, who simply gave a small bow and said, "Welcome," in a voice that was as deep as a well and calm as the surface of a pond. "Thank you," she replied. He leaned in and whispered into her ear. "It's a lot to take in. Don't worry. It scared me too." Jenna looked at the man who was bigger than her old sleeping tube. "Something scares you?" "Yes," he replied, his "e" sounding more like an "uh" sound. "Nessa and Marcus's complete lack of discretion. And spandex." While his face remained stoic, one eye winked. It made Jenna smile. "And that smile," he said, "proves Marcus's point better than his words ever could." After a few moments, Nessa pulled Jenna aside. "Hey, I'm sorry you had to meet everyone like this. I was planning on gathering everyone together after things calmed down --" "No, it's . . . it's okay. I'm just a little . . . freaked?" "Don't be freaked. Like I said before, we can never replace what you lost," she whispered, bringing Jenna's head in and pressing foreheads together, "but we can be your family too. I wish we had more time, but we need to deal with the Fool." "I know." Jenna looked around. "We just need Nigel to fill me in and . . . wait, where's William?" she asked, beginning to panic. "He's upstairs in the security office," Avery said soothingly. "I gave him a job using a remote surveillance device. He's been happy as a pig in slop all day. I did have to stop him from spying down women's shirts." "I'll talk to him," she said absently. "He shouldn't be doing that." "He's a teenage boy. Unless you gouge his eyes out, he'll do that." "Who's William?" Marcus asked. "Oh wait . . . the son," he said, eyes widening. "If he is half as fetching as his mother, then I may someday have some competition for women's affections," he added with a smirk. "I think I like him," Jenna told Nessa. "There's a reason I made him a vampire. How could I let women for the next two thousand years exist without him?" Caitlin made a gagging sound. Nessa laughed. "Fine, we'll stop patting Marcus on the back for his ample masculinity. Not that you have anything to complain about," she added, grinning and glancing from Caitlin to Jenna. The Empress and the High Priestess latched hands. 'Young love,' she thought. Any pang of jealousy she might have had was overwritten by pride. It was Jenna who first decided to get down to business. "I know that you all traveled a long way, and I hope . . . hope to get to know you all soon," she said. She had almost choked on the word hope. She still felt fluttering in her spirit when she contemplated another word. Family. This could be her family. "But you came here because of a dire situation that Nessa is in, and we need to settle matters tonight. The Fool, my enemy, has a taste for blood now, and he craves more." "More?" Leon asked. "He wants a holy war against the corporations. He wants the power to spread fear. And he wants me. I'd rather he find only the grave." Most of Nessa's brood had awakened only shortly before Nessa and Jenna themselves, so they needed to be brought up to speed. They were given a crash course on recent events, including the Fool's latest endeavor. "This is disturbing," Marcus said, looking at a map of the city. "He may be an alpha, but he is inexperienced." "What does that mean?" Caitlin asked. "If a single alpha could truly control that many wolves by sheer force of will, then one of the European wolves would have done it centuries ago. Garon Pegg used his alpha status, but he also paid people, and he knew how to use his power. If a pack grows too large, it is natural for other alpha wolves to strike out on there own." "Are you talking a wolf plague?" Ghede asked, shuddering involuntarily. "What's a wolf plague?" Jenna asked. "Imagine a biblical plague of locusts, except with really big locusts, with really big teeth. And if these new wolves are also untrained and wild --" "Things start to spiral out of control," Jenna muttered. "And we have feral, incredibly powerful, incredibly dangerous creatures with human cunning and voracious appetites," Nessa growled. "Well, thanks for reminding me of that." Marcus leaned over and kissed her neck, causing his red-haired sire to shudder in a way that usually led to naughty things. "I would rather do things that did not distress you, but alas, current events will not allow it." "He's really good at that," Jenna whispered to Anabella, who was staring on with a mixture of amusement and contempt. "Remind me to tell ya 'bout what they got up to in the 1700's. At one point, the Marquis de Sade decided that things were gettin' a little weird and went home." "She met the Marquis?" "Let's just say she influenced some of 'is writin'." "What does that not surprise me?" Jenna stopped and looked around. "Nessa," she said at last, "are you sure we should involve them?" she asked, gesturing at the other "children." "They're hitting the ground cold with no context --" Nessa just shook her head and raised her hand. "They're here. They won't stay out of it, even if I asked them too. Which I won't, because there are thousands and thousands of years of survival experience between all of us." "Besides," Marcus added, "our mother needs us, and our sister needs us." When he saw Jenna's confused expression, he smiled. "That would be you." "Not all of us are fighters," Abayomi said. "But we have worked together more times than you can imagine," Cilia added. Aaron continued with, "So trust us. The moment that this 'Fool' came after our family, he made it our fight." Nessa kissed Jenna on the forehead. "It makes sense. We can't risk Nigel and the other Nightwalkers getting infected, so they're going to have to stay back and keep the new wolves from spreading. The only thing that will stop the lycanthropic virus is fae blood and the vampiric virus, so it makes sense for the undead to go in as the shock troops." "When did you start using phrases like 'shock troops'?" The red-haired matriarch of the vampire clan raised an eyebrow. "Remember that this isn't my first barn dance. The logic is sound and . . . no Lawrence, this doesn't mean you're off the hook for calling them . . . they're the best choice to do this. Marcus is one of the greatest warriors that I've ever known, and Shinmatsu is nigh invulnerable. Theo is one of the sneakiest bastards I've ever known, and Hildr invented the concept of pillaging and burning." "Invented, no," the blonde viking woman said, "but I did copyright it." "I still don't think that would hold up in court." Nessa glanced at Jenna. "Are you okay with this?" "Nessa," Nigel said, "there is one problem. Some of those Nightwalkers under the Fool's control could still be saved. Is there going to be no attempt to take them alive?" "We've tried to play it safe up until now, and it has bitten us in the ass. If I had just stepped in like Pegg wanted to, this would be over and done with." "Do you really want to be like him?" Jenna asked. "Your whole platform has been to try and end this with minimal bloodshed." "That was before they killed Ipos," Nessa replied coldly. "So what?" the Chariot said, standing with the other Nightwalkers, "One of yours dies, so that gives you the right to kill anyone you want?" "We didn't ask for this war." "Neither did they," Jenna whispered. All eyes turned to her. "The Nightwalkers were just doing their jobs. They didn't want to become monsters, but resisting the Fool . . . resisting their commanding officer? We need to give them a chance." "This cannot be allowed to spread," Nessa replied. "This has become bigger and more volatile than anything we had expected. And you want me to what? Go into an enclosed space with werewolves and ask them to surrender? They're wild animals right now, all of them. And a cornered animal WILL defend itself violently. That isn't a condemnation, just an observation. It's in their nature." "Then we draw them out," Jenna replied. "I've seen the armory. There is plenty of containment gear, hardening foam, stasis bombs, the works. We get them to come out, and then our Nightwalkers and the rest of your people can contain them." "If the Fool comes out, we've solved nothing. They won't surrender with him goading them." "He won't," Jenna whispered. "And why not?" "Because I'm going in first. Alone. And I'm going to kill him." There was silence. "Jenna, no more suicide missions. No more going it alone." "This isn't martyrdom, Nessa. This is tactics. I'm the one that the Fool wants. I go in and even if I don't kill him outright, I keep him occupied while we flush the rest out." "Absolutely not," Nessa shot back. "You're forgetting about the Hanged Man, or the rest of the major arcana. We know the Hanged man is fanatically loyal, and if any of the rest of them are loyal too –" "Jenna, I know you're trying to do the right thing," Caitlin said, standing at her friend's side, "but they're right. You can't go in alone, which is why I'm going with you." "Absolutely not," Jenna said vehemently, shaking her head. "You're susceptible to the mutated virus. You need to stay outside with the others to make sure that we capture as many as possible." "I am NOT letting you go in alone," Caitlin growled. 'I can't lose you now that I'm truly beginning to know you,' she thought. Jenna missed Caitlin's discomfort, but Nessa didn't. For some reason, it made her proud. And happy. She sighed. "Okay, we go for the capture, as long as everyone agrees that ANYONE who is given a chance to surrender but doesn't has to be put down. I absolutely will not allow this to spread. Clear?" When everyone eventually nodded, she continued, looking at Jenna. "And Caitlin is right. There's no way in hell I'm letting you go in alone." "She won't," Marcus said. "I will go in with her." "And I," Shinmatsu said solemnly. Nessa looked at her brood. "Hildr, Theo, are you two in?" Theo, a rugged looking mountain man just grinned, then responded with a thick German accent, "You even have to ask?" "That makes six going in," Nessa said, then found herself cut off by her ancient Roman soldier. "Six?" "Yes, six. Jenna, me, you --" "You're not going in," Marcus said with an air of finality. "I won't allow it." "Oh crap," Lawrence said, taking a step back. Jenna noticed that a number of the brood took similar stances, and she felt Shinmatsu tugging on her shoulder. "Won't 'allow' it?" Nessa replied acidly. "Okay," Jenna whispered to the big sumo behind her, "Even I know her well enough to say something like that." "You are not at full strength. The attack on your person, the creation of a new vampire, the fight with Pegg . . . you need to rest," Marcus said stiffly. "They killed my friend. The Fool has all but threatened to rape Jenna, they went after her son, and he wounded me personally. I am still the sheriff of this territory, and you do NOT get to dictate --" The two of them argued for several minutes, with Marcus moving in and out of misogynistic bravado and the pleading of an old lover, and Nessa just growling and yelling, all the while looking like she wanted to jump Marcus's bones. Their's was a complicated relationship. Jenna finally had enough. She slammed a fist down on the table, putting a hole through it. People stopped talking. "We are wasting time," she said coldly. In an instant, the new, emotional Jenna was gone, and the Empress had returned. "Whatever issues you two have, shelve them." She looked at Death. "I think I know how we can drive them out. When I fought the hanged man the first time, the most effective weapon I had was pepper spray." While nodding, Ghede was the first to speak. "New lycanthropes often take time to acclimate to their new senses." "We keep reminding ourselves that these new creations are animals, so let's treat them like animals. I go in --" "WE go in," Shinmatsu said evenly. "Fine, we go in and we unload with flash-bangs and any other kind of grenade that we have that over-stimulates the senses." "We have a variety of gas grenades that would do the trick," Avery said, staring at Jenna approvingly. "And," Caitlin added, "their stronghold becomes their weakness. The warehouse was chosen because there were only a few ways in, but that means there's only a few ways out." She glanced around. "We set up containment traps and snipers with tranquilizers here, here, here, and here, and we have a legitimate chance of rounding up survivors." Nigel sighed. It was time for HIM to make a concession, especially if he was expecting Nessa to go along with this. He grabbed a red marker and drew a line all the way around the warehouse, with several streets of separation from the main building. "This is the line of containment," he said solidly. "Anyone fleeing the building who is not contained by this point . . . is too dangerous to be allowed to escape." Nessa acknowledged the concession. "This means we can bring some of our lycanthropes back into the game. If we keep the Fool and the Hanged Man contained in the building, then our people will be safe from his influence. They chase any squirters to ground. The rest of the non-combat intensive brood can help with that. Lawrence, head up the remote sensors, make sure nobody gets out without you knowing it." Avery glanced at Jenna. "You know William is up in the security office right now. Did you want --" "Let him stay there," she said. This seemed to surprise Avery, so she explained, "If we don't let him help by controlling a remote sensor, he'll probably try to get involved another way." She did not mention that she was choosing between the lesser of two evils. He would be safe, but he might have to watch Jenna die. 'He's strong,' she thought. 'Stronger than I was.' Suddenly, an iffy plan had become a reasonable plan, and people began to armor up. Lawrence would set up the net-comms, the others would form a perimeter, and Nessa's warriors would go in. "Crap," Anabella said, "that means I need to get mah beatin' stick." "Why?" Nessa asked. "You're not going in." "Says who?" Jenna sighed as the two old friends began to argue. "How does anything every get done with these people?" she asked of the massive sumo. "Once someone says 'go,' they will be professional," he assured her. "Until then . . . well, you do not live for thousands of years without developing a stubborn streak." "When they stop yelling, tell them we'll leave in an hour. I have to go talk to someone," she replied. She headed toward the lift, being stopped temporarily by the assembled rebel Nightwalkers. "Thank you," one of the Coins said. "For what?" "Standing by us. Trying to save our friends." "Don't make me regret it. You all know that the standard protocols we used to live by would have dictated the termination of our enemies." Caitlin smiled. "Yes, but you seem to have developed a strong dislike for protocols." Jenna liked the way Caitlin smiled. "Be ready to go within the hour," she said, turning back toward the lift. She stopped, spun around, and pulled Caitlin to her and pressed her mouth to her lover's lips. The rest of the Nigthwalkers started to chuckle, even as Caitlin's hands reached around and grabbed Jenna's ass. "Uhm, sorry about that," the Nightwalker said. "Those things have a mind of their own." Jenna wanted to crawl into Caitlin's bodyarmor and feel that soft skin, so she wasn't about to chastise anyone for wandering hands. "Be ready," she whispered, her voice carrying over the scant inch or so separating their lips. "I want you to make it through this because --" "Because what?" Jenna put her mouth next to Caitlin's ear. "Because I've never had a . . . you know, a girlfriend. Before." Caitlin stared, then just smiled. 'How much did it cost her to say that?' she wondered. She kissed Jenna's nose. "You've got one now. Now go visit your boy, then lets finish this thing so that I can show you some of the advantages of having the proper companion." Then, in a huskier whisper, "And next time, we can get started as soon as the sun goes down." She patted Jenna on the ass, then rejoined the other Nightwalkers. When Jenna got up to the security floor, she was still smiling absently. She should have been nervous or focused or anything but happy, yet that was how she felt. She saw her son sitting in front of a set of monitors near some of Nessa's other technical staff. "Hey," she said, approaching him nervously. They had had a good talk the night before, but she still was not sure where they stood. "Hey," he said, turning and standing, wringing his hands. "So you're leaving in an hour?" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 "Yes. How did you know?" He grinned. "Nessa has the most wicked toys!" He pointed at a screen that showed the VIP lounge, and it was showing the area that she had just been standing. "Insane digital zoom, perfect sound --" "I didn't even see the camera." "It was all the way across the room!" William said excitedly. "And you're really okay with me helping?" "It'll keep you out of trouble. The trouble I got you into. I can't believe you're handling this so well." "Not much choice. I feel bad for my parents . . . you know --" he stammered. "They are your parents," Jenna said. "I'm just . . . I was just there at the beginning." William started to speak, stopped, then started again. "I want you to meet them. When this is over, I mean." Jenna shook her head. "I can't. What would I say?" "The truth. Ish. But I don't want to lie to them, I don't want you to do your vampire mojo and wipe my brain, and that kinda limits our options. And don't tell me that we either can't ever see each other again or have to hide and stuff." Jenna shook her head. Meet Ronald and Michelle Monroe? And how would she explain anything? "We'll talk when I get back," she told him, stepping forward and hugging him. "Don't feed me that line," William said angrily, pushing her away. "You treat me like an adult by letting me actually help with your mission, but you don't trust me enough to know that I want this?" Jenna closed her eyes. "I trust you to know your own mind, but that doesn't mean you get to have everything you want." "But why --" "Because I am not going to ruin your life," Jenna snapped. "Because something like this will change how your parents look at you. If they love you, and we both know they do, they'll want you as far away from me as possible." "You don't know that," he shot back angrily. "You don't know them --" "I know them. They are wonderful people who want what's best for you and . . . and I can't have this discussion now." Jenna turned to leave. "Why do you get to be the one who decides what our relationship is?" he called after her as she disappeared into the lift. She had no response except to tell him she loved him, one more time. Maybe for the last time. Jenna again sought out Caitlin, her feet carrying her to the woman's presence before her mind caught up. "What's wrong?" the brunette beauty asked, seeing her "girlfriend" subtly but visibly upset. Most people would not have been able to read Jenna, but Caitlin had spent years studying that face. She knew every line and every expression the woman had ever shown. "Just . . . nothing." "It's not 'nothing'. What's up?" Caitlin walked her girlfriend off to the side. "This whole thing we have now? Part of it means you have to talk to me. It's a rule." It took a moment for Jenna to realize the other woman was teasing her. Sort of. She closed her eyes, opened them, and recited her conversation with William. By the end, she realized that her voice was cracking, something she was not used to. She wasn't sure what it meant, but Caitlin did. Jenna was actually scared. The notion of meeting her son's adoptive parents and trying to explain why she had been absent, or that she was not trying to steal THEIR son away, terrified her. "Babe --" "Babe?" "Work with me here. Term of affection, get used to it," she added with a smiled. Sometimes, she didn't think Jenna really understood innuendo or dry humor. "Babe, he's scared too. You just walked into his life, larger than life, and he's probably scared that he'll never see you again. "But how would I ever explain any of this?" "You come up with a good cover story that isn't too far from the truth, then otherwise lie your incredibly cute ass off." "What would be even vaguely close to this that wouldn't be a bold-faced lie? Vampires, werewolves, commandos . . . I'm not that good at lying." "You'll be fine. We will figure this out. You'll meet his parents, then we can go diving in the Caribbean, and all you have to do is help destroy our psychopathic ex-boss who just happens to have claws and fangs. Oh, and his right hand man, who may be the most dangerous thing that I've seen. Except maybe you." "You're not . . . you're not afraid of me, are you?" Caitlin threw her head back and laughed, which caught the obvious attention of some of the others who were nearby. This caused her to lead Jenna away to the lift in order to afford some privacy. When they were alone, she admitted that Jenna had always scared her. "But why? I never threatened you. Did I?" Caitlin smiled and her fingers touched the side of Jenna's face with a gentleness reserved for a work of art. "Same reason that people feared angels, I guess. You're too beautiful for words, yet you're so incredibly dangerous. Even before you were a vampire. I was scared to talk to you because . . . well honestly, I thought you were way out of my league." "Out of your . . . are you serious?" Jenna asked. "Dead serious. However horrible the circumstances are that made you what you are, I only saw the result. You ARE an angel, Jenna. A guardian angel for your son and --" Caitlin paused, grinned, and blushed. "And you're so very heavenly in other ways." Jenna almost wanted to blush, figuring that would be the appropriate response. Human Jenna would have blushed. Young Jenna most certainly would have. "I . . . uhm, you . . . Okay, not good at the whole romantic banter thing." Caitlin was amazed at how shy Jenna could be. This was the girl who never got to grow up, a fifteen year old psyche on the mend and testing the waters of life for the first time. She pulled Jenna out of the lift and towards the wall of a residential hallway. Her mouth poised to do something besides smile as her face moved toward Jenna's. Lips met lips, the vampire's still uncertain but eager, the human's slow but steady. "Is this really a good time for this?" Jenna murmured as she tried to catch her girlfriend's bottom lip with her teeth. "If we have time, then it's a good time," Caitlin growled. 'Damn it,' she thought, 'where's my room?' She saw it and put her back to the door, pulling Jenna in close, letting the other woman be in the dominant position, and make her own desires known. Jenna seemed content to keep kissing, though one hand drifted down to Caitlin's hip. Then, it moved past the hip and grabbed the door handle. "Open, damn it," Jenna muttered hungrily. Caitlin spread her legs a bit and pulled Jenna in. "Is that open enough for you?" Jenna chewed her own bottom lip this time. "You're a very bad person, aren't you?" The two of them wound up tumbling through the door and back onto the same bed where they had consummated their fledgling relationship. "We really should be getting ready for the mission," Jenna said, struggling to figure out the quickest way to get Caitlin out of her pants. "We are," Caitlin said, pulling her top off over her head. "If we don't do this, you'll be distracted all night." Jenna kissed the soft expanse of Caitlin's breasts after pushing the sports bra up. "Can't have that." Jenna took advantage of her girlfriend when Caitlin sat down so she could kick her pants off, pushing the woman onto her back and pushing those legs, still bound at the ankle by trousers and underwear, leaving that perfect sex exposed. Both Nessa and Caitlin had made sure that Jenna received pleasure first, and she was determined to reverse that trend. Caitlin let out a sigh when that curious tongue penetrated her folds, tasting her wetness. She tried to reach up and grab her ankles so she could remove the constraining garments, but a few flicks of the tongue caused her to settled back into the bed and murmur happily. "Right there," she said. "Just a little more gently and . . . ahh!" This was one of the things that Jenna liked about Caitlin. The woman knew how to provide feedback. So she went to the spot Caitlin had wanted, touching her most secret places with nimble fingers and making sure to curtail her strength. Being a vampire was going to take some time to get used to. She sniffed her lover's pussy, and she cold sense her excitement at a level she never imagined. She wondered if Nessa had felt this way in their times together. Sex with a beautiful woman . . . this was life. Maybe vampires sought out such encounters as a reminder of the warmth they now missed, yet still craved. Caitlin finally was able to keep her upper body elevated long enough to rip her pants off and spread her legs, watching as an eager lover pleasured her. She gripped the bedspread, arching her back slightly and willing Jenna's tongue deeper and deeper into that place reserved for a most intimate friend. She wanted to cum, both for Jenna and for herself. So she coaxed her lover on whenever she did something that Caitlin enjoyed, and she found herself barreling towards release. Then, Jenna's tongue stopped moving. "Don't stop!" Caitlin practically screamed, her voice tinged with desperation. "That's just mean!" Jenna looked a bit abashed, giving Caitlin's clitoral hood a few soft licks. "Sorry. You stopped speaking. And breathing." "Sweetheart, that's because you were doing everything just . . . just . . . right!" she moaned, as Jenna's teasing finally ended and the main event arrived. "Ah! Ah! Ahhhhhhhhhhh!" she sighed. Jenna felt proud and happy and . . . well, just content. She'd done something good for her new girlfriend, and she wanted nothing more than to do it again. And again. She did not want to stop until the sun came up. Hell, she didn't want to stop until the sun went out, but Caitlin was having none of that. "Sensitive," Caitlin said, pulling her pussy, and particularly he clitoris, away from Jenna's mouth. "Good grief, when did you get so greedy?" she added, smiling as she sat up. "I wanted that!" Jenna pouted, then realized how it had sounded and buried her face in the covers. "I sounded like a kid asking for its blanket." Caitlin laughed, turning on the bed and kissing the top of Jenna's head. "I don't mind providing a little comfort," she murmured, pushing Jenna's hair aside and then kissing the back of her neck. "Oh that feels so very good," Jenna whispered. It was a truly intimate thing, arousing her in ways that direct stimulation couldn't touch. Caitlin's lips working around Jenna like they were tracing a necklace. The butterfly-light sensations were igniting a joy Jenna could not describe, and wanted to go on forever. But eventually, Caitlin lay back on the bed. "C'mere," she said. "Get naked, then come here." Jenna stood and kept her eyes on Caitlin's as she undressed, removing under-armor one piece at a time, much to the other woman's delight. Caitlin savored the moment that each bit of pale, perfect skin came into view, but mostly she delighted in the shy glances and even shyer smiles that Jenna would give her when their eyes met. Then Jenna straddled Caitlin's hips while the human woman sat up to meet her, kissing her and cupping her ass. "You're not still scared of me are you?" Jenna asked between kisses. Caitlin moved a hand between her thighs, curling two fingers into Jenna's sex and feeling the heat of her lover's body. "It scares me how much I want you. Does that count?" Jenna began to move her hips, riding Caitlin's hand in a gentle motion. "That's a good fear," she replied, arching her back and willing those nimble digits further into her body. Caitlin leaned in and took one of Jenna's pert pink nipples into her mouth, like little bits of fruit on those pale mounds, and were very, very delectable. Gentle pressure preceded lightly touching the nubs with her teeth, rolling them slightly until Jenna gasped. That was as close to hurting her as Caitlin would go. Jenna was probably never going to be the kink-meister that Nessa was supposed to be, but Caitlin could work with what she had. The intercom came on. *Fifteen minutes to deployment. All personnel, please report to the armory.* "God dammit!" Caitlin growled. When was she going to get an uninterrupted session with this woman? Even as Jenna looked annoyed and started to pull away, Caitlin pulled her back, not withdrawing her fingers. "Oh hell no, you're not ready to go yet." "But they said --" Jenna started to say, her heart (amongst other body parts) not really into the notion of leaving either. "They can wait," the human woman growled. "It's not like they're going to start the invasion without you." She kept one hand on Jenna's ass, gripping it with a certain ferocity that would not be challenged. Her fingers were playing her girlfriend's pussy like an instrument, building up in the coda for a sweet sounding finale. And when Jenna groaned, she knew she was there. "Are you cumming?" she whispered into Jenna's ear. "Yessss," Jenna hissed, clenching at Caitlin's fingers as they danced inside her body. Jenna wrapped her arms around her lover's body and just held her until the tremors finally ceased and she was in control of her body again. "Damn impending violence," Caitlin grumbled. "Next time, I'm taking you to a hotel with no intercoms or communicators, and I'm not letting you go until we've both been fucked silly." "It's a date," Jenna said. She let Caitlin kiss her, then reluctantly pulled away. She didn't want to fight anyone. She had never wanted to just curl up in bed with a warm body next to her so badly in her life. But bad people like the Hanged Man and the Fool did not wait for cuddling, and the warrior in Jenna . . . in the Empress . . . knew she still had a job to do. The two women readied themselves, but did not speak. You could not speak your last words to someone if you did not speak at all. Finally, the two of them put on their game faces and headed back to the lift. -------- --------------- An hour later . . . -------- --------------- Jenna was peaking around the corner of an alley, listening to comm chatter. There were four separate teams that would be going in. Marcus was with Nessa, to no one's surprise. Anabella was teamed with Hildr, though she was still yelling at Nessa over the radio. Apparently, ancient Scottish banshees had tempers. Who knew? Theo was with Cresil and Kobal, and Shinmatsu was standing right behind Jenna. "Almost time," Shinmatsu muttered. "It has been a long time since the brood has fought together." "You don't sound happy about it." He stared forward. "Lives will be lost today. It may be needed, but it is not desired." Jenna looked back at him. "You don't like fighting?" "I like competition. There is a difference." He looked down at her. "And you?" "I never liked the fighting. I never really liked anything I did. I was just good at it. It gave me purpose." "And what is your purpose now?" Jenna turned and stared into space. "I'm figuring that out." Shinmatsu put one ham-sized hand on Jenna's shoulder. "You have time to figure it out." "Unless I die tonight." "You are the soul of optimism." She looked over her shoulder at him. His face was still passive. "You know, the problem with you is that I can't tell when you're being sarcastic." "Really? I thought my problem was my overwhelming sex appeal." Jenna peered at his face. Nothing. He hadn't moved a muscle. She smiled at him. "I can see why Nessa chose you. You're the calm to her storm." That actually seemed to startle him a bit, and the corner of his mouth quirked. "Did she tell you about how we met?" Jenna shook her head. She checked her watch, and noticed that they had ten minutes before everyone was in position. She moved her eyes back to what would be their point of access, but part of her attention was on Shinmatsu. "No. I saw when all Nessa's children were turned, but nothing from before. You were different for her. She loved you as much as the others, but --" "But she and I were never intimate," he said. "Really? Was it because --" Jenna stopped, unsure how to tactfully say what she meant. "My size? It is all right to say. I am not petite. But no, Nessa was not bothered by that." "So why?" "I was married." For some reason, that surprised her. "You were married? Really?" "Yes. I still am." "Wait, to the same woman?" "Yes. Marcus brought my wife over a year later. Without having sex with her," Shinmatsu added, raising an eyebrow. "You've been married to one woman for . . . how long?" "Four hundred years. We had our uranium anniversary last spring." "Okay, you're making that up," Jenna said, though she smiled a little when she said it. "I never kid about anniversaries. When I do, my wife makes me very, very sorry." "You sound like you're afraid of her." He shook his head. "I have healthy respect for her. She is smarter than I am, which is one of the reasons I married her." "You respected her mind?" "No, she tricked me. She told me that we were just going for ice cream. It turned out that she had planned a wedding." Jenna grinned. "You could have said no." "What? There WAS ice cream. I only got it after the ceremony." Despite being on the verge of heading into mortal danger, Jenna had to laugh. "I thought the wives of sumos were quiet and docile." "Have you ever met a woman willing to be surrounded by large, fat men in mawashis? They are made of sterner stuff than you know." For a moment, ever so brief, he smiled. "You really love her, don't you?" He nodded. "For hundreds and hundreds of years, and until the second death comes for us. If she meets an ill end, I will follow." "So if you and Nessa never . . . you know, were intimate, then what made her want to change you?" He closed his eyes. "I lost." "Pardon?" "I lost. I wound up being runner up in a tournament that I had been heavily expected to win. But my opponent was very skilled, and I felt my knee ever so lightly touch the ground." "And the referee called it?" "No, the gyoji missed it. I called it." "I thought . . . why?" "Because I was not just interested in being the winner. I was interested in being the best. I was not the best that night, and my opponent deserved the victory." His head lowered. "That mostly ended my career. Nessa was in Japan at the time, and she was a big fan of sumo. She saw the match and approached me afterward. She did offer intimacy, but I would never cheat on my wife, even with one as beautiful as Nessa. She and I became friends, and she told me what she was. Later, after I had developed diabetes and my health regressed, she offered to save me. But what was 'forever' without my wife?" "Why didn't Nessa offer to change her too?" "It takes a long time to recover, even for the most powerful vampires. She gives part of herself to her offspring. She promised that she would appeal to one of her children to do it for her. Marcus agreed, though he was indisposed at the time." "Where was he?" "The Italian Parliament. Ever since he was driven out of the Roman army, he's been a bit bitter, and has never given up attempting to recapture the Empire." "You don't like Marcus, do you?" Shinmatsu smiled again. It made him look almost cuddly. "Marcus and I are true brothers. I enjoy his company for a time, but after a few days, we want to beat each other senseless. But he kept his word and gave my wife eternal life, so I will forever be indebted to him. My wife and I have been given an opportunity to look after our family together." He winked. "Which is good in a culture where aged family is revered." "So your family knows you're a vampire?" "Should I attempt a disguise?" he replied knowingly, raising an eyebrow. "Good point," she said, looking at his mammoth frame. "No, my wife and I agree that we would be honest with them. We both came from so little, but we both had families that believed in us and supported us. We wanted to return the honor they bestowed." Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 Jenna smiled, then did something very un-Jenna-like. She hugged him. "You are a good man," she said softly. "That is what I keep telling people," he replied with that deep, dry voice. "No one believes me. They all think that I am just a pretty boy." Jenna started to laugh, then her head shot toward the building. She heard something. It was the sound of doors opening and claws scraping pavement. "What the hell?" she said, pulling her assault shotgun off of her back. "They're coming out?" Shinmatsu reached into his robe and pulled out a small pouch. He reached into the pouch and pulled out a pinch of salt, throwing it forward. This was his arena now. His contest. Jenna stepped forward, trying to figure the Fool's angle. She got on the secure comms channel. "Nessa, they're coming out." *I kinda got that. You got any suggestions?* Jenna pondered for a second. "Let them through." *What? Are you nuts? If they get through -- "This wave won't be that strong. He knows we're out here, and he's hoping we'll reveal our big guns. Death, look to the heights. See if you can find their spotters." *Roger, over.* There was radio silence for several seconds. *Hostile entities located. Relaying their positions now.* Jenna spoke again. "These are just decoys. The Nightwalkers are more than than capable of netting them." Sure enough, less than a dozen frantic, half-crazed werewolves came charging out, looking more frightened than fierce. Their shredded clothing indicated that these were some of the common street criminals that the Fool had been rounded up, which made Jenna wonder something else. "Shinmatsu, how long does it usually take for a lycanthrope to manifest its animal side?" "Usually 24 to 48 hours." Jenna got back on her radio. "Everyone, I think that the Fool gave these wolves an accelerant, something to make them morph faster. Don't know what it could be, but anything like that is bound to increase instability. Be careful." She looked at her backup. "I'm going in." "What? No, the plan is --" "The plan is compromised. He's going to start testing us and trying to throw us off balance. I'm going to return the favor." He put a hand on her shoulder. "I thought you and Nessa had agreed, no lone-gunman routine." "I'm adjusting the plan due to a change in the conditions. This is a tactical move, to disrupt his disruptions." "This is why I prefer fighting with fat men in a round circle," Shinmatsu said. "Much less complicated." "Shinmatsu, no matter what happens, I . . . I'm really glad I met you." He looked at her, his eyes showing an increased intensity. "Do not speak as if this is goodbye." "Trust me, I don't want to die. I want friends. I want a family. I want my son to know me and I want to go scuba diving in the Bahamas with a really beautiful woman. But we both know that this could end really badly." He nodded. "Nessa will not allow this to spread, you know that she has a . . . contingency plan." Nessa had figured as much, and she accepted that it would be a final solution. No witnesses, and no survivors. She wondered just how far out on the line that her sire had stuck her neck to try and take even a few of their opponents alive. She turned and stared at the building. "What are you going to do?" Shinmatsu asked. "Something that the Fool would never expect," she replied. She proceeded to walk directly up to the building. *Jenna, what the fuck are you doing?!* came Nessa's voice. "What I have to," she replied. *Jenna, please don't do . . . whatever the hell it is you're doing,* said a younger, male voice. She did not pause in her steps. "William, please get off the line. I know what I'm doing." *But --* "Please," she said, soft and plaintive, "don't distract me. Not now. I'll do anything to keep you safe," she finished. She paused outside a metal door and waited. She knew that someone would be watching her, the ghostly Empress dressed in white, offering herself up like a lamb. What wolf could resist that? After a minute, the door opened. Jenna glanced in, but she found herself still alone. The door had been triggered remotely. She half expected a contingent of guards to be right inside the door, but the Fool wasn't moving his important people into exposed positions yet, and his non-important people would have no chance of containing her, even if she were still the Nightwalker that they probably all thought she was, much less the Nightwalker vampire that she had become. She stepped inside, letting the darkness slide along her armor, wrapping her up like a comfortable blanket. Light had not been her ally for many years, even before it became a lethal effect. She welcomed it back. Her new night vision amazed even herself, as the tiniest glow from an outlet illuminated the entire corridor for her. She forced her body to inhale, letting all the scents of the warehouse slip through her nose. 'It smells like dog,' she thought. For some reason, that amused her. The smell of gun oil and explosives was less entertaining, but it was expected. She considered drawing a weapon, then dismissed it. Why tip her hand, particularly when she was now certain that the Fool wanted to talk to her. Otherwise, she would have encountered the welcoming party the moment the door had closed behind her. Jenna strode down the corridor, made her way through two doors, and into the main room of the warehouse. There was a significant quantity of heavy construction equipment inside, and Jenna could hear scampering amongst the bulldozers and cranes. It was a strange sensation, as no one was really sure who was the cat and who were the rats in this particular game. Not yet, anyway. "White?" came a voice from high overhead. A glance upward did not reveal the source of the sound, as the Fool was in fact no fool. The ceiling of the warehouse caused immense dissemination of sound, making him hard to find unless he visually made himself known. "I never would have imagined that as a color for you." "A great deal has changed," Jenna replied calmly, spinning slowly to maintain her situational awareness. "You know, even after all you have done, I wish it had not come to this?" "You were the one to betray your government and the cause." "If that's how you wish to interpret it," Jenna replied. "You have lost your mind and your way. I respect the man I thought you were, but I will stop the man you have become." She looked up. "You should have listened to me in the beginning. You never should have made this so personal." "You mean your son? I never would have hurt the boy. I just needed to get your attention, and bring you back to the fold. I had no intention of hurting him." "Of course not. It would have been the only way you could control me." "Not the only way," the Fool growled. "I could have made you one of us. This new form," he continued, "it's amazing. So primal and so honest. You could have this, Empress. Come home. Take your place amongst the future of the United States elite." Jenna shook her head. "Not even if I could, old man. You really wanted me as a mate, whether I willed it or not? You are as bad or worse as the Messenger was. Now, I can never be yours." "Don't be so --" "Trust your nose, Fool. Smell my flesh. My heart no longer beats, my blood no longer flows . . . I am undead. I am your enemy." "You . . . you allowed this?" "I requested it. I guess I should thank you, in truth. Had the Hanged Man not been so effective in his attack on me, I might never have been forced to make this choice. I might not have been given the strength to kill you. You've made a great many mistakes." "Such as?" "The attacks on my friend, attempting to force all the Nightwalkers to accept the Lycanthropy virus and driving many of them into the camp of your enemy --" She paused. "-- trying to kidnap my son. You have violated a cardinal rule of war." She heard something drawing closer, but willed herself to remain still. "You gave your enemy something to fight for." A furry blur leaped from behind a caterpillar tread, but Jenna caught it easily in mid-flight, grabbing it by the arm and swinging it like a baseball bat into the ground on the other side of her, letting go after the sickening crack that left her attacker limp. The entire fight had taken less than two seconds. It had been a test. Jenna knew that, but she had no choice that time. In her world, every test was "pass and live" or "fail and die." She raised her voice. "For anyone listening, know this. Anyone who fights with the Fool tonight is subject to forfeiture of life. Tonight is the end game. Think carefully about what you are fighting --" "Enough!" snarled the Fool. "I find you guilty of treason, Empress, and your sentencing begins now!" Jenna jumped ten feet straight up into the air, easily avoiding the two slathering werewolves who attacked her first. Unfortunately, it also put her in range of rifle fire, and she several bullets whiz by, and one impacted her chest plate. Apparently, the Fool's Nightwalker "back ups" had arrived. She flew back under the impact of the bullet, but she was otherwise unharmed. "I'm taking fire," she said into her intercom. "Enemy reinforcements have arrived." *Game on,* Nessa replied. *Stay alive.* 'Working on it, Jenna thought. She decided to stay on the ground after that. She was going to have to deal with more wolves, but it was better than making herself a target in the air. That, and she was faster than she had been letting on. She took off with such speed that she could actually seem the confusion on the face of another werewolf as she vanished from its view. 'That's the Emperor,' she though, recognizing the emblem on the body-armor. He was Major Arcana, which meant that he was going to be dangerous. Still, she was able to lose him, then a thought occurred to her. She did not WANT to lose him. She needed to gather as many of her enemies around her as she could. But how – She pulled one of the armor plates on her arm aside as she ran, and dug her nails into her arm. It hurt like hell, but she was able to draw blood. 'There. If they are truly as animalistic as Nessa said, then they should not be able to resist.' Sure enough, she heard the pitter patter of little paws and sharpened claws, and the sound began to escalate. And it became harder and harder to dodge. Over the racket, she heard more gunfire and she heard metal being shorn apart. Her guest were arriving, so it was time to drop off the party favors. She jumped up in the air, this time with much more speed. In the milliseconds it would take for the commandos to train their weapons on her, she pulled out a string of flash-bang grenades, and began lobbing them all over the room. 'That's going to suck if you're watching with night-vision goggles,' she thought. And sure enough, the subsequent gunfire in the main room was wild, as the commandos were firing way off their marks. Jenna landed and was preparing to initiate phase two of her plan when she found herself doing a tuck and roll to avoid the outstretched claws of both the Emperor and the Queen of Swords. She grabbed the Queen's arm and rolled backward and launched her thirty feet into the air, then did a sweep kick on the Emperor. She knocked him down, but he quickly regained his feet. Jenna realized that her speed advantage was going to quickly be overcome by sheer numbers, as four more wolves closed in on her position. Jenna closed off the flow of air though her nose and mouth, then dropped a gas grenade. The stench from the gas had an immediate effect as the wolves in Jenna's immediate vicinity, all of whom made noises that she had never heard from any animal as their overdeveloped senses rebelled against the sensory invasion. She hurled four more grenades to every corner of the room, and tossed a couple more flash-bangs for good measure. The werewolves seemed to be in disarray, but Jenna knew not to take it for granted. And she still had a particular wolf to – Jenna heard rather than saw the approach, her finely tuned hearing managed to noticed the soft clacking of claws on pavement over all the ruckus, but she still was not able to quite dodge the powerful fist of the Hanged Man as he sent her sailing into a sickly-yellow metallic hulk of a machine. She must have made a noise, because over the intercom, she heard – *Jenna, report!* came her sire's voice. 'Hell,' Jenna thought, watching as one of the deadliest beings she had ever met turned, a mask of some kind covering his face, 'They anticipated sensory attacks.' She expected that all the Major Arcana had such defenses. She wanted to warn her comrades, but she had fought the Hanged Man once before, and knew how dangerous he could be. He deserved her undivided attention. As she stepped forward to engage him, another wolf came at her, this one's armor bearing the symbol of Judgement, swiped at her from underneath the chassis of one of the large vehicles. She skipped over that arm and then brought her heel down on the elbow for a satisfying crack. She didn't have time to savor her minor victory, as the Hanged Man was coming for her again. She dodged down a row of equipment, and she saw a dark doorway beyond. Nessa and William were both yelling at her to respond, and she felt an odd giggling desire to tell the first to shut up and the latter to use his indoor voice. It was strange the things that crossed one's mind when death was imminent. But before she got to the door, her years of tactical training kicked in. Her enemies had been swiping at her, pushing her, and the Fool had sent several Major Arcana after her, so why didn't they simply swarm? They were herding her. Feeling the breath of one of her former colleagues on the back of her armor, she jump up, planted her feet above the doorway, flipped over backward and kicked Judgement in the back of the head and sent him flying through the doorway. Instantly, a blue light shot up from a disc on the floor, and Judgment froze in midair, caught up in a stasis field. "They've got inertia traps!" Jenna yelled into her comms unit. She and the other renegade Nightwalkers had been so worked up about trapping their enemies that it had not even occurred to them that the Fool might want to do the same. Maybe he wanted more than just Jenna back. He wasn't going to get a chance at them though. Only vampires were coming in. "Watch where you're going," she reiterated, then did a forward-jumping kick to the Knight of Rod's face, cracking his facemask. It looked like an impromptu tech job, but it was impressive nonetheless. "And the Major Arcana has masks," said, snapping off a side kick that sent the Magician flying solidly into the front shovel of a bulldozer. *Got it, Nessa replied. *Shock troops adjust tactics accordingly.* *This is Death. The first wave of squirters has made their way to us. Non-lethal effects are working.* There was a moment where someone near Death was cackling with such audible glee that it interfered with Nigel's message. Then, in a dry voice, he added, *And the High Priestess would like everyone to know that she bagged, and this is a quote, 'a whole pack of pound puppies in one damn shot.' She would also like to add that she is 'one hot bitch.' End quote. Over.* Despite the gravity of the situation, Jenna found herself smiling. Her new girlfriend was something else. And when Jenna spun to face the ring growling teeth, she kept smiling. It seemed to disconcert the dozen or so Major Arcana hybrid wolves looking down at her at the moment. Several of them looked at each other, growling in their confusion. They had never seen the Empress smile. And they, almost to a soldier, realized something that the peasants in villages in the old world when the old religions were strongest had learned the hard way. When an angel smiles at you, it is not necessarily a good thing. "Last chance to surrender," she whispered. "I don't want to have to kill you." One of the wolves actually laughed. It was the Wheel of Fortune. "I know you were strong, but we are stronger. You cannot beat us all. And the Fool will reward whoever brings you to him." Jenna looked at each of their pairs of glowing red eyes, and all but one were looking her way. The Lovers, a twin sign for a single young man who was towards the bottom of the Major Arcana in his power level. His eyes were constantly drawn to the side. He was looking for a way out. 'If I can save at least one,' Jenna thought. She maneuvered herself a long the wall, maneuvering herself into a less safe position in order to put the Lovers at the back of the pack, and free to – She had been wrong. Very wrong. Not about the Lovers wanting to leave, as the young Nightwalker bolted the moment that he had the opportunity. She was wrong thinking that she could save him. He was still a yard from the door when the Hanged Man plunged through the smoke and darkness and landed on the Lover's back, latching powerful jaws onto the back of his neck. "No!" Jenna shouted, stepping forward stopping at the wall of growling, taloned death before her. It didn't matter. She heard the crunching of bone, so fast that the Lovers didn't even get to make any noise. He was dead before he even finished hitting the ground. The Hanged Man turned his gaze towards Jenna, his mask pulled to the top of his head, and that infernal rope dangling from around his neck. He was mad. The rest were wild, animalistic, and savage, but the Hanged Man had reached a level of monstrosity that Jenna had simply been unable to fathom before. That man . . . killed. Nothing more, nothing less. And he killed because the Fool wanted him to. The wall next to them thumped heavily, as if a truck had just backed into it, with cinder dust raining down on their heads. "Move away from the --" someone started to say, but everyone pretty much got the idea to back away when the wall began crumbling down, and an enormous figure stepped through the rubble. Clad now only in his ceremonial belt, Shinmatsu appeared between Jenna and the circling wolves. "You," he said calmly, "forgot to tell us where you're going. For that . . . no cookie." She stared for a moment. "Cookie?" "Yes, I said . . . one moment," he added quickly as a Nightwalker hybrid wolf launched itself forward. Watching Shinmatsu move was like watching a wave. You didn't realize how fast it was moving, or how much force it had behind it, until it hit. And oh did it hit. The enormous sumo's hands moved out, touched the wolf's chest, then swirled him around and into a dilapidated vending machine with such speed that an ancient can of Coke Zero rolled down the chute afterward and landed on the unconscious wolf's head. "Geh," Shinmatsu said afterward. "Diet drink. No good can come of that." And just like that, the tides seemed to turn. Jenna ran toward Shinmatsu and, almost as if he sensed her intention, hunkered down and glared at the enemy while she launched herself off of his back and front kicked a former comrade in the face while pulling out her semi-auto pistols. She had played nice as long as she could. Nessa arrived with Marcus at her side just in time to see Jenna stop fighting defensively, and it was a thing of beauty. She sailed up into the air, the sound of gunfire acting as her heavenly orchestra, sending that undead valkyrie high into the heavens with 9mm, silver-tipped serenades all her own. The Nightwalker replacements seemed unable to track her, she was moving so quickly, and the remaining wolf hybrids were momentarily transfixed. The Empress had been replaced by an angel, all dressed in white, but silver bullets came streaking from her guns with unsettling precision. Fortunately for the wolves, silver was a soft metal and did not work as effectively against body armor as regular rounds, but at least two snarling furies hit the floor under her eye. Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 "She is magnificent," Marcus whispered from behind his creator. "And she's just getting started," Nessa replied. She was begrudgingly admitting to herself that maybe Marcus was right and she should not have come. Some floating and a few skirmishes had already left her feeling drained, causing her to rely more and more on Marcus. Not that she really minded. She liked watching him work. "Marcus, that one, towards the back . . . that's the Hanged Man," she murmured, a deep rage filling her tanks a for a bit. "The one who killed Ipos?" Marcus pulled his sword out from its back sheath. Despite almost two thousand years having passed, Marcus was a traditionalist. He liked to kill the important people up close and personal. "Say the word, my eternal love." Nessa dug her claws into Marcus's shoulders and growled. "I want my pound of flesh." "And you shall have it." Marcus sprang into action, and he had not lost a step. Those who knew him could almost see the Roman warrior stepping forward in the shining armor and plumed helmet that he had worn so long ago. He had been born and forged in the wars of arguably the greatest empire on earth, and he had not forgotten. Oh no, his muscles and his blood remembered. Some of the leaders of the Minor Arcana had arrived with their few ragged troops, as most of the rest were already dead or had fled. The King of Swords was stabbed through the midsection as Marcus approached, who then spun, pulled his sword out, elbowed the man in the back of the head, then stepped forward and stabbed someone else. No wasted motion, and everything landed. Things were pure chaos now, as the werewolf hybrids had encountered an enemy more deadly than itself. It had numbers and fire support, but the vampires had speed, strength, hi-tech, and a perimeter. It was never pretty to watch a team begin to break when such action led to a grisly death, but that's what began to happen. Theo crept off into the darkness to hunt the human Nightwalker backups in their perches, while Nessa's demons began beating the bushes. Every now and then, they would hear a scream as Anabella unleashed banshee fury on someone, then beat them over the head with her shilelagh (and Jenna had learned never to mention to the banshee that the shilelagh was an Irish invention . . . it made her testy). The vampires engaged their werewolf counterparts, giving Jenna a chance to catch her bearings. Her eyes were drawn up. "Where are you?" she muttered. "Looking for the Fool?" Nessa asked, standing behind her. "Yes, I . . . you feel off," Jenna said, turning to her sire. "You're tired. Weary." The redhead nodded. "Yeah, a bit. We need to finish this." "You should go. We can --" Nessa cut her off with a raised eyebrow. "I don't run." Nessa raised the shotgun she was carrying and blasted a round into the Page of Cup's breastplate. The plate held, but the wolf was knocked back twenty feet. "I know. Doesn't mean I won't tell you to," Jenna replied. She looked up. "I need to find him. To end this." "Don't go --" Nessa watched her youngest jump up, grab a diagonal girder, and shimmy off into the darkness. "What we have here is a failure to communicate," she whispered. "Take care." Jenna made her way up into the spiderweb of plas-steel girders, dust, and shadows that clung to the ceiling of the warehouse. Her eyes took on that soft, white glow that had captivated her sire, and she gazed out into the world above the world, looking for him. Finding him. The Fool had a machine gun in his right hand, and he was leaning over with his other claws gripping a beam, and he was unloading shells with uncommon ferocity. The Fool that the Empress had known would never waste ammo that way. He was mostly hitting the tops of construction equipment, but she saw at least one vampire's armor penetrated, and Anabella was trying hard to keep out of his view. Then their eyes met, and the Fool righted himself on the beam. Next, he shook his head. Finally, he did something that truly surprised Jenna. He ran. It took her a full second to realize what had happened before pursuing. Running? The Fool? Across the girders, up an access ladder, and through a hatch in the roof, she followed him. 'What is it about roofs?' she thought as she followed his trail around rusted cooling units and other structures. Up ahead, the Fool sat perched on the edge of some piping, watching her. "I thought we might take this somewhere more private," he said as she jumped nimbly up onto a metal crate. "Oh Empress, you should have simply surrendered." "Surrender? The field is lost to you," she replied. "The day, perhaps, but not the field. You brought in powerful reinforcements. Vampires?" Jenna nodded, glancing around. He would have some more tricks, she was sure of it. "My family." "I know of your family," the Fool replied, growling from behind sharp canine teeth. "They died in fear and pain, did they not?" Jenna's skin felt clammy and her heart gave an involuntarily beat. "Is that your plan then? To anger me with thoughts of my old life?" "I have no control over your thoughts, Empress. I'm not sure that I ever did. Had I realized how . . . damaged, you were, I might have culled you from the herd earlier." "You are inconsistent in your thoughts. First, I am the only one worthy to become your mate, and now? Now you call me damaged? It's almost ironic, seeing as I am more whole now than I ever was when I worked for you." Her hand drifted towards the base of her spine and the guass pistol hiding there. "I wouldn't recommend that," the Fool said, holding up a detonator in his right hand. "See, I figured you would surround the base, so I've rigged explosives in a wide perimeter. Touch that gun, and all of the other traitor Nightwalkers and the rest of the monsters that you've thrown your lot in with will die." Jenna froze. She should have known better. The Fool had plans on top of plans on top of plans. "To what end? You blow them up, I kill you. You gain nothing from it unless you are planning on running." She cocked her head. "And I never figured you for a coward." The Fool's hand clenched. "No, I am not a coward. I simply adjust strategy." "Adjust? You threatened my son, my friends, and anyone else who disagrees with your obscene crusade, and you call that adjustment? Do you even know what you're fighting for anymore?" "I am fighting for my nation, and to create the greatest black ops unit that the world has ever seen. Think about what we've learned. Thing about what we ARE! If we get our scientists to analyze both viruses . . . the one that affects you and me, think of what they could create!" He would never stop. Jenna knew that, but what to do? She wouldn't let him take the buildings down. She wouldn't let him escape. The Fool saw the gears clicking in the Empress's head. He grabbed a pair of stasis cuffs from off of his belt and tossed them to her. "Take off you comms, drop your weapons, and put those on. Once we're safely on our way to DoD headquarters, I disarm the explosives." Jenna was not an idiot. Every fiber in her being reminded her of her training. Once the kidnapper has you where he or she wants you, you're pretty much lost. He would not abide by the promise he had just made. He would have no reason to. *Jenna,* came William's voice, *Don't do this! I've been watching the whole time, and I let Caitlin know. They're evacuating the area. Just keep him distracted.* 'A chance,' she thought. "Okay," she said, making sure that her comms unit was still on when she put it down. "Taking off comms, and putting weapons down," she said, keeping her eyes straight on her enemy. She needed to buy time, so she would go along with this charade. She wanted to look around for the remote sensor that her son was piloting, but she didn't want to give its position away. Her son had been looking out for her, which made her all kinds of proud. "Hurry," the Fool said, watching as weapon after weapon hit the rooftop. The woman had come armed to the teeth. It actually aroused him somewhat. She said he could not turn her, but perhaps he could still . . . enjoy . . . her. By the time the last grenade had been placed on the ground, the Fool had become somewhat impatient. He did not believe that the Empress was going to make this so easy, not after all the problems she had caused. What was her angle? He did not have much chance to figure it out, as the Hanged Man erupted through a door onto the roof. "We must . . . hurry," the hybrid Nighwalker growled. "The defenses have fallen." "I am aware of this," the Fool said. "So the end game remains the same?" the Hanged Man asked, looking hungrily at Jenna. "We were fighting back on our heels. No more. We take her, we start over somewhere else. In the end, we win." "Well, I don't know how long that vampire will be distracted. He's dangerous." The Fool glanced away from his prey to look at his second in command. "YOU think he's dangerous?" "Sir, I've never seen anyone fight like WATCH OUT!" A small distraction was all she had needed, and so Jenna moved the moment she could. Using all the speed that her own hybrid nature allowed, she had closed the distance between them in less than a blink, and her hand closed so tightly on the Fool's that she heard a bone snap. "Impressive," he said, then swung his other fist at her head. Jenna dodged, then brought her knee up to the Fool's groin, which he blocked with his own leg. He tried to wrest the detonator away from the Empress, but her grip was like cold iron. He swung his arm, but she didn't let go, allowing herself to be slammed into an enormous pipe rather than give him control of the device. Of course, she was still conscious, so she rolled backward and hurled him in an arc over her head and smashed him into the roof with a loud thud. He did not let go either. The door that the Hanged Man had come through earlier burst open again, and Marcus came flying out, a sword in one hand and blood streaming from a cut in his forehead. He looked angry. "We still have a score to settle, you and I," the Roman warrior growled, hurling himself at the Hanged Man with deadly purpose. The combat on the rooftop became chaotic, with the Hanged Man attempting to stave off Marcus while Jenna and the Fool fought for control of the detonator. Jenna had to make sure the device did not go off, putting her at a distinct disadvantage. She fought with her free elbow and her knees, laying on blows faster than the Fool could block them, but the wolf could take a lot of damage and his blows came down heavier than his adversary's. Marcus's fight with the Hanged Man, however, was all over the place, and there was nothing at hand that could not be counted as a weapon. Marcus kicked the Hanged Man back twenty feet, but the wolf just landed on all four paws and then bounced off two walls as he closed the gap and attempted to remove Marcus's head. Marcus failed to oblige, ducking and then landing a serious uppercut on the wolf's jaw. The wolf took it in stride, bringing an elbow down on Marcus's head. "Your new friend is formidable," the Fool said, trying to gouge Jenna's eyes out. "He's a Roman soldier. From actual Rome. He's had a lot of practice." She went for an elbow break, but the old commander was far too crafty for that, spinning until he had Jenna in an arm lock. Jenna stepped toward him and elbowed him twice in the face, then spun out of the hold. He kicked her in the knee as she moved, and she was sure something was close to breaking. Still, she couldn't let go. Her free hand grabbed the Fool by the throat and rammed the back of his head into a wall, trying vainly to choke off his oxygen supply as well. He went for a forearm to the inside of her elbow to break the distance, then tried to forearm her in the face. She ducked her head back and then bit him. Hard. When the Fool yanked his arm free, he took one of Jenna's fangs with him, causing blood to pour out her mouth. Still, it was almost worth it for her to watch her former boss shaking his arm wildly as if trying to get rid of cooties. She used the temporary distraction to put her elbow into his throat. Most of it was blocked by his armor, but some force got through, and she knew that he had to be having problems breathing by now. Marcus was trying very hard to ram his short sword through the Hanged Man's eye socket, but the wolf was being strangely non-cooperative. He was responding quite savagely. He had even ripped his mask away, showing a somewhat mutated and all-together vicious looking wolf face. The two titanic warriors seemed so evenly matched, except that Marcus was not tiring, and the Hanged Man had been in conflict all night. "Give up," Jenna said through bloody lips. "The order to evacuate the surrounding area has already been given. The rest of Jenna's . . . OOF! . . . people will be here soon," she added despite a hard blow to the stomach. "A real soldier never surrenders," he snarled. "I'm surprised you were so willing to do so." "I wasn't surrendering," she told him as coldly as she could. "I was adapting." He snarled and raised his hand to try and hit her again, and then . . . then something strange happened. A small, floating, metallic disk ran into the Fool's face at lackluster speed. It did manage to hit him in the eye. It had somehow entered the fray silently and, while doing no damage, certainly took the Fool by surprise. 'It's a remote sensor,' Jenna thought. It was her son. As the Fool almost casually destroyed the sensor, Jenna knew that she needed to take advantage. The only thing at hand was a rusted piece of sheet metal. She tore off a chunk and, making sure to hit an angle perpendicular to the arm, shoved it down as hard as she could. The Fool let out a howl that would have frightened villagers across the land back in the day. The Empress had just taken off his hand at the wrist, leaving her in sole possession of the detonator. She summersaulted away, putting space between the two of them. The Fool, already mostly mad, started forward until he saw a couple of red dots sweep across the ground and come to rest on his chest and between his eyes. He looked up to the roof of the stairwell. "Death," he gasped. "High Priestess." It was simply an acknowledgement. The two renegade Nightwalkers stared down their former commander, their weapons loaded with silver and trained on him if he so much as twitched. "Like the lady said," Death said solidly, glancing at Jenna, "It's over." To his credit, the Hanged Man was loyal to the last. Seeing his commanding officer in trouble, he broke away from Marcus and interjected himself between the Fool and the commandos. Not that Marcus much cared, as he tackled the Hanged Man from behind, locking the wolf's arm behind him and grinding his face into the roof. At that moment, something happened in the Fool's eyes. It was as if the fire that had been burning there was extinguished in an instant. He knew . . . it had taken so long and so many lives, but he knew. The Fool was done. "It was a good dream," he muttered, as much to himself as anyone else. "It was not worth the price," Jenna replied anyway, picked one of her pistols up where she had discarded it. About that time, Nessa, Anabella, Shinmatsu, and the demons arrived. Cresil and Kobal looked down at the captured Hanged Man with pure hate. Nessa just looked tired. She saw that her oldest and youngest children were bleeding, wounded in her name. She had depleted her energy reserves in the fight, and she would need blood soon. So would the rest of her children but, in that stubborn way of vampires, they would insist that Nessa eat first. "Do you surrender?" she asked, just badly wanting this to be over. The Hanged Man was like a rabid animal, but Marcus was able to keep him pinned. The Fool just stood there, bleeding. Jenna handed the Fool's other hand, complete with detonator, to Shinmatsu, then turned back to the source of all her recent troubles. What was strange was that she did not truly feel victorious. "Sir?" she asked, stepping toward the Fool with her weapon raised. The Fool looked at her, almost through her, then closed his eyes and nodded. He knew she was not going to give him the opportunity to live. She knew he would not accept it. Too much had happened. Too much water under too small of a bridge. She pulled the trigger and shot the Fool two times in the head, sending him to the ground in a bloody heap. The Hanged Man let out a mournful howl. Marcus looked up at his sire, his lover, and his friend. In response, Nessa stuck out her fist, extended her thumb, then rotated her hand until the thumb was facing downward. Marcus nodded, grabbed his sword off the ground, and drove it through the back of the Hanged Man's head. Silence. Crisp, dark, all-encompassing silence. The distant sirens, the sounds of the city, the clamor of the mop-up going on down below, all of it seemed to just fade away. "Sometimes," Nessa said, looking at the carnage on the warehouse rooftop, "I hate my job." -------- ------------------- Later that night . . . -------- ------------------- It had been a scramble, but Avery had managed to get enough donors to replenish the blood for all the battle-weary vampires. Accommodations had been arranged for the dozens of new refugees and captives until Nessa was able to get a new alpha were for the hybrid wolves, or before she could get around to mind-wiping the human commandos who had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. They had saved as many as they could, but Nessa's crematories were still working overtime to get rid of the evidence. Ghede and Lawrence had already begun laying the groundwork for their coverup. The Fool's computer banks would show medical data chronicling a number of unexpected mutations resulting from the bioengineering, and the bodies that were found would show all sorts of anomalies, thanks to Ghede's spell. The Fool and the Hanged Man would never be found. The Nightwalkers that had survived had agreed to work for Nessa, and the ancient vampire had already put out feelers for a new alpha werewolf to come and oversee the area's pack, including the hybrids and all of the special attention that they would require. The World was the highest ranking Nightwalker hybrid that had survived and been captured, and he had agreed to help calm his brethren in exchange for Marcus's promise not to eviscerate him. Marcus's wound had already healed, as had Jenna's, though her missing fang would take a few days. Luckily, she could feed with just one. Instantly upon her return, William and Caitlin had started fawning over her, almost competing for the right to nurse her back to health. Death and Avery were overseeing the clean up, so the vampires, plus Jenna's "entourage," gathered in Nessa's quarters. "Are you going to be okay?" William asked again. Jenna mumbled something through the ice pack. Her glowing white eyes had dimmed and there was a touch of blood at the corners of her eyes as if she were trying to cry. "I think so. Nessa said the fang will grow back in the next few days." Caitlin wiped the tears away. "You had to do it. We had to do it. We saved who we could, and that's because of you." William looked confused. "Wait, are you upset because you killed that Fool guy? Why?" Jenna smiled wanly and put her hand on her son's shoulder. "I . . . I think it's a military thing." Marcus walked over and sat down. "Sorry, I could not help but eavesdrop. Seriously, vampire hearing," he added with a grin. He looked at William. "When you are part of a unit as insulated as the military can be, there is a kind of brotherhood. Much like real family, you don't always like your brothers, but there is always a sense that they will be there when you need them. To end such a relationship, however justified, is like --" Nos Faux Ratu Ch. 08 "Losing family?" William replied, looking back to his biological mother. "Yes, like losing family," Marcus finished. "Which is hard, under any circumstances." "I'm sorry," the young man said, looking at Jenna. "I didn't know." "Neither did I." Jenna ran her hand through her son's hair. It felt like such a normal motion, but she pulled her hand back. He wasn't her son, not in the way that mattered. Michelle Monroe was his mother. Only she had "ruffle the hair" privileges. "It's okay," he told her, seeing the pain in his face. "And we still need to talk about you meeting the rest of my family." "I thought we agreed --" "No, you decided that meeting my parents wouldn't work, and I decided you're full of --" "Language." He gave her a dirty look. "You agree to come meet my parents, and THEN you can tell me to watch my language." "I can't --" "I think you can," William interrupted. "You're just afraid to. And I thought about what you said, about this changing the way they see me. I don't care. Any decision I make can change the way they see me, but it's not going to stop me from making them." "I like him," Nessa said, sitting down next to Marcus and putting her head on his shoulder. It was impressive how natural they looked together. No wonder she turned him. "Jenna, you can't tell me you don't want to be part of his life. Why not do this?" Jenna rehashed all her excuses in her head, and nothing seemed to sound as forceful as it had. "What would we tell them?" she asked at last. "We'll figure that out," Nessa said, leaning in and kissing her child on the forehead. Jenna sank into Caitlin's arms, letting her new lover's warmth calm chills that Jenna did not even known she had. "And," Nessa added, "I have one last task for you as well." Jenna looked slightly concerned. "What?" "I'll tell you in a few days. For now, we need to rest up, and YOU need to get to know your family." Nessa looked around and, as if someone had sent a silent command, the rest of her children made their way over to sit down. For the first time in sixteen years, Jenna had a home. ---------- ------------------ A month later . . . ---------- ------------------ Jenna had thought the days she spent being terrified were over and behind her, but apparently not. In the preceding 30 days, things in New Atlanta had gotten back to normal, though what constituted "normal" in her mind had been irrevocably altered since that fateful night she had hurled a corporate spy out of a window. She, a member of a top-secret commando unit, had then discovered a world of "monsters," been drawn into that world, and had walked out the other side, a whole being for the first time in over fifteen years. After having her family murdered and her life ripped asunder as a child, she had a new family, and a new life. As far as anyone could tell, it seemed that the government had bought the cover-up. Every human or Night Breed that had been involved in that final battle had been rounded up and given a choice, keep what had happened secret, or die. Strangely, no one had turned down Nessa's offer, especially after she started offering sex as part of the severance package. This seemed to annoy Marcus, which led to a fight between the two ancient vampires, which led to sex to between those same two vampires. Apparently, most things led to Nessa and Marcus having sex. But when the sun rose, Jenna was summoned back to Nessa's bed, as the proximity helped her adjust. In a show of trust, Caitlin was invited to sleep with them as well, though she had to remind Marcus (repeatedly) that she was completely gay, and that he needed to keep his hands to himself. In the meantime, Jenna had spent time with all of Nessa's other children, particularly Shinmatsu. For some reason, Jenna just felt comfortable with the six-hundred pound man. After her upcoming vacation to the Bahamas with Caitlin, the two of them were going to be flying out to Japan to spend time with Shinmatsu and his wife. Both of them were now officially Nessa's employees, and the elder vampire had ordered them to take the first year of their employment off. But first, there were two things that Jenna had to do that filled her with dread. The first had been meeting William's adopted parents. The cover story that Caitlin had concocted was to replace all parties of interest with crime syndicates and secret (but non-military) organizations. When William had introduced his parents to his Jenna, she had been so scared that she almost cried, which had elicited a motherly response from Michelle Moore. They had gone over everything, from Jenna giving up her son after surviving what the Messenger did, all the way up to absconding with William for his own safety. While Ron Moore had been angry about being kept out of the loop, he eventually thawed out when he discovered that there was no more danger, and that it had never been Jenna's intent to come between them and the child that they had raised. In the end, the Moores were good people, who did not fault Jenna for any of the decisions that she had made, and supported William in his desire to have his biological mother be a part of his life. And William WAS part of her life. At the moment, an annoying part. He and Caitlin had both boarded a plane with Jenna to make sure that she fulfilled the task that Nessa had put before her. Jenna was still a slightly fractured psyche. She had made peace with her present, she had a future that she actually looked forward to, but she needed one last piece . . . to be connected to her past. There was only one person that had known Jenna back in the days before she had been left at the mercy of the Messenger when she was just fifteen, and Jenna had been ordered, quite literally, to mend that bridge between "what is" and "what was." So she found herself standing on the sidewalk in front of a townhouse, no different in its appearance from every other house on the street, in the early hours of dusk. It was what was inside that was different. Inside was Tanya Smithson Caine, Jenna's best friend in high school. She was also the first girl that Jenna had ever had a crush on, and the first girl that Jenna had ever kissed. "You are not going to just stand there all night," William said, standing at her side. He almost wanted to smile, seeing his mother acting so nervous. He knew that she could kill a man in a matter of seconds, but she had all the social confidence of a teenager. With his parent's permission, he had been able to accompany Jenna on this trip, partially to spend more time with her, at Nessa's insistence, to make sure that she damn well went through with it. "We will actually ring the doorbell for you," Caitlin added, standing on the other side. "C'mon honey, it'll be fine." Jenna gave a slight smile to her girlfriend. Caitlin, formerly known as the High Priestess, had been a rock for Jenna in the last month, patient to a fault, yet passionate. Every day, the two women had exchanged intimacies, and had gone on dates like normal people did. The fact that they were both trained assassins and soldiers just meant that being mugged was less likely. "What if she's mad at me? What if she doesn't even remember me?" "Jenna," William started, finally cracking a smile, "you're kind of unforgettable. I doubt it was much different when you were a teenager." Caitlin took her hand. "You're the most beautiful girl that I've ever seen. I think William's right, that there's no way she could have forgotten you. You even said she tried to visit you --" "I couldn't face her," Jenna said. Caitlin kissed her cheek. "You can now." Jenna steeled herself, then took each step up to the door as if she were walking the last mile at prison. Her finger trembled as it reached forward and touched the buzzer. Seconds later, a man answered the door. He was handsome enough, with a slightly receding hairline but kind eyes. Somewhere in the background was the sound of a woman's voice, talking to a child while preparing dinner. "Yes?" the man said, "May I help you?" Jenna's words froze in her mouth. "I . . . I --" She looked over at Caitlin who just smiled patiently. Jenna turned back to the man, whose name she knew was Steve. "I was looking for Tanya." The man glanced toward the open door from where all the noise was coming from. "Honey, there are some people here to see you." "Well, who are they?" shouted a voice that was so achingly familiar to Jenna that her heart almost beat at the sound of it. The man glanced at Jenna. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name." "Jenna," she replied. "Jenna Owens." The man turned around again. "It's a Jenna Owens?! Were you --" He stopped, as the noises in the kitchen stopped with alarming speed. Footsteps were heard approaching the kitchen door. The woman who appeared in that door was a few pounds heavier than the last time Jenna had spoken with her, but she wore it well. With pride even. She had always had an athlete's build and swagger, to the point where she had been a little butch, but Jenna hadn't cared in the least. She had married Steven right out of college, and the kids had come along shortly. One of them, a five-year old boy, was peeking out from around his mother's leg. But Tanya's eyes were fixed on Jenna's like she was seeing a ghost. And to a certain extent, she was. "I . . . I thought you were dead," Tanya whispered. She stepped forward and raised a hand, wanting to see if Jenna was real, but afraid that she was just imagining this. Jenna felt her eyes begin to well up, and quickly dabbed them with a dark cloth so that Tanya would not see the blood. "I wanted to be," she whispered. "I didn't want . . . Tanya, I'm so sorry," she said, trying to keep herself composed as all the memories crashed into her at once. She had been talking with Tanya on the computer the day her family was taken. This was was the only person left who remembered her the way she was before. Jenna herself had tried so hard to forget that young girl. "I just couldn't see you after . . . after --" Tanya lunged forward and wrapped her arms around her long-lost friend. She was crying. She remembered Jenna Owens. She knew what the girl had been, and she had known what she had lost. She had sat at the Owens's dining room table. She had watched movies with her best friend on their couch. She remembered. "I tried to visit you," she said, gasping for breath as she held the beautiful woman close, afraid that she'd vanish again. "I wasn't ready to see you. I couldn't. I was dead inside, and I didn't want you to see me like that," Jenna managed, choking on a pain that had been dormant for so long. Tanya finally noticed that Jenna wasn't alone. "Who --" she sniffed. Jenna looked behind. "Jenna, this is my girlfriend, Caitlin," she said, indicating the buxom brunette, who just smiled in response. "And this is William." She looked Tanya. "My son." Tanya's eyes opened wide. "Your . . . son? But he's --" "Almost sixteen." The other woman's eyes opened wider. "That means --" "Yeah. He knows," she said, looking lovingly at her boy. Then her eyes were drawn back to Tanya. "Tanya, I know I have no right to ask, since I just disappeared on you, but . . . but I've been broken. I'm trying to fix myself, but I can't to it without you." Tanya looked at her friend, then to Caitlin and then to William. "God," she said, "you look so much like her." She glanced at her very confused-looking husband. "Steven, I think I'll need you to handle dinner tonight. I think Jenna and I have a lot of catching up to do." ---------- ------------------ The End . . .