Beary Tales

by Jennifer Malone Wright

  The darkness swirled around the woman, engulfing her. Although they knew what was happening, most remained stationary, watching the horrifying event. A noise akin to thousands of wings flapping overpowered the sounds of breaking glass, wind, and falling adobe. Then silence came. The darkness evaporated and only the young woman remained.

  She smiled. An unearthly glow surrounded her. Her rich seductive voice called out to them, “Be not afraid. I have come to free you. Serve me and live forever in peace and joy.”

  The men stumbled to their feet each uttering oaths to God for intervention. Many held the large silver crosses hanging from their necks in front of them. Some cried as they kissed the archaic symbols while others searched for a way out.

  “What, no takers? It’s a good deal. You’ve lost and I’ve won. Serve me.”

  The only white robed priest spat on the ground. “Abomination. Lucifer! You have no place here!”

  “Lucifer?” she laughed. “You wish it were that easy.” The smile left her face and her eyes began to pulsate with red light. “On your knees.”

  “Never,” many whispered.

  The beautiful woman tilted her head to the side as if surprised. “So be it. Come.”

  Another dark mass erupted from the hole. Swaths of black separated from the main column to encircle each priest. Only a few had time to pull the crosses apart and thrust the blades hidden within into their hearts. Those that failed felt a weightlessness surround them as their bodies levitated from the floor. Dangling just above the ground, they kicked and pawed at the air as the oily smoke poured into their mouths. Soon the gagging sounds from those afflicted subsided.

  The men dropped to their knees as each pair of glowing red eyes locked on their leader’s face.

  Her lips twisted into another smile as she slowly ran a hand across her cheek and down her neck. “This one is very nice, don’t you agree?”

  “Yes, Master,” they answered in unison.

  “Swear your allegiance to me.”

  “We are yours, do what you will,” they answered.

  “Good. That’s more like it.” With a flick of her hand she dismissed them. “You know the plan. Go forth and conquer.”

  “Yes, Master.”

  ***

  August 14, 2015

  10:57 pm

  Eight sets of red glittered in the darkness. Remy slowly brought the sword around in an arc above her head. “Four. You copy?”

  A voice answered from the tiny earpiece, “Copy that. We need one, Rem. Think you can handle that?”

  Her neck popped as she rolled her head. First to the left, and then to the right. Pushing her shoulders back, she released the last bit of pent up tension in her muscles. The only sound breaching the unnatural silence filling the dark city streets was the rasp of her leather jumpsuit as she repositioned her body. Knees slightly bent and sword ready, her eyes remained focused on the approaching men. “Again?”

  “Sorry, boss says we need more intel.”

  “Just freaking wonderful.”

  A dark parking lot wasn’t the best place to fight demons. Too many vehicles to hide behind. Her head jerked to the left as one blurred and separated from the others. His movement so fast, she nearly missed it. “Think I found the leader. He might take off before I can kill the other three.”

  “Copy that. Do what you can. Go for Kangaroo Alpha.”

  A faint smile appeared on her lips. Her father had the weirdest sense of humor. Kangaroo Alpha stood for kick ass. Even when the odds were against them, he made jokes.

  The light above her flickered. Although she preferred to fight in the dark, that one light would allow her to see the faces of her attackers. She remained adamant about seeing faces. If she ended up killing a friend, or relative, she wanted to know. That was just one more grudge she could hold against them, and she craved the hate. Hate added to strength, and she’d need it.

  The three in front crouched and waited. Whispers began echoing in her mind. “Come with us, Remy. You will be happy with us. The Master can give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”

  It was always the same line of bullshit with them. She swallowed the knot of nausea forming in her stomach, reached down, and pushed a button on her iPod. Rock music exploded in her ears, deafening the whispers.

  Knowing there was no hope of enticing her now, the three advanced.

  She smiled. She was in the zone. The rock beat raged on. Waiting…waiting…just about…now. Remy leapt into action. Her body spun in the air as she completed the roundhouse, making contact with the head in front of her. Feet hit the ground and she repeated the process in the other direction. Two flew several feet back on impact. Bringing her sword around with her, she cleanly sliced through the remaining abomination’s stomach. Its body shimmered before a dark mass of protoplasm erupted from its eyes, nose, and mouth. Vomiting out and upward, it raced into the sky.

  The demon spawn drew back into the darkness. A flash and puff of smoke was the only indication that a gun had been fired. Remy’s body kicked into overdrive. The distinct tink of deflection filled the night as her sword moved so fast it became a blur. Small flashes of light appeared as the projectiles hit and bounced off the metal blade. Face set, her blue eyes sparkled in the night.

  The demons glanced at each other and separated.

  Remy leapt to the roof of the car behind her, watching as they circled around. She glanced over her shoulder to confirm the leader’s position. Motionless, his red eyes flickered like miniature rubies in the night. Under her feet, she felt the car shudder before it began to bounce wildly. She jumped from the roof and somersaulted through the air, keeping her arms extended. The car turned on its side and flew behind her, crashing into the building on the far side of the lot. Flames erupted from the engine.

  As her feet hit the ground, they closed in. The tallest slid behind her and grabbed at her head. Unable to grasp her short hair, the motion threw him off balance. He stumbled and attempted to regain his footing while the other launched himself at her legs.

  She threw her elbow back, simultaneously bringing her knee up to meet with the other man’s face before his arms could wrap around her legs. Pain and a dull thud told her she’d made contact with the man behind her. The demon in front lay stunned on the ground; blood gushed from its mouth and broken nose. Thrusting her sword through his midsection, she forced the blade up and to the side. The thing behind her grunted. Remy pulled a bowie knife from a sheath attached to her thigh and spun. His face registered nothing but shock. A thin red line formed across his neck. For a moment he stared at her, then grabbing his neck, his body shuddered as he gasp for air. Blood spurted through his fingers and he crumpled to the ground. Darkness erupted from both as the song on her iPod changed.

  Remy turned to face the watcher. As she figured, he was gone. “Shit,” she said under her breath and shut off the music. Eyes darting around the lot, she made sure there was no sign of him. “Control?”

  “Copy.”

  “Three down.”

  “Did you get any intel?”

  Remy sighed. “I told you--”

  “Come home, Remy. The admiral wants to debrief you.”

  “I’m sure he does. Send in the cleaners.”

  “Copy that.”

  Placing one foot on the chest of the human shell in front of her, she yanked on the sword. It came free with a strange sucking noise. Remy bent down and wiped the blade against the pants leg of the corpse. “Too bad,” she thought. “He was really cute. What a waste.” Scanning the empty lot one last time, she disappeared into the night.

  ***

  Remy bent at the waist, allowing the green light to scan her eye. Stepping back, the small metal door in front of her made a swishing noise as is slid back into the doorframe. Once she made it through the short white tunnel to the second door, she began stripping away the small armory attached to her body and deposited the deadly items into a large white drawer that had opened beside the door. It took a few minutes
to remove all her weapons.

  “Rem?” A voice came over the loud speaker.

  “I’m hurrying. This is a stupid rule.” She said as she dropped the last knife in the drawer.

  “Breathe into the mechan--”

  “I know.” Leaning over, she blew into a plastic cylinder.

  “Thank you.”

  “Whatever. Hurry it up, would ya? I have to pee.”

  The door slid open. Stepping inside, she met a small raven-haired, extremely pallid girl. Shane’s blue eyes sparkled, but she managed to keep a smile from showing. The likeness between the two was uncanny.

  Remy grinned. “Dad’s pissed, huh?”

  Shane nodded and a soft giggle escaped. “Rem, why can’t you ever follow orders? Dad specifically told you--”

  “Dad wasn’t there. Hurry up. I have to pee.”

  Still trying not to laugh, the young girl ran a small hand held gadget up and down Remy’s body. “Well you’re clean. Though why they’d think a demon would even want to enter a bitter old crone like you, I’ll never know.”

  “Ha!” Bringing her arms out from her sides, Remy shouted, “Look folks, we have ourselves a comedian. Anyone want to buy a ticket?”

  Shane shoved at her right arm. “Stop. You know if you’d just take things seriously--”

  The look on Remy’s face shut her up. “Tell Dad I’ll be down in a couple minutes.”

  Shane nodded.

  As she walked down the stairway, she heard her sister call from behind, “You know if you didn’t insist on wearing that leather getup, it wouldn’t be such a difficult task.”

  “Whatever, Shane.” Remy continued the two levels down to the dorm wing and headed towards her room smiling. It wasn’t Shane’s job to handle door duty, but she always insisted on being there when Remy returned from a mission. They rarely hugged, and thanks to their father, seldom said ‘I love you’, but they were close. Remy owed her sister a lot. Even after she had killed their mother, Shane stuck by her.

  Moving into her room, she hastily stripped down, threw her clothes in a bin, and headed for the shower. The shot of adrenaline given before every mission was wearing off. Her muscles ached and she was weary. She stood for a while, letting the hot water cascade down her sore body before lathering up and rinsing. Now that her hair was so short, one towel would do the trick with drying off.

  Catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror, she shook her head and moved on. She missed her long hair, but long hair can be used against you. Dried, she lay on her bed for a moment before dressing. She didn’t dread seeing her father, she hardly ever did, but she knew he’d have another long lecture waiting for her. Figuring she’d wasted enough time, she grabbed a pair of jeans from the closet and pulled on a pink hoody. She ran her fingers through her hair and set out barefoot towards the center of the complex.

  ***

  He looked up from paperwork as she entered. Perspiration beaded across his brow, adding even more shine to his baldness. Before the invasion, she and her siblings had joked about polishing his melon into a mirror-like sheen. Now it seemed like eons ago. His secretary nodded to her and smiled.

  “That’ll be all, Sally. Make sure the memo is sent out right away. We don’t have much time to get this in order.”

  “Yes, Admiral,” she answered, and scurried through the door, closing it behind her.

  “Take a seat.”

  Remy sat quietly and crossed her legs. The dark uniform he insisted on wearing, even though the United States no longer existed, fit his powerful frame perfectly. With the chest full of metals and gold piping, he made an impressive figure sitting behind the large mahogany desk. The room, lined with matching bookshelves seemed more of a library than an office. Near the door, the bookshelves gave way to a black Formica countertop that held a small stainless steel sink and a coffee maker. The light on the machine was on, but it didn’t appear to have much in there. She sighed. A cup of coffee would have done wonders right now.

  The Admiral, noticing her bare feet, pulled his lips to the side making a grunting noise.

  She shrugged.

  “You should always be ready for battle, Rem. How many times do I have to tell you that?”

  Uncrossing her legs, she leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. “Well, Admiral, if you want me ready for battle at all times, why do you keep taking my weapons? It’s a stupid rule.”

  He cleared his throat. “Yes, well--we don’t want the others coming in loaded, do we? And I can hardly single you out.”

  “Dad, I’m pretty sure everyone knows I’m your daughter by now,” she laughed.

  “That’s not the point and you know it. Now what happened out there?”

  “S.S.D.D. I knew I couldn’t take down the three and get to their leader. They’re too smart for that.”

  He moved some papers around on his desk. “There’s always hope. We need to find out where the new base is.”

  “I blew up the last base. It didn’t do any good. We need to find out how to seal the rift. I kill them, they evacuate the shell and come right back through another processing house. We’re just killing people to kill them now.” Standing, she moved to coffee maker. Picking up the pot, she sighed and swirled the coffee around.

  “Maybe so, but we can’t just sit on our asses and do nothing.” Glancing up, he winked. “Be a dear and make some more, would you?”

  “Have the priests come up with anything new?”

  Papers rustled behind her back, but he remained silent. After filling the maker with water, and throwing in a bag of coffee, she turned to face him. “Well?”

  A tinge of red developed under his smooth, caramel skin as the muscles in his jaw tightened. “I’m not sending you. I’m not sending anyone. It’s too closely guarded. No one would make it back from that mission alive, and you know it.”

  Shoving a stack of papers to the side, she sat on the corner of the desk. “Dad, we need the shroud. Father Christman says that it is the only way to do mass exorcisms. Without it, we can only save one person at a time. That’s not working. There are too few of us and too many of them.”

  “The inoculations are doing very well in trials. Shortly we’ll be able to treat many of the exposed.”

  “It’s still not perfect though. Most who take them can become infected again.”

  “Remy, I know you’re still hurting about what happened with your mother, but really--”

  Her fist slammed on the desktop, sending papers skittering across the desk only to float to the floor. “This is not about Mom. This is about human beings. Every day I leave here to kill human beings. The demons aren’t dying. They just keep coming back in different human beings.”

  His eyebrows moved up as he fixed his steely blue eyes on her.

  She locked eyes with him for a moment before expelling an exasperated breath. Breaking his gaze, she stood and began picking papers off the floor. The coffee maker made a swooshing noise. After laying the papers on his desk, she poured a cup. “Two creams, one sugar?”

  “Black today. Dr. Rosin says I need to cut back on sugar.”

  Remy nodded. Setting his cup in front of him, she said, “We have no hope of winning when they have all the numbers. You taught me that.”

  He took a sip and leaned back in his chair. “I agree that, eventually, it must be done. When the time comes, Sam can do it.”

  She shook her head. “Sam’s not nearly as good as I am, and you know it. Now Greg and I, we could pull it off.”

  “Red contact lenses will not get you through the check points. And that cross around your neck will be a sure fire giveaway. How do you propose you’ll enter?”

  She thought for a moment. “The cross will have to go. The rest can be handled.”

  Shaking his head, he continued to hold her gaze. “You’ll be infected. Then what? You two return here, and security is breached. Who meets you at the door, Rem? You obviously haven’t thought this through.”

  Shane’s face flashed in her mind.r />
  “Admiral?” Sally’s voice interrupted from the squawk box on the desk.

  “Yes?”

  “Father Thomas is here to see you.”

  “Send him in Sal. We’re done here,” he said, nodding to Remy.

  Rising, she grabbed her cup and headed for the door.

  “Think about it, Rem.”

  She glanced over her shoulder and gave him a quick nod.

  ***

  She found Greg exactly where she’d expected, stuffing his face in the mess hall. The spacious cafeteria would hold close to fifty people. Only during staff meetings would the room be at capacity. She glanced around at the white tables, chairs, walls, and floor, wondering why her father insisted on making the place look like a sterile hospital. Greg nodded and tapped the empty seat beside him.

  The three men seated with him acknowledged her presence and quietly moved to a table in the far corner. Everyone at the shop liked them both, but not when they were together. She smiled, and went to the counter to retrieve her dinner.

  “Barbeque and Mac-n-cheese?” Martina asked with a smile.

  “What else you got?”

  Still smiling, she repeated, “Barbeque sandwiches and Mac-n-cheese.”

  Remy snorted. “Guess I’d like some of that then.”

  “Oh, it’s good today. I put extra cheese in the Mac.” The elderly, white-haired lady winked.

  “I’m sure it is. I just hope it tastes like real meat this time.”

  “We do our best, hon. Soy is good for you. Keeps you healthy.”

  “Thanks,” she answered, moving to join her brother.

  If the wrappers on the table were any indication, he’d already devoured five sandwiches. Once again chewing, he mumbled, “Sit. I heard.”

  Placing her tray on the table, she pulled out the chair in front of him. “I don’t want to hear it, Greg. I’m so totally not in the mood.”

  Swallowing hard, he took a long gulp of his drink. “What did the old man say?”

  “Same thing he always says.”

  “He’s right.”

  Remy glared across the table. “If he wouldn’t allow Shane to meet us, we could bypass that particular obstacle. I think he does it on purpose.”