by Michael Todd
“Katie, it’s the general.”
Katie sat up, looking at Pandora, who slowed her chewing. “General, what can I do for you?”
He sounded annoyed. “Something’s come up, and I think you ought to head out.”
Katie nodded toward the door and Pandora groaned, shoving her donut in her mouth. “Okay, tell me where I’m going.”
The general let out a loud sigh. “A naval base in Virginia has been breached. It’s a messy scene.”
Katie was a bit surprised. “Demons?”
“No,” the general replied. “They’ll fill you in when you get there. Texting you the coordinates. Thanks, Katie.”
Katie nodded. “Sure thing.”
She pressed End and got up, throwing the rest of her donut in the trash. Pandora growled, grabbing her box of donuts and tossing it in the trash. “You fucking owe me donuts, bitch.”
Katie opened the door and let her through first. “Don’t worry; you’ll get your damn donuts. Now, get in. We’re heading to the naval base that was breached.”
Pandora stopped and looked at her funny. “Why?”
Katie shrugged. “Apparently, someone broke in and left a mess in their wake. They’ll clue us in when we get there.”
Pandora dove into Katie and sighed. I have a bad feeling about this shit, dude.
Katie hurried around the corner, pulling the energy from her chest into her fingers. You always have a bad feeling these days.
Pandora grunted. There’s a reason for that.
Katie opened the portal and looked around, making sure no one was watching. She stepped in and let it close behind her. The snow whirled wildly and the ground sizzled as sparks hit the pavement, then it was like they had never been there.
2
Katie looked around in wonder. As far as the eye could see, red mountains stretched high into a green sky. It was a dusty land. No plants like there were on Earth, but a few feet from her was a stream. The water was crystal clear, and there were creatures swimming with the current. In the distance was a city covered by a dome. The buildings were tall and strong, sparkling in the light of the three shining suns high above. They were farther away than the Earth’s sun, and the air was a perfect temperature.
She stepped forward, squinting toward the dome. Inside she could see a bustling society. Aircraft flew around like the cars on Earth. Figures walked the streets, but they were too far away for Katie to see what they were.
Katie shook her head, putting her arms out again. That is a place I would love to explore. My nerd side is screaming Star Trek.
Pandora giggled. Don’t say that out loud. You’ll ruin my chances for good dick.
Katie shrugged as she opened a portal. Hey, I heard “nerd” was in.
Pandora snorted as they walked through the portal, stepping out onto the naval base. Does nerd also mean big wang? Because they can read all the comics they want while twisting me around like a pretzel.
Katie wrinkled her nose. Seriously, you need to get yourself together. It’s obvious you need to get some, or you need me to, but we are kind of busy at the current time.
Pandora sighed. You should have taken your time with Brock when we were there for Christmas, but noooo, you had to go save the fucking world.
Katie rolled her eyes. We’ll talk about that when we have figured out what the hell is going on. Until then, put a cork in it.
Pandora chuckled. Who knew you were so kinky?
Katie groaned as the portal closed. There was a crowd of people around the portal, apparently frightened by its sudden appearance. Katie put up her hand. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare anyone. Can you point me in the direction of whoever is in charge? I am here to assist them.”
A few naval officers rushed through and stood in front of Katie. “Thank you for coming, Katie. We will take you directly to the captain. He has been in touch with the general.”
Katie followed the officers, trying to ignore the shocked looks as she passed several sailors. They showed her directly into the captain’s office and stood at attention behind her. He was a white-haired man, good-looking for an older gentleman, with a stern white mustache on his upper lip. He stood and shook Katie’s hand. “Glad you made it so fast.”
Katie nodded. “What is the story behind this? Was it an attack?”
The captain offered the seat in front of his desk to Katie. “It was a robbery and an attack. A strike team breached the top-secret aquatic research facility and stole an experimental submarine designed to go to extreme depths and deal with extreme pressure. It is one of our ongoing experiments, in the final testing stages. We were due to launch it in covert operations next year. The sub is equipped with weaponry, GPS, and sonar, and it can reach depths never before achieved by any military submarine. It is small, hard to track, and includes a cloaking mechanism that keeps it from being detected by enemies. Unfortunately, it keeps it from being found by us as well.”
Katie lifted an eyebrow. “That’s not very secure. So, this strike team—did they kill anyone?”
The captain ground his teeth. “They killed three of our guards upon entry. Then it looks as if their own members were taken out internally.”
Katie furrowed her brow. “Why?”
He shrugged. “It’s a two-man vessel, is all that I can think. The strike team found at the scene have been identified as the remaining members of the DDF team led by Wilson. I am sure you are more than familiar with Wilson and his antics.”
Katie narrowed her eyes. “He is a thorn that just won’t go away. And I can’t believe Red escaped from the medical wing in the prison, although if anyone could, it was her.”
The captain stood up, buttoning his jacket. “Well, together they are purely bad news. They tried to kill their own team members, although one of them survived.”
Katie’s eyes lightened up. “Really? Can I see him?”
“Of course. He is in custody in the medical wing of the base. One of my men can take you there. He isn’t in the best shape, and I don’t suspect that he will make it much longer, but he was the key to identifying the culprits.”
Katie thought about it for a moment and cleared her throat. “Captain, I would like permission to hunt Wilson down. Not only is he a fugitive and extremely dangerous man, but there was a reason he came for this submarine. I don’t know what it is, but I can tell you there is some seriously bad shit going down and we need to be on top of it.”
The captain nodded. “Of course. I spoke to the general moments ago, and he said that you would probably insist. He agrees it is vital for you to find him and thwart whatever he has decided to do. The general is on his way out here to assist. I’m hoping the soldier in the med bay will be able to help you further. I only know what I just told you, unfortunately.”
Katie nodded. “I understand, and thank you, Captain. I’ll report back to you when I have spoken to the survivor.”
Katie followed the officers out, focusing on Pandora. What the fuck is this dickless asswipe up to now? Stealing a fucking submarine? For what?
Pandora sighed. I don’t know, but it doesn’t feel right to me. There has to be a really good reason for him to risk his freedom to break into a military institution, kill the MAs on watch, and then kill his own men. I can only assume that red-headed Amazon bitch is with him.
Katie pursed her lips. That’s what I am assuming as well. We’ll see what kind of footage they have, if any, of the events. This guy might be able to shed some light on it if he’ll talk. I’m hoping the fact that his own leaders tried to kill him and succeeded in killing his teammates will encourage him.
Pandora snorted. We can hope, but one thing I’ve learned about humans is that they can be fucking stupid and stubborn when it comes to shit like this. I can slap the hell out of him to bring him back to his senses, she said hopefully.
Baal leaned back in his chair, his feet up on the ottoman in front of him. He hummed to himself gleefully as he held a kitten up and dropped it into his mouth, then crunche
d, small tufts of fur escaping his lips. Beelzebub chuckled, shaking his head. “I thought you were watching what you eat?”
Baal shrugged, wiping his mouth on the back of his arm. “We are celebrating. It’s like holidays; you never diet on holidays. Just let loose, my friend.”
Beelzebub sighed and put his feet up as well. “I have to admit, we are killing it with our plans. Things are straightening themselves out very nicely. I didn’t think we would get to this point. I thought for sure the capture of Wilson was going to be the end of it for us.”
Baal nodded, taking a sip of his drink. “I agree. I thought we had royally screwed the pooch.”
A kitten hopped out of the bowl and wandered over to where Beelzebub was sitting. He sneered at it as it mewed at him. Reaching down, he flicked the furball into the fireplace. Hitting the magical flames of souls, it burst into a ball of ash and fur. Both demons chuckled at the sight.
Beelzebub yawned, stretching his arms over his head. “I have to say, after centuries of being under Lucifer’s thumb, I am very thankful that he reacted the way he did to the explosion.”
Baal’s eyes went wide. “I know. I thought for the first time in centuries I was going to end up on his shit and torture list. He was irritated by the whole thing, but he didn’t put the blame on the two of us.”
Beelzebub laughed. “Yes. That idiot Charlemagne and his big-ass lying mouth got him exactly what he deserved. Touting that his terrorist slaves were the ones to thank for pissing off Katie! What the fuck was he thinking?”
Baal shrugged. “I don’t know, but he’s the one with his nutsack firmly lodged in his throat right now, so I am not complaining. In fact, I raise my glass to the moron.”
Beelzebub put his glass in the air too. “To the stupid and idiotic! May you forever take credit for our failures and missteps. Better your nutsack than mine.”
Baal laughed, nodding. “Hear, hear. And don’t worry, old chap, they’ll grow back…in about three millennia.”
Beelzebub cringed, rubbing his crotch. “A bit shorter time than that, but let me tell you right now, it is not a pleasant event to deal with for centuries. Who knew growing your dick back would be so painful and uncomfortable?”
Baal sneered. “I hope that morons like old Charlie will make it so I never have to experience that. Thank you very much.”
Beelzebub sipped his hot tea. “To think, only a year ago, neither of us would have ever believed we would be sharing a celebration as partners.”
Baal cringed slightly. “Yes, well, my thoughts on you haven’t changed all that much. However, I seem to have joined the ranks, so I can’t be too judgmental. I guess I never realized how good it would feel to be the driving force behind an evil plot like this one. It’s simply maniacal, and I love it.”
Beelzebub smiled. “Welcome to the even darker side, my friend. We feast on human flesh over here.”
Baal gave out an evil laugh as he waved to the servants to take away the bowl of kittens. One of the servant demons rushed over, keeping his head low, and grabbed the bowl. As he hurried away, the kittens tried to jump out, but he caught them and threw them at the other demons. The last thing he wanted was to leave a trail of baby furballs for his master to step on like last time. He hadn’t seen that servant since.
Beelzebub sucked his tongue against his front teeth. “Now things get even more interesting. Wilson will go find Baylahn, and that will really give us an edge on Katie and the despicable humans on Earth.”
Baal sat up in his chair and stared at Beelzebub with a worried expression. “There is just one thing that really concerns me…”
He flipped his hand, displaying footage of the Christmas Parade massacre in front of them. They watched as a demon infected the Santa body, turning it into a zombie. “I am worried about Lucifer finding out that we let demons infect dead humans.”
Beelzebub flicked away the images. “It was a one-time thing. No one will pay any attention to that, I’m sure. Besides, they took care of it very quickly, and it did not look well for Katie. The world watched as she chopped the head off of Santa Claus, for fuck’s sake.”
Baal shook his head. “Good outcome or not, that isn’t the issue. There are unspoken rules. They may not be written in blood on the stones of Time, but it is well known that you do not make zombie Santas on Earth.”
Beelzebub shrugged. “Seriously? I can’t make one zombie Santa? What’s the harm in it? It’s terrifying for the humans; makes people think twice about the war and what the humans are doing to protect them, and it’s a spectacular visual effect. Humans are obsessed with zombies, and there are even humans who believe there will eventually be a zombie apocalypse. How dumb are those creatures?”
Baal furrowed his brow. “I’m not talking about repercussions from the humans here, Beelzebub. I’m talking about broader consequences for something like that. Bringing zombie Santas to life in a human parade is exactly the kind of thing that brings angels to Earth. I personally do not want to face off with an angel. If a human kills me, I go back to the bowels of hell, but an angel completely wipes me off the map.”
Beelzebub rolled his eyes. “That is why you keep your ass down here. You don’t go running around topside like those idiots Moloch and T’Chezz did. They asked for everything they got.”
A loud knock echoed through the house, and one of the servants hurried around the corner to open the door. Beelzebub narrowed his eyes, looking at Baal. “Did you invite someone new to our party?”
Baal put down his drink and pulled his feet off the ottoman. “No, I did not.”
The servant, with his head down, showed a tall, thin demon into the room. The demon looked well put together and spoke with an air of snobbery. “You are summoned to see the Lord of Darkness. I am here to lead you to his throne.”
Baal and Beelzebub looked at each other. “Which one of us?”
The servant of Lucifer smirked. “Both of you.”
Baal sighed, getting up from the chair. “Well, shit.”
One of the officers turned to Katie. “You ready? I’ll take you down to the med bay. He is under heavy guard.”
Katie lifted her eyebrows. “That’s probably a smart idea. If he isn’t a threat, others will be when Wilson finds out he is still alive.”
The officer agreed and led the way out of the building and down the street several blocks to the hospital. They entered through a door in the back of the building, where two MAs stood on guard. The officer showed his ID and explained Katie’s presence. The guys stared as she walked past, a flitter of whispering exploding after they had passed. The officer looked at Katie. “My apologies. Your bravery has been talked about for a long time now. The younger sailors have never had a chance to see you in person. It tends to cause chattering and nerves.”
Katie laughed. “Not a problem. I pretty much get it everywhere I go these days.”
The officer walked to a heavily guarded door and stepped to the side. “Here you are. His name is Sean Howard, Army Special Operations.”
Katie nodded and walked inside, glancing at all the machines hooked up to a heavily bandaged soldier. She walked to the bedside and tapped him on the arm. “Wake up, Sean. I have some questions to ask you.”
The guy turned his head right and left, barely conscious. He tried to open his eyes and finally succeeded. Katie gritted her teeth. “I know it’s hard, but you need to talk with me, or I promise you that all of this will fall on your shoulders and as soon as you are able to walk, they will walk your ass straight to the brig.”
The guy shut his eyes again, not saying a word. Pandora sighed and stepped out of Katie. She leaned forward, whispering into the soldier’s ear, “My associate here is a bit kinder than I am. If you don’t wake up and speak to us, I will personally drag you to hell and drop you on Lucifer’s doorstep. After all, you assholes killed a bunch of his precious demons. Do you want to know what your left nut tastes like?”
The soldier opened his eyes and looked at her in fear. Pando
ra smiled. “That’s one of Lucifer’s favorite tricks.”
The soldier nodded and looked at Katie. He grimaced, holding onto his chest as he turned slightly in the bed. “Red and Wilson took the submarine.”
Katie narrowed her eyes. “Why? Why in the world would they need a submarine?”
The guy coughed and wheezed. “I don’t know all the details. They rarely shared those with us. But I know they were looking for some sort of creature. Wilson wouldn’t say what it was.”
Katie groaned and looked at Pandora. “I don’t think he is being as helpful as he could be, do you?”
Pandora smacked her lips, looking angrily down at the soldier. “Not in the least. Sean, are you really willing to give up everything for people who left you for dead? Because I’m willing to take it all from you right now.”
Pandora went to reach for him, and the soldier shook his head. “Okay. Okay. In my pants, which are right up there in that locked box…”
One of the guards looked at the box, pulling out a key. The soldier shook his head. “Yeah, in my pants there is a hotel key. The hotel name is on there, and you can look up the location. The room is paid for through the rest of the month, and Wilson left explicit instructions for no one to go inside. That will give you more clues.”
Pandora smiled. “Good kitten. It’s time for a little road trip, but if this turns into a trap, I promise I will come back for you, even if I have to drag myself out of hell to do it.”
3
Katie stretched her wings wide, with Pandora standing next to her. Pandora stared at her for a moment and let out a frustrated breath. Katie laughed. “Come on, this is good for you. It’s not a battle flight, so you can just get up in the air and have smooth sailing. It will be much quicker if we do it this way than if we wait for a chopper or plane to take us out there. Whatever is in that hotel is important.”
Pandora rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. If I embarrass myself in front of all these people, I’m clipping your wing on the way down and taking you with me.”
