by Alex Siegel
Ethel walked back to Haley with her trophy held high. "I caught a spider," she announced proudly.
The senator was an old, wrinkled man in a black suit. Most of his gray hair had fallen out. Despite his apparent age, he struggled with youthful vigor. He tried to kick Ethel, but his foot bounced off her harmlessly.
"Good evening, Bedford," Haley said with a smirk. "It's great to see you again. I've been thinking about you."
"Let's talk about this," Forrest said in a choked voice. "We can be allies."
"The time for alliances passed when you became involved in my kidnapping. Now you're screwed."
Forrest thrashed like a demon. He had more energy than a normal man of any age should have. Haley stepped back in fear.
"Let's see your fang," Ethel said.
She threw him violently to the ground. She reached into his mouth and pried open his jaw with her hands.
Haley leaned down for a closer look. Forrest had a long, white tooth under his tongue. The point was hollow.
"That's disgusting," Haley said.
"Shall we interrogate him now?" Ethel said eagerly.
He sagged. "If you must."
"Oh, you're exhausted." She frowned. "I need to put you to bed. I'll play with my toy later."
She vanished along with Senator Forrest. She reappeared a fraction of a second later without him.
"Where did he go?" Haley said.
"He's on a rocky outcropping in the South Pacific," Ethel said. "He'll stay put until I get back to him. We're going to have many conversations about the Pythagoreans. It's time for you to go home, dear." She held out her hand.
He took it, and they vanished.
Chapter Twenty-five
General Walker was sitting at his desk with his head lying on his arms. He was exhausted. Disappointment after disappointment had drained all his energy.
His desperate effort to catch the fleeing pickup truck had ended in disaster. He still wasn't sure what had happened. All he knew was that a good number of soldiers had died sudden, violent deaths, and the fugitives had literally vanished.
The battle with the Gray Spear Society around the hotel had gone only slightly better. His side had won barely. It had been the bloodiest, most savage fight he had ever witnessed. No prisoners had been taken. Only nine hundred soldiers had survived.
Now the Army was heroically attempting to reach the top floor of the hotel one more time. It had become a matter of honor for those still alive. It was impossible to imagine anything else standing in their way. The building was a burned out skeleton surrounded by a sea of corpses. Walker was still nervous though. During the course of this war, he had learned the hard way that failure was always an option when dealing with the Society.
"Sir," an officer yelled, "they're on top now."
Walker raised his head. The soldiers had climbed the exterior of the hotel using ropes and grappling hooks. The video feed from the recon drone showed men in green fatigues walking on the roof.
One of them leaned down and picked up an open notebook.
"What does that say?" Walker said.
The officers chattered on their headsets. Finally, one reported, "Just two words, sir. 'Fuck you.'"
Two white metal sheds were on the roof. The sheds folded out of the way, and missile launchers rose up. Walker estimated there were fifty missiles, some quite large. They launched quickly, one after another. Each left an impressive streak of flame and smoke in the air.
"What are they shooting at?" he said.
The feed from the recon drone pulled back to a much wider view. The missiles went straight up, performed a U-turn in the sky, and came straight down.
"Oh, shit," Walker muttered.
The missiles made impressive explosions as they smashed into the roof of the hotel. They all hit the same spot, and the first few failed to penetrate, but eventually, one punched through. A tower of flame and debris blew out of the hole. The rest of the missiles followed close behind and entered the secret headquarters to explode inside.
Walker turned away. He expected nothing was left in there but ashes. The secret was destroyed. He had finally failed, and somehow, that wasn't a surprise.
Red lights on the ceiling of the bunker started flashing. Sirens wailed.
"What's going on?" he yelled.
"Intruders in the mine shaft, sir!" the security officer replied.
"Where?"
"I don't know! They're moving too fast!"
Walker clenched his jaw. He always carried a .45 caliber pistol on his hip, and he drew it now. He verified the magazine was full, and he loaded a round into the chamber.
He heard a distant rumble. The lights flickered out and then came back at a dimmer level.
"What was that?"
"The mine shaft caved in!" another officer yelled. "All external communication is cut off. We're running on emergency generators."
Fear made Walker's chest tighten. They were half a mile deep underground with no way to call for rescue. There was a good chance he would never see the light of day again.
Something very powerful banged on the door of the bunker. The door was three feet thick and made of carbon-steel. Walker wasn't too worried, but the noise still made him jump.
"Hello?" a man said loudly enough to be heard through the door. "Anybody home?"
Walker recognized the familiar voice of the Lord of the Gray Spear Society.
"They must be in there," a woman said in an equally loud voice. It vibrated the walls.
"I think they're ignoring us."
"How rude."
"I'll knock louder," the man said.
Thirty tons of steel flew across the room like a missile and slammed into the opposite wall. Walker felt the impact with his feet.
Two intruders entered. Their strange appearance made Walker think he was having a nightmare. They looked more like abstract pieces of art than real humans. Only minimal details were included. The woman had a silver crown on her head.
A lot of people in the bunker had guns, and they all began to shoot at once. A storm of bullets pelted the intruders, but they didn't seem to notice. The lead just bounced off their smooth, shiny bodies.
The man looked around. "I like this place. It has a James Bond evil lair feel to it. It makes me want to hatch diabolical schemes."
"I think it's more retro-futuristic," the woman said. "Look at all the shiny computers."
He swatted at the bullets as if they were pesky mosquitos. "Would you mind dealing with the riff-raff, darling?"
"Of course."
She waved her hand in a broad, sweeping gesture. Her black fingernails shot from her fingers with machine-gun rapidity. They struck all the officers, soldiers, and technicians with deadly accuracy. The fingernails exploded inside the bodies, blowing them to pieces. Chunks of raw meat rained down. The bunker was suddenly quiet.
"Show off," the man said.
The woman blushed.
Walker realized he and Erika were the only people still alive. He looked around but didn't see her. She had managed to sneak off.
The man climbed up the stairs to join Walker on the platform. Walker had already run out of bullets, so he threw his gun at his enemy. It bounced off uselessly.
Walker stood his ground bravely. If this was the end for him, he would face it like a warrior.
"Hi," the man said. "We finally get a chance to meet face to face. You may address me as Lord of the Society, or you can use my new name, Acid."
"Acid?" Walker said.
"It's because of my extremely corrosive spit. My lovely bride is Nails."
Nails joined them on the platform and looked around. Walker was trying to decide if she was pretty or just bizarre. Her cartoonish features had an undeniable artistic beauty. The green in her eyes was as intense as a laser.
She walked over to the brass bed in Erika's enclosure, grabbed the frame, and threw the entire bed aside. Erika was cowering underneath. She whimpered.
"You want to know what
the big secret was?" Acid said.
"Sure," Walker said.
"You're looking at it. The old Gray Spear Society is gone, and there are new sheriffs in town. To put it another way, the war between God and His enemies is basically over. But that doesn't mean we're done with you. You and your partner in crime are going to rat out the rest of the Pythagoreans. We're going to eradicate this conspiracy permanently."
Walker sucked in his gut. "I'll never talk."
"You will," Acid said. "You'll also beg, cry, and scream. Most of all, you'll regret the choices you made. Unfortunately, we can't perform the interrogation now. Chicago is a mess, thanks to you, and we need to manage the cleanup. The Lord and Lady have responsibilities that can't be ignored. Somebody else will be along in a moment to take care of you." He winked.
He and Nails vanished.
Walker stared at the empty space where his enemies had stood. There was no escape for him. He was completely screwed. I should just kill myself now, he thought.
Erika yelled with rage. She ran at him and tried to claw his face with her fingernails. He grabbed her wrists to protect himself.
"This is your fault!" she cried hysterically. "You were supposed to lead my army to victory! You failed! You ruined everything!"
He slugged her in the jaw and knocked her down. "Shut up, you stupid bitch," he muttered.
He kicked her in the gut for good measure.
"Hello," a new, female voice said.
Walker spun around. A black form was standing in the air with no means of support. It had the shape of a woman, but a shroud of black mist made it hard to tell. He could barely see the creature's face. It wavered indistinctly in the air like smoke in a breeze.
"Who are you?" he said in a shaky voice.
"I used to be called Tawni, but now I'm known as Shadows."
Shadows spread her arms, and the darkness expanded like a pair of great wings. Walker saw swords in the inky folds. A thousand sharp blades enveloped him.
He screamed.
* * *
The underground shelter was very crowded. There wasn't enough room for anybody to sit. They were packed together, shoulder to shoulder. The air was warm and smelled of human bodies.
Perry wasn't complaining though. He was safe. After a solid week of fear, he was happy to be buried deep in the ground where the soldiers and cannibals couldn't find him. He was emotionally exhausted and just wanted some security in his life.
The walls of the shelter were concrete, and the door was made of steel. It was a barren place, designed to protect rather than comfort. Canned foods and water bottles were stacked against the wall, but there wasn't enough to keep such a large group satisfied for long. The shelter had been designed for ten people, not ninety-five. They couldn't stay more than a day or two.
Somebody knocked on the door, startling Perry.
"You can come out!" Aaron said. "It's safe. We won."
Perry eagerly unlocked the door and went into the hallway outside. Aaron was standing there with a smile on his handsome face. Not a hair was out of place. He was wearing a gray T-shirt and jeans. Perry wondered how he could be so calm after fighting a war.
"Where is Mr. Rosenblum?" Aaron said. "Come out, please."
Rosenblum pushed his way through the crowded shelter and escaped into the hallway. "Sir? Is it really over?"
"Absolutely. I have good news and bad news. The bad news is the hotel is destroyed, and the entire staff is out of a job. Sorry. I wish I could keep you on, but I'm not planning on building any more hotels ever."
Rosenblum sighed sadly. "I understand. What's the good news?"
"As a reward for courageous service," Aaron said, "every member of the staff gets to have a wish granted. Your final task for me is to collect the wishes. They should be special and important, but not ridiculous. Medium-grade miracles. I'm not giving out money, either. That's crass. And of course, pick a good wish for yourself."
"Yes, sir!"
"I'll be back in a little while. Perry, walk with me."
Aaron and Perry walked down the corridor together.
They turned a corner. As soon as they were out of sight of Rosenblum, Aaron put a hand on Perry's shoulder. Suddenly, they were somewhere else.
Perry looked around wildly. He was standing on the roof of the John Hancock building in downtown Chicago. Chilly winter wind tried to penetrate the cracks in his coat. He was far above where the tourists normally went.
He was facing south and had a magnificent view of the heart of Chicago. The black, boxy shape of the Willis Tower was farthest away but distinguished by its enormous size. The Trump Tower stood out because of its multi-level design and curved, silvery exterior. Lake Michigan stretched past the horizon on his left. Even from this height, Perry couldn't see the far shore.
"How did we get here, sir?" Perry looked at Aaron.
The commander had changed. His face and body looked like a computer generated, three-dimensional model. His hair was just a solid block of brown material. All the imperfections that made him human were gone.
Perry jumped back in surprise.
"I brought you here to show you we still have a job to do," Aaron said. "There are millions of souls in this city and billions on this planet. All of them need protection."
"We?"
Aaron nodded. "I've decided there is a place for assistants in the new Society. The new legionnaires are extremely powerful, but when it comes to science and technology, their skills are limited. We still need technical experts in every field to help us."
Perry began to smile.
"The missions will be much less frequent. You won't be working in a headquarters like before. I'm going to close all of them. You'll have a normal job and a normal life most of the time. You can even get married. But once in a great while, the Society will call upon you. You still work for us."
"Yes, sir! Thank you! That was exactly the wish I wanted you to grant."
"Good." Aaron grinned, and his teeth were just a blank strip of white. "Make contact with the rest of the Society hackers. Get the word out to the other cells. I'm not promising we'll keep everybody. We don't need that many assistants, but we will keep a lot of them. It would be wasteful to throw away that much talent. That's all I wanted to say. Where do you want me to take you now?"
"I can go anywhere, sir?" Perry raised his eyebrows.
"Just name the place where you want to start your new life."
He looked out at the vast city. "Chicago is a mess. How about Manhattan? I've always wanted to meet Wendy, our banker there. She sounded cute when I talked to her on the phone. Do you think she's available?"
Aaron winked. He took Perry's hand, and they vanished.
* * *
Smythe leaned back in his chair and sighed. He was tired, but it was a good kind of tired. He smiled at Odelia. She was wearing a beautiful, white wedding dress, and he was in a tuxedo.
The wedding had been lovely. It had taken place in a rural church in Maryland where no outsiders would bother them. Only members or former members of the Society had been invited. Aaron had been the best man, and Marina had been the maid of honor.
President Haley had insisted on hosting the reception in the White House. The lavish party was taking place in the State Dining Room on the west side of the second floor. White, wooden walls and a very tall ceiling gave the space an elegant feel. The lighting fixtures were gilded with gold, and the chandelier was spectacular. The carpet had a pink, flowery pattern.
A variety of fine foods covered a buffet table against the wall, but many of the delicacies had hardly been touched. The new legionnaires didn't need to eat, and there weren't a lot of humans present.
Nancy was one of the humans, and she wandered over. She was wearing a puffy, red dress with a few too many cloth flowers sewn on it. She had straightened her hair for the occasion, and the result looked weird to Smythe. As usual, she had a big smile on her round face.
"That was a great wedding," she said. "You're a
great couple."
"Thank you," Odelia said.
"What are you doing these days?" Smythe said. "I never heard."
"Perry gave me a pile of start-up money," Nancy said. "I'm setting up a custom, high-performance car shop. I'll be designing and building race cars."
"That sounds like fun." He smiled. "I'm glad you landed on your feet."
"What about you? I know you were looking at hospitals and clinics. Did you pick one?"
"Not quite yet. We're taking our time and enjoying a long vacation together. It's hard to get back into the rhythm of a normal life."
Odelia leaned forward and whispered, "And I'm pregnant, so I may not be working for a while."
Nancy squealed and gave Odelia an awkward but sincere hug.
Aaron and Marina suddenly appeared. Smythe still wasn't used to the way they flickered from place to place. It was very unsettling.
"We have to go," Aaron said. "There is a crisis in a distant galaxy which needs our attention."
"I still don't understand how such a small group can protect the entire universe," Smythe said.
"Well, most of it is extremely boring. Stars and dead worlds don't need to be kept safe from God's enemies. There is plenty of life scattered about, but it's generally just microbes, and germs can't hatch evil schemes. We focus our attention on the rare planets with intelligent life. Technological civilizations like Earth are the crown jewels and need the most protection. There are few enough of them that I can dedicate at least a couple of legionnaires to each one."
Smythe nodded. "I suppose that makes sense."
"And if we really need extra hands, Marina and I can make more legionnaires. We've already found some great candidates on other worlds. Speaking of which, you still have an open offer to join the new Society. Both of you." Aaron glanced at Odelia. "Just say the word, and we'll transform you."
"We just got married, sir! We're going to have kids."
"There's no hurry. Live your lives. Enjoy your children and your grandchildren. When you're ready to take your place among us, we'll come back."
