by Barry Reese
Springing into the room, Gravedigger took quick aim with her mini-crossbow. She’d calculated where her attacker would have been standing, based upon the height, velocity and placement of the bullet that had gone through the wall. She’d judged accurately, as Quick Dan was standing right where she’d guessed. Just behind him, a lovely young woman was standing with The Silver Skull clutched between her breasts.
The next event seemed to stretch far beyond the brief seconds it actually took to occur. Gravedigger let her mini-crossbow bolt fly and as it hurtled on its fatal journey towards Quick Dan, Locke screamed in horror. If she’d had the time, Gravedigger thought the woman might have shoved Dan out of the way, putting her own life at risk.
But the time was not there and the question of whether or not Locke really felt that strongly for her lover would go unanswered.
The crossbow bolt tore through Dan’s throat, tearing a jagged hole that briefly allowed Gravedigger to see right through it, into the shocked features of Locke. Then dripping gore filled in the wound and Dan was on his knees, gurgling as he began to die a terrible death.
Locke, meanwhile, was splattered with blood. The bolt had just missed making her into a victim, as well. It had passed through her hair and struck the wall behind her.
Blood oozed from Locke’s chin, dripping down onto The Silver Skull. Gravedigger raised her sword and approached the woman, her eyes drawn to what was happening with The Skull. The blood was seemingly being drawn into the mystic prison and the eyes were beginning to glow with a blinding green light.
“Drop The Silver Skull!” Gravedigger shouted. She knew that something bad was about to happen and her own pulse was beginning to pound in her ears, drowning out the sounds of her friends forcing their way past the splintered front door and into the house. They were calling Charity’s name but she didn’t answer. Her focus was entirely on the bizarre scene taking place before her.
Locke’s screams had died away as she, too, noticed the strange power from The Silver Skull. The object was shaking now, cracks beginning to appear in its surface.
“Drop it!” Gravedigger repeated. She reached out to knock it from Locke’s grip but it felt like she was moving through an invisible field of molasses.
The spirit within The Skull, the woman known to the world as Pandora, was being freed. The splatter of blood upon its surface had caused a transformation. The Silver Skull was no longer an effective prison.
Locke’s eyes glazed over as some elder power seized hold of her. She lifted up The Skull, turning it towards her. She brought it close, as if to kiss it, and the teeth of The Skull broke apart, shards falling to the floor. A ghostly wisp of a woman’s face moved out of The Skull, disappearing right down the throat of Locke.
Time suddenly caught up to itself and Gravedigger reached her goal, backhanding The Skull out of Locke’s grip. It flew across the desk, bouncing several times, before hitting the floor.
The two women stood staring at one another for a few seconds before Gravedigger asked, “How do you feel?”
Locke’s eyes narrowed and a wicked smile touched her lips. The voice that came from her lips sounded unlike the woman who had screamed at the sight of her partner being killed. This voice was deeper and huskier. Locke was no longer in control of her own body, Gravedigger realized. She had become a vessel for someone else’s soul. “I feel better than I have in many years, sinner.”
“Pandora?” Gravedigger asked, the blood in her veins turning to ice.
“You’re plagued by the Vices of Lust and Wrath. I can smell them wafting off of you.”
“There are some bad people looking for you,” Gravedigger said. “You need to let us help you.”
Pandora looked past Gravedigger, at the strange collection of people who were standing in the doorway. Mitchell and Cedric were armed with pistols, while Mortimer brandished a large Revolutionary-era sword. Li was armed with two small daggers. “Your friends run the gamut of Vices. They’re not alone, I’m afraid. This entire world has become overrun by the demons I unleashed.”
“I understand the guilt you must feel but we’re trying to help the world, too. There’s no reason why we can’t work together.”
“You understand nothing,” Pandora hissed. She took a step back, her eyes raking across the room, looking for exits. She saw a single window that led outside, the doorway that was blocked by Gravedigger’s aides, and the fireplace. All of those were means by which she might have escaped but two of those three would have taken far too much time to navigate.
Gravedigger raised her weapon, brandishing it before her. “If you fight me, you’ll lose.”
“Will I? I have centuries of experience, little girl.”
“So do I, in a way. I’m a Gravedigger, do you know what that means?”
Pandora paused, studying Gravedigger’s uniform. “Impossible. You’re a woman. The Voice has never chosen a female to do its bidding.”
“There’s a first time for everything.”
“I’ve met Gravediggers before. You’re all the same. You think that you’re helping the world but you’re not. You’re all sinners, given power by The Voice. That power just lets you channel your sins into the direction that The Voice sets for you. You murder, kill and lie for three years and if you do it well enough, it rewards you by setting you loose upon the world for decades to come. If you fail to please it, you get your just desserts in Hell. What part of all that makes you think that I’d want to work with you?”
Gravedigger had been afraid of that response. Given that Pandora had been identified as her “Other,” she knew that there was a chance the two women were destined to be enemies but she’d hoped it would be different. She was about to give voice to those thoughts when Pandora bolted into action. Using Locke’s lithe young body, Pandora jumped over the desk and lowered her shoulder. She launched herself at the window, shattering it.
Gravedigger rushed to the window, intending to climb after her. She saw Pandora vanishing into the dark shadows of the surrounding woods. Given the other woman’s years of experience, it seemed unlikely that she would be able to track her, even given the fact that Gravedigger was more familiar with the terrain.
“Want us to fan out and cover the grounds?” Mitchell asked.
“It won’t do us any good. She’s going to get away.” Gravedigger sighed and reached up to push her hood back. A second later, she had yanked her mask off and tossed it onto the desk. Her dark hair tumbled free and Mitchell noticed how beautiful she looked in the moonlight. “I should have left one of these guys alive. I let my bloodlust take over and now we might be missing out on important information.”
“None of these goons were Japanese,” Mitchell said. “We checked them out. That means Tamaki is still out there. Why don’t we head over to Bingwen’s old place and bust him?”
Nodding, Gravedigger turned to face her operatives. “Cedric, take Li into Chinatown and case Bingwen’s old store. If it looks like Tamaki is there, call me. If not, stake it out and watch it until dawn. The second he comes back, I want to know.”
“You got it,” Cedric replied, grabbing hold of Li’s hand. He pulled her toward the door and Charity noted that the businessman had a look of excitement in his eyes. She wasn’t sure if it came from the opportunity to be alone with Li or if he was becoming an adrenaline junkie like his girlfriend.
Deciding that it didn’t matter at the moment, Gravedigger turned to Mortimer, who stood up straight. He was obviously itching to be given something to do. “Can you please search the pockets of all these men? Go through it all, just in case there’s something of use here.”
“And then?”
“Then get rid of them.”
Mortimer nodded. It had been agreed upon earlier that the corpses would be burned and the remains thrown into a deep pit located on the property. Mortimer knew it was fairly unsavory work but at least he was making progress with Charity. “If I find anything, I’ll bring it to you immediately.”
Graved
igger nodded, not expecting his search to bear any fruit. When they were alone, she turned to Mitchell and pulled him close. His strong arms went around her, giving her comfort. “I have a job for you, too.”
“What’s that?”
“I want you to take me upstairs and undress me. Then I want you to take a bath with me.”
Mitchell laughed. “The day’s finally caught up to you, huh?”
“Well, I was shot and then I killed eight men while coming face-to-face with Pandora. So, yeah, I think I’m due for a crash.”
He tilted her chin up and gave her a kiss. “You aren’t alone in this, you know. Your mission is our mission. Every one of us. Even Mortimer.”
“You think I’m too hard on him?”
“Hell, no. You needed to put him in his place and make sure he knows who’s running the show. But I think it’s time to start putting him to work.”
“I’m letting him burn a bunch of dead bodies,” she pointed out.
“True. We don’t want to give him too much all at once.”
They laughed and Charity felt more relaxed already. There was a naturalness to Mitchell that really appealed to her, like he was made of bedrock, something to cling to in the bizarre maelstrom that her life had become.
“Let’s go,” he said and she allowed herself to be led out of the room and up the stairs.
Momentarily forgotten, the remains of The Silver Skull lay in the corner of the study. The mystic glow from the eyes had not quite died out yet, though it was fading. The prison gates had been thrown wide… and Pandora had risen.
Chapter VI: Wrath of the Goddess
Doctor Craig hurriedly threw items into suitcases, blearily trying to wake himself up. He’d been sleeping soundly when Hiroshi had come pounding on the door to his room, delivering the disturbing news that they were to leave Bingwen’s shop as soon as possible. Craig had glanced at the clock, noticing that it was well past midnight.
“Can you at least tell me what’s happened?” he asked, throwing the bags down next to the back door. “Did Dan and Locke get captured?”
The handsome young Japanese man was slipping on a dark coat which partially obscured the fact that he was wearing a sword at his hip. “They never returned. I always give them strict orders to phone in at least once every two hours. It’s been nearly four since I last heard from them.”
Craig swallowed hard. He didn’t need to be told what that could mean. Gravedigger might be dead but her followers weren’t and if they found Hiroshi’s lair, a return to prison would be the least of Craig’s concerns. Gravedigger was infamous for dispatching her enemies in the most permanent of ways and it only made sense that her aides would do the same.
“Where are we going?” he finally asked.
“I have a number of safe houses. I need to figure out what went wrong and then make our move to regain The Silver Skull. No matter what happens, we have to find a way to free Pandora.”
Nodding, Craig lifted as many of the bags as he could carry. He followed Hiroshi out the back and began loading the cases into the backseat of the car that was parked there. He thought about the gyrocopter that had been used to rescue him from the prison but he wasn’t sure if Hiroshi could pilot it. Besides, it probably couldn’t carry the two of them plus the luggage.
“You drive,” Hiroshi said, tossing the keys to Craig. The Japanese stared into the dark gloom of the Sovereign streets, his senses on full alert. He disliked it when his plans went awry but no matter how much he might try to exert his will upon the world, he could never prepare for all eventualities. Chance, too, always played a part, which could never be accounted for.
With thoughts of Pandora dancing through his mind, Hiroshi slid into the passenger seat.
“STOP.”
“USUALLY YOU like it when I…”
“They’re leaving.”
Cedric pulled away from Li, the surprise momentarily overwhelming the desire he was feeling. The young businessman stared through the windshield as Craig pulled their car out onto the quiet streets and began to pull away. He hurriedly started the engine of their own vehicle and began what he hoped would be a stealthy pursuit. Unfortunately, there were no other automobiles on the roads, forcing him to drift farther back than he would have liked to avoid drawing attention.
Li leaned forward excitedly. Cedric’s pride was slightly wounded by the look on her face. Though she’d been responding appropriately to his advances, it was obvious that she was now far more aroused by the potential danger of the situation than she’d been by his attempts at lovemaking. “Once we find out where they’re going to be staying, we can call Charity,” she said.
“Sure.”
Li glanced at him, her expression betraying her annoyance. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Don’t act like a girl.”
“Fine. It’s us.”
Li sighed, turning her attention back to the car ahead of them. It was leaving the Chinatown area, speeding towards the waterfront. “I said don’t act like a girl, remember?”
“One of us needs to.”
“And that means…?”
“That I’d like for us to be more than what we are. I love you, Li.”
“Why did you have to say that?” she asked, shaking her head.
“See? Most women would be thrilled to have a man express those kinds of feelings! And I don’t mean to sound arrogant but I’m a good catch! Lots of girls would count themselves lucky to have me chasing after them.”
Li bit her tongue, preventing herself from telling him that maybe he should be off with them, instead. After a moment to compose herself, she responded, “Most men would be thrilled to have the opportunity to play with a girl like me, who isn’t looking for any strings.”
“I love you.”
“You said that.” Li placed the palms of her hands atop her legs and stared straight ahead. “You do know that I’m not like the girls you’ve dated before? I… have done things to get by. No, let me rephrase that. Some of them were done just because I needed to get by. Others were done because I’m young and I want to have fun.”
“I don’t care how many other men you’ve been with.”
“You should. If we were to get married, would you take me with you to fancy parties? Introduce me to your friends in the business world?”
“Of course!”
“And how long before one of them recognizes me? Maybe one of them even paid me to have relations with them. Word would get around and you’d be embarrassed at best, ruined at worst. Men like you do not marry girls like me.”
“I don’t care about any of that!”
“Then you’re a fool!” Li finally turned to face him and he saw, for the first ever, true passion for him in her eyes. It was startling to behold. “I care about you, Cedric. I really do. You’re the first man who’s ever made me feel this way. But you’re a white man who comes from money. I’m an Asian whore. We can sugarcoat it however we like but that’s the truth. And if us sleeping together is causing you to forget all of that then maybe we shouldn’t do it any longer.”
Cedric’s cheeks burned and he found that his spirit was deflated.
They rode on, together but very much alone, for the rest of the trip. Even after they’d found out where Hiroshi was staying – a cheap hotel known as The Imperial that catered to foreigners – they said nothing to one another.
PANDORA WALKED THROUGH the streets of Sovereign, both amazed and disgusted by everything that she saw. Motorized chariots… huge, blinking signs and billboards… and the way people were dressed! If her senses hadn’t been attuned to the presence of sin, she might have been taken in by this strange modern world, dazzled by all the technological improvements.
But the stench of moral decay was so thick in this city that her lungs felt clogged by it.
Pandora had stopped once to stare into a shop window, enchanted by her own reflection. This new body she wore was fit and strong, though it was a bit softer than she wou
ld have liked. This was the form of a woman who had not lived the life of constant battle and hardship that Pandora had endured for centuries before her imprisonment.
That would change, though. It wouldn’t be long before this body had been chiseled into what she needed it to be.
A car roared past, startling her. She looked over and saw two men engaged in conversation. Neither of them noticed her but she felt a brief flash of recognition at the sight of them. One was Western, the other Oriental. Had the woman – Locke, Pandora thought her name had been – known them?
A moment later, a second car followed in pursuit. This time, Pandora definitely recognized them. They were two of the people who had been at Gravedigger’s side.
Acting more on instinct than anything else, Pandora ran out into the street, very nearly killing herself in the process. A taxi slammed on the brakes, screeching to a halt just inches away from her legs.
“What the hell’s wrong with you, lady?” the driver bellowed, leaning his head out the widow.
Pandora studied him for a moment before asking, “What manner of chariot is this?”
“Say what? This here’s a cab. You know, you tell me where you want to go and I take you there?” He shook his head, looking amused. “Lady, have you been drinking?”
Pandora strode to the passenger side of the car and yanked open the door. She sat down and pointed in the direction of the retreating cars. “Follow them.”
“To where?”
“To wherever they go.”
The driver hesitated for only a moment before giving a shrug of his shoulders. The night had been a bad one for business and he was in no position to refuse a fare. “You’re the boss, lady.”
CRAIG HAD BEEN pleased to discover that Hiroshi had the entire third floor reserved in his use. This meant that the doctor would have his own quarters, which was his preference. There were a number of other men waiting for them when they arrived and Craig had quickly learned that they were others in the employ of Hiroshi. The Japanese man had fallen into planning with them, asking detailed questions about what could be done next.
