The Storm of Garmr

by Bo Luellen

  David stirred his tea as he asked, “So what’s the plan?”

  Basten patted his forehead with his napkin, “The ‘plan,’ Mr. Keller is simple, get Ms. Lanyon’s daughters back. The minutia of that design is a bit more complicated. First, we must find out what kind of vampire we are dealing with. Once we know that, then we can assemble a strategy and then devise a tactic to pull our prey into a trap.”

  Nicolaas had a worried look on his face, “How can we know that? Is there some kind of test?”

  David eyed the kid with suspicion as Basten responded, “There are tests, yes, but these creatures are notoriously uncooperative. You have to determine their clan by subterfuge or interrogation.”

  His grandson nervously asked, “Just how are we supposed to do that?”

  David tilted his head in suspicion, “Shouldn’t you know? You sounded like you knew your stuff back at the cemetery. Now you’re asking questions like someone who’s never done this before.”

  Nicolaas looked to the side as Basten replied, “He hasn’t. This will be his first outing as a hunter of vampires.”

  Thomas choked on his chip as Keller exclaimed, “Oh, you got to be kidding me!”

  The elder grinned, “Not to worry, Mr. Keller. I’ve been grooming young Nicolaas since birth to one day take over for me. Indeed, he has only recently become aware of our family’s unique responsibility and heritage, but he has been well trained. The boy has a degree in history, has a black belt in several martial arts, is in good shape, an expert marksman, and has been schooled in interrogation and investigation techniques. I’ve kept him isolated from the rotting social circles of today’s youth and centered on sharpening his mind. He might be green, but he is ready.”

  The druid spouted a mouth full of chips replying, “Kept him from social circles? You mean you didn’t let him have friends?”

  Nicolaas looked away, sheepishly as his grandfather proudly stated, “Today’s youth is too chaotic and self-obsessed to allow Nicolaas to be around them. He has books instead of a cell phone. His destiny is to defend mankind against the vampiric plague that our family has waged war against for generations.”

  Thomas wrinkled his nose, “Oh, my god. What a horrifying childhood. You raised a child and didn’t let him have friends. You put him through all of that and never told him what it’s for? You’re lucky he didn’t turn out to be a serial killer! This kid sounds like he has abilities but no social skills. How is he supposed to serve mankind if he has no way to relate to it?” Before Basten could reply, Thomas pointed his fork at him, “Nicolaas has zero real-world experience, you look like a slight breeze will kill you, and we have no plan.”

  Nicolaas ’s face went red from embarrassment as his grandfather responded, “Oh, we have a plan, Mr. Booth. It is one I’ve used for decades to some great success.”

  David observed the old man as he pulled out his phone, thumbed the passcode “1897”, and announced, “Here is where we shall lay our trap gentlemen.”

  The image on the phone was a Google Map of a section of land in Tahlequah. Thomas squinted at the screen through his thick glasses as David let out a loud guffaw. The elder Van Helsing dropped his phone on the table and gave the large man a scowl.

  Thomas pulled the phone closer, “Where is this. I can’t see that damn thing.”

  David leaned in towards Basten, “It’s the Preserve, which is impossible to get to. That place is surrounded by armed FBI, police, and a small group of Christian Crusaders twenty-four-seven. The Feds are still digging up corpses, and the media is always looking to get in. We won’t be able to get within 3 miles of that area without having to go through a checkpoint.”

  Nicolaas cut into his enchiladas and replied, “We were there just today.”

  The waitress refilled the group’s water, as David exclaimed, “Bullshit! Prove it.”

  After a few minutes of looking through Basten’s phone, David was shown dozens of photos the pair had taken from inside the Preserve. He cycled through images of the twin cabins, the burned sacrificial platform, and even the empty kennels. Thomas continued to chomp down on chips as he looked over David’s shoulder at the phone at the battle-blasted clearing that had been the spot where a small war had been waged.

  David handed the phone back, “How did you get these? The police were all over that place.”

  Basten gave a gnarled grin, “Yes, they should be, but they aren’t, though. Oh, the FBI comes for a few hours during the day, salvaging up one or two bodies, then they leave. The gates have sensors, but the woods are thick enough to move around without being spotted. There are a few security guards, but they are easily avoided during the night.”

  David blurted out, “Okay, so why the Preserve? Wouldn’t it be the last place some vampires would hole up?”

  Queso dripped off Basten’s grey beard as he replied, “Yes! Exactly, Mr. Keller! If this Marcus is a coven leader, as I suspect he is, then he will need a place to rest. Oklahoma isn’t known for land sanctified to dark powers. A creature of the night would find a restful sleep on land anointed by Cthulhu, especially if that vampire had ties to the Great Dreamer.”

  Thomas dropped his fork, “Like I told those cultists, that ground is under my protection. If it’s infested with vamps, then it needs to be cleansed.”

  The elder continued, “Yes, Mr. Booth, but not just yet, or we risk spoiling our chance to get back Amanda Lanyon’s children. This Vampire Marcus is an agent of Cthulhu, and that means he will not travel too far from Tulsa. That is another clue that the Preserve is a viable place for them to lair.”

  David suddenly wasn’t hungry, “Basten, exactly what will we be facing if we find this lair?”

  The old man wiped his beard, “A layer of hell that can’t be easily forgotten. You can expect corpses, scenes of feeding, and enthralled slaves. Their lair will be guarded by one or two spawn at most during the night. During the day, this particular clan of Vampire enjoys subterfuge in lieu of barriers. It’s best to draw them out, Mr. Keller. If one did solve the puzzle of their resting place, you would be more likely to have stepped into one of their traps and become a servant of the devil.”

  David felt a cold well up in his stomach, “Great. So, your plan is to…”

  Nicolaas looked up at his grandfather with an anxious expression as Basten boasted, “I say these creatures are hiding in plain sight, in graves at the Preserve. That area is where they rest, and that is where we set our trap!”

  Thomas pulled David’s plate over to him, stabbing a piece of chimichanga, “Okay, but afterward, I’m departing from your merry band of idiots and going to work cleansing the ground. I got one question though, what is going to make these vamps come out? I mean, you said they are really good at hiding.”

  Basten gave a broad smile, “We have some enticing bait, Mr. Booth.”

  David watched in disgust as Thomas ate his leftovers off his plate and asked, “What kind of bait?”

  With a satisfied smirk, Basten replied, “The both of you to be precise.”

  Thomas muttered with a mouthful of food, “What did he thay?”

  David gave Basten a hard stare, “He said he is going to use us as bait.”

  The druid swallowed his food and exclaimed, “Look you walking wrinkle, I might look like just another handsome face, but don’t mistake me for some clueless bimbo. Cernunnos has shown me that Amanda Lanyon is a key part of my path, so I’m happy to help find her kids, but I’m not down with being a blood donor to some undead. You want to go vampire hunting with your grandson, then go play Castlevania! I’m not going to ...”

  Basten interrupted, “Mr. Booth, calm yourself. You are in good hands.”

  David opened his hands in confusion, “Why would we be of any more interest to a vampire than those Feds that are walking around out there? Why would they risk exposing themselves over Thomas and me??”

  The senior Van Helsing shook his index finger at David, “Because something Amanda Lanyon knows is valuable to them. Some
thing she has seen or heard has caused them to take her children hostage. Amanda has heeded my advice and left the country, which allows us to act. The last people she publicly spoke with were the four of us and Jessup House. Marcus Holmes has invested a great deal of his time and energy into maintaining a controlling hold on her. Thanks to Amanda’s wealthy friend, Mr. Dyer, their travel plans to Scotland have been hidden from the general public. That means there is a good chance that Marcus wants to know where she is. Who better to know that secret than the two of you. You were the ones that fought alongside her at the Battle of the Preserve. You were seen speaking to her at Larry Lanyon’s funeral right before she disappeared.”

  Thomas gave an expression of sudden realization, “You son of a bitch! You could have approached her at any time. You picked the funeral because all the cameras were on us. Now that’s she’s gone, it makes us the last people that could know her plans. You set us up!.”

  Basten grumbled, “Please, Mr. Booth, don’t be so dramatic. The Crimson Brotherhood is a vengeful cult. They would have come knocking at your door, looking to take your life eventually. What, did you think you could walk into a hive of killers and not come away with a black mark?”

  Thomas said flatly, “Yes.”

  A grizzled laugh spouted from Basten’s gut, “Well, you’re a bigger fool than I suspected. At least this way, if you die, it will mean something. You’ll be doing your Cernunnos a service by helping Amanda get her kids back.”

  The druid threw his napkin on the table, “Well, that is a shit plan! So what are you two going to do if some superhuman vampire pounces on the two of us? One of you is going to instantly die of old age while the other one shows the monster his black belt. We’re screwed! I request a new plan. You might have a death wish because you’re dying, but don’t put me in that coffin with you!”

  David looked confused, “Dying?”

  Basten lowered his head, glanced at Nicolaas , and confessed, “It’s true.”

  The druid stabbed a piece of meat, “I think you’re so desperate to get your grandson kick-started into the family business before you croak, that you’re willing to risk our lives to do it.

  The younger Van Helsing piped in, “My grandfather is a good man. He hid the horrors our family fought so he could protect me. It is my time to answer the call and become a defender of the weak and the meek. I shall be the stake to the night and ...”

  A chip bounced off Nicolaas ’s face, and Thomas interrupted, “Shut up, Justin Bieber! Did you memorize that in case you needed to make a speech? You sound like you’re reading from an episode of Darkwing Duck!”

  Insulted, Nicolaas stood up quickly from his chair and hit his head on the overhead lamp. Thomas giggled at the young man grabbing his stinging head and stabbed some food off the Van Helsing’s plate. David took notice that the surrounding patrons were starting to take note of their conversation.

  David reached up and steadied the light, “Okay, everyone take a breath. I get it. You needed an angle, but you need to be transparent with us from now on. That said, I’m still in.”

  David looked over at Thomas for his answer. The druid’s smile went away when he realized David was serious. He downed the last of his margarita, belched, and nodded in begrudging agreement.

  David returned his attention to Basten, “Just how do you plan on keeping the worms alive when the catfish come calling?”

  Tahlequah, Oklahoma – Tuesday, November 6th, 2018 – 3:02 a.m. CST

  The forest surrounding the Preserve was cold, and David’s breath bellowed out of his mouth like a steam engine. He hadn’t dressed warmly enough for an expedition like this, but he was determined and committed. Walking ahead of him was Thomas, dressed in his dingy brown cloak. The big man had to admit he was envious of the druid’s forethought, even if he suspected the “cloak” was a repurposed poncho.

  Thomas held sage in his right hand and was burning the incense as they marched. In his left hand was a cup of cider he was sprinkling about to anoint the ground. The druid walked a circle around the tree as he sang:

  “Tha an soitheach seo air a dhèanamh naomh.

  Na leig na h-uisgeachan àrdachadh,

  agus na leig leam tinneas no baneadh

  crois a-mach an èadhair, an talamh, an uisge no an teine seo.”

  David finally had enough and asked, “What is that song saying, exactly? You’ve been droning on for hours.”

  Thomas splashed the tree with cider, “It’s Irish Gaelic, and the closest translation is:

  “This grove is made sacred.

  Let the waters not rise,

  and let no ill will nor bane

  cross this encircled air, earth, water or fire.”

  David pulled his hands out of pockets and rubbed them together, “You’ve repeated that dumb song so many times I think I know it by heart.”

  Thomas finished a tree and moved onto the next, as he replied, “You’re face is dumb. These are ancient and important rites that need to performed to rid the forest of Cthulhu’s influence. Too bad the same can’t be said of you.”

  Behind him, David heard the dried leaves rustle as something stepped towards them. He whirled about and pulled his flashlight. Instinctively he unsnapped his service pistol and peered into the darkness. Thomas continued his chanting, oblivious to what was happening, as Keller kept the black Maglite centered on where the noise had come from. The branches and dried leaves caused the shadows to dance and play on a curtain of trees.

  The noise happened again, but this time louder and closer. Thomas stopped his chanting and looked over at David, who jerked the light towards the new layer of sound. Slowly side-stepping, he made his way over towards the druid, while keeping his attention on the forest.

  A sharp “crack” was heard behind Thomas, and the two spun quickly to face the new noise. The Maglite shined down on a young black girl, no older than 8 years old. She held two halves of a broken stick in her hand. She was smiling up at them with pure white teeth and a cherub-like face. The girl wore a light pink dress, her hair was long and flowing over her shoulders, and she had bare feet.

  Keller inched his way around Thomas towards the newcomer, “Hey, honey. What are you doing all the way out here? Where are your mommy and daddy?”

  The little girl took on a sad expression and shrugged her shoulders.

  Thomas had a horrified look on his face, “Oh, no. I’ve seen this movie, man. Some creepy girl out in the middle of a haunted woods. Nope! Shoot her in the face.”

  David scowled at Thomas, squatted down, and asked the girl, “Honey, are you lost? Were you out hiking or camping with your parents?”

  She shrugged, and David pulled out his cell phone, “I’m a police officer. I can find your parents and call them. What’s your name?”

  The little girl smiled, showing off her elongated canine teeth.

  Thomas pinched his groin in fear, “Oh, shit! I knew it!”

  The whites of her eyes disappeared into pure black, and she let out a hiss. The girl lunged, and in a heartbeat, had covered twelve feet. Her hands extended out towards David, and he braced for an impact that never came. He overcompensated and fell forward into the dead leaves and cold earth. Some of the apple cider the druid had been pouring soaked into the knees of his jeans, instantly bringing a chill. He scampered to his feet and looked back at Thomas, who was staring back at him with wide eyes that were magnified by his thick glasses.

  David pulled his gun, looked around frantically, and then whispered, “Where did she go?”

  The druid raised a trembling right hand and pointed at Keller’s right shoulder. He instantly turned and aimed his Maglite at the area his companion had indicated, but no one was there. David glanced back, confused, as Thomas stabbed his finger towards the big man’s shoulder. Turning his flashlight towards his chest, David saw a firefly crawling along his arm.

  He relaxed his posture and took a deep, cleansing breath, “It’s a bug, man. Calm down.”

  Thomas shoo
k his head in disagreement as his frantic stare focused on the tiny insect. David brushed the bug off his shirt, sending it flying. In mid-air, a sucking sound popped, and David’s ears felt like they had just depressurized. The firefly transformed into a monstrous version of the little girl and flew onto his shoulders. Her legs had become slimy and riddled with insect-like hairs. The girl wrapped around David’s neck and locked into place. Her jaw unhinged and opened to reveal a long row of fangs that had ooze dripping. Globs plopped down onto David’s shirt and ate through his clothes like acid. Her talon feet gripped his jacket, and she sported a hunched back that seemed to pulse in and out, suggesting something alive was under the skin.

  David shrieked as he reached up in an attempt to detach the monster. He struggled against the beartrap-like grip that the girl had around his neck. Effortlessly, she pulled his head to the side and bent her face down towards his exposed carotid artery. He launched backward against an oak and smashed her body into the trunk. The vampire giggled and clamped down harder.

  A panic attack set in, as David relived the same feeling of being overwhelmed he had experienced when he fought the superwoman. His mind was overcome by the sensation of being helpless in the iron grip of something he couldn’t defeat or escape. David frantically landed wild punches to the insectoid looking face of his attacker, and staggered in circles, as she cackled at it all. His lungs hyperventilated, and his legs buckled under the mental stress, as he dropped to his knees.

  David’s blurry vision focused enough to see Thomas yelling a challenge and charging at him with his gnarled staff raised. Sharp cracks filled the forest air as the druid rained down a chaotic series of blows. Pain seared into David’s right hand as the stick landed on his wrist and he let out a howl of pain as Thomas landed a hit against the vampire’s face. The blow caused the undead child to divert its attention away from David’s neck, and it hissed at the druid.

  David cradled his hand as Thomas yelled, “Stop moving, man! I’m trying to help!”

  The young vampire had a laceration against her eye, and it flowed dark black blood down David’s chest. She held the injury with her hand as the oil like fluid turned to dirt and fell on the ground. She jumped up and gripped David’s shoulders with her clawed feet. Seething with anger, she launched off into the air, transforming again into a firefly. Booth swung wildly at the insect as David fell onto his back and scooted away from the flailing druid.