“Unlike The Circle proper, the stairs are illuminated by torches. As you experienced in the Veil, electronics will be unreliable at best. So, you should not expect to guide your way with flashlights or other technological devices. If you would like to have a spare lighting source, guests have traditionally carried oil lamps,” Freddy said.
“Sure, carrying flammable liquids in easily breakable containers sounds very safe.”
Freddy raised a finger and started to speak up, but I continued on before he could say anything.
“Okay, we could probably also carry our own torches if we wanted to. Unless of course,” I started, looking at Vector, “You have something better that will work down there?”
“I’m sure I can come up with something,” he smiled.
“Good, I’d like to have a backup just in case. Now, is there anything else that might be relevant to us before we go?”
Freddy’s brow wrinkled in thought as he did his best to ponder tactical relevance. While far from a military mind, Freddy was a smart dude and it was clear he understood a little bit more about what I needed to know each time we had one of these meetings. Maybe one day I wouldn’t have to ask anything at all. Although, we all know I’d never be able to keep my mouth shut that long. I guess I’d be reduced to off-hand jokes and mockery. It’s a hard life. The leather chairs creaked as people shifted their sitting position and we watched Freddy flip through pages. Finally, he found something in the book that caused him to look up, a smile on his face and “ah ha” in his eyes.
“There is one more thing that I am sure you will find fascinating. Should blood be spilt within The Circle, the defenses will be activated.”
“Of course they will…and those are?”
“Well, it has only happened once, and a GHOST Team was not present at the time, so understand that I do not have many details,” he frowned.
“I’ll take what you got.”
“Apparently the vines which hold the great table and provide seating for all the guests act as restraints. They will reach out and capture the offending parties. If the guests calm down, no one should be injured.”
“And if they don’t calm down?”
“The room will end the conflict,” he stated.
“Okay. Well done, Freddy. That definitely falls under information that I needed to know.”
I gave him a look and he apologetically shrugged. After I rolled my eyes and took a deep breath I felt better. Like I said, he’s learning. On the plus side, he didn’t leave that part out. But the room’s defenses seemed like a great way to remove an enemy if one needed to.
“Just so I’m clear, will any spilt blood cause the room to attack everyone or specifically the people who are fighting?”
“Again, offering you the limited information that I have. But it is my understanding that the room knows which party is the aggressor and will only deal with the individuals who are responsible. The rest of us would be in no danger. The wisdom of the vines,” he said.
“Fair enough. Okay people, I think we’ve got what we need. Vector, I’m sure you know where the lab is; I’d appreciate anything that you can throw together in the next hour. Not just light, but some way to communicate with the surface would also be nice. Kara, this is magic central, so start thinking about some spells that might protect us on the way up the stairs. I assume spilling blood in the stairs is fine?”
Freddy nodded.
“Good. Danny, I’m going to need your ‘A’ game. Do your best to scan surface feelings and thoughts without being noticed. Even if it means just sensing that spirit energy you touched earlier. We all know you’re badass now, so don’t pretend like you can’t do it.”
Danny gave a nod and a shy smile. I got the feeling that approval from me meant more than I realized, something I’d need to be more conscious of in the future.
“Erika, if you don’t mind, I’d love to pick your brain a bit more about shifters. If you’ll forgive my assumption, I assume you are the relative expert on the subject.”
“No problem,” she smiled.
“Okay team, Freddy did his homework, now let’s make it pay off on the test. We roll out in an hour.”
There were a few giggles as people stood up to leave. Okay, okay, I’ll admit it wasn’t my best analogy. But inspirational speeches are new to me. I spent most of my life working alone. Now, as much as I hated to admit it, I was enjoying being part of a team. Just don’t tell them I said that.
Freddy stayed with his books as everyone else left. Vector was the first to go, obviously in a hurry to mess around in the lab. Kara and Danny were right behind him, leaving Erika and me slowly bringing up the rear. I turned to her before I spoke.
“How about we head to the gym, that way we can work out while we talk?”
“Sure,” she said.
“Good, this time you won’t have to hold back.”
She smiled and stuck out her tongue. It was adorable and I suddenly wondered if getting sweaty with Erika was the best idea before a mission. I sometimes make poor choices in life.
CHAPTER 12
We both headed up to sub-level one and hit the locker rooms. After changing into sweats, we made our way back down to sub-level six and into the gym. The room was fairly busy, a dozen or so agents working out around the place. There were two other pairs sparring on the mats, while the rest of the officers used the various pieces of gymnastic equipment around the edges. Calisthenics and body weight exercises are always my preferred method of working out; they are way more fun than weights. Happy to see that other agents agreed.
Erika and I found a spot with relative privacy and we each threw on our headgear, gloves, and boots. No matter how badass a person is, there’s no logical reason to go without protection. And yes, that’s good advice for other things in life too. Now get your mind out of the gutter.
We started to circle each other and the smile on Erika’s face made it clear that she had no intention of holding back. I started to have flashbacks of fighting Fangsy, an alpha werewolf that I barely defeated. But while Erika was faster and stronger than me, there was one more frightening thing to consider. She was very familiar with me. I might have to try and turn that negative into a positive. If she started anticipating my moves, it might make it easy to confuse her and find some openings.
She started off easy, a few jabs and a couple of kicks. I avoided and blocked accordingly. My intention was to start off in a full defensive fight, just to get a proper feel for her true speed and power. While we sparred, I figured I’d ask about the things running about in the back of my head. Luckily, I didn’t have to speak very loudly as her sharp foxy ears would pick up my voice.
“So, something about you going into heat has been bothering me. Do you mind if we talk about it?”
“Not at all,” she said.
The moment she responded she attacked. I didn’t know if she was upset that I broached the subject, or just using a nice lull in the action to strike. Either way, the flurry of attacks that she brought was intense. I avoided most of them, only blocking when I couldn’t get out of the way. Although Erika was definitely faster than me, I’ve been doing this long enough to anticipate most strikes. It was the only chance I had against the supernatural creatures that I seem destined to constantly go up against. She overextended a bit on an elbow and I gave her a shove and sent her stumbling to catch her balance.
“Okay, if there is a ton of aggression in the air, how come it caused you to go into heat? I don’t see the correlation.”
She threw a couple more punches while she thought about it. I waited patiently for her to speak up.
“Well, in the animal kingdom mating is often an aggressive thing. Maybe that’s it?”
“Maybe. Seems like there has to be more to it. Is there anything else that you’re feeling?”
Again I could see her brow twisted in thought while she continued to attack me. I was feeling fairly confident until she bowed her back and pressed her breasts tight against her
sweatshirt. Because I’m an idiot, I glanced down and it was just the opening that she needed. She caught me in the ribs with a punch and I barely got my arm up in time to protect my head from the follow up. I sprung back and kept my distance before she could hit me again.
“That wasn’t fair.”
“It wasn’t?” she smirked.
I didn’t bother to respond. I had pride to defend. Again we circled and again she struck first. Moving in on her strikes, I managed to position myself close enough to distract her with a light slap across her face. She froze for just a nanosecond, which gave me enough time to snag the front of her sweatshirt and roll back, bringing her with me. It was a silly move and not very affective, but I think that was the big reason she didn’t see it coming. It brought our faces very close together and I mouthed “hello” as she flew by. She rolled with the throw and instantly got back on her feet, a huge smile on her face as she looked my way.
“What was that?” she asked.
“Figured I could already check a wolf off the list, might as well throw a fox too.”
She grinned wide and surged towards me. Punches, elbows, head-butts, knees, and kicks, you name it, she was throwing it. That went on for a while, my defenses holding her to a standstill until she finally broke off. As she paced back and forth looking for an opening she continued our conversation.
“You know, the more I think about it the more I am wondering if you are right?” she questioned.
“About it not being fair to use your sexual wiles while fighting me? Thank you, I agree.”
She scoffed, “No. I mean about something else being in the air. It’s true that all I can really sense is anger, but there’s more to that anger. Almost like a rebirth. The power and fury that lycan feel at their first transformation. Does that make any sense?”
“Maybe. Does that mean the full moon in a couple nights is going to be a problem?”
“I have no idea. But, if it really is that type of anger that they are feeling, it would make sense that it increases with the phases of the moon. I can’t know for sure. Sorry Bruce.”
“Don’t be sorry, I’m grateful for everything that you can tell me. I know this isn’t exactly your wheelhouse, being about wolves and all, but since it’s affecting you, I figured we could learn a little bit. Is it making you uncomfortable to talk about it?”
“No,” she shook her head, “I’m actually feeling better, more in control. As silly as this will sound, I think last night was a bit of a release.”
“I’m sorry, my brain is currently processing way too many easy jokes off of that statement. Where to start?”
“How about here?”
As she said it, I actually laughed a bit and that gave her the opening. This time she caught me on the other side, a nice solid rib shot. I held my hands up in mock surrender while I stopped giggling.
“I deserved that.”
“Yes you did.”
“Well, unless there is anything else you think I should know, I’ll be looking to you to keep an eye on things down there. If you’ll forgive the phrase, your animal instincts are probably the best warning system we are going to have.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not as easily distracted as you,” she smiled.
We both laughed a bit and then continued to spar in relative silence. I couldn’t think of anything else I really wanted to know right now, and I figured training with a shifter before possibly having to fight a bunch of them was never a bad warm-up plan. After a good thirty minutes or so of working up a sweat, I started thinking about Erika in my house last night. Not like that. I mean that it occurred to me that we better hit the showers. Especially since we were about to be in a den of wolves, as it were.
“So, perhaps we should take a break so there is time for a nice, thorough shower?”
She crinkled her cute nose in thought before taking a few sniffs. Then realization covered her face. She let out a little sigh as we took off our gear and headed back up to the locker rooms. Now don’t go getting any crazy ideas. The GHOSTs are a professional organization, even if I don’t always act that way. There are separate showers and lockers for men and women. Erika took her time and I trusted her to know when she had successfully removed my scent from her body so that the shifters wouldn’t notice. The last thing that I wanted in the middle of this meeting was a joke about us being together, especially if angry magical vines were going to ruin my ability to defend her honor.
We both made our way down a level to see if Vector and Kara were still working in their respective shops. As it turned out, we found them both in the magic lab. Kara had her eyes closed and a purple glow was surrounded a small black box on the table in front of her. Vector had his goggles on and was watching intently. Erika stood quietly beside me, and I waited until Kara was done before I spoke.
“So, what fun toys do we have?”
Vector, being a gentleman, gestured to Kara to go first.
“Well, since you were so worried about an ambush, I came up with a few things. First,” she said, holding up a handful of small blue stones, “These are basically motion sensors. I can place them in each stairway and we will have some type of warning if company is approaching.”
“That’s awesome. What else?”
“Vector and I tested a few communication systems and we realized that it was going to be an issue. So, the second thing I made was a few sets of hearing shells,” she said, holding up a handful of small, brown, rounded shells the size of a peanut in her hand. “Now, I’ll have to keep the central shell in my ear in order to maintain the link, but if a few agents up top wear the others, I can stay in constant communication with the surface.”
“Fantastic. Anything else?”
“One more thing,” she said, holding up the black box from the table. “I made us a spider box. Basically, I toss this thing in front of or behind us in those stairs and it will seal things up. Give us a few minutes to regroup at the very least.”
The look on my face must have made it clear I found the name weird.
“It’s called a spiderbox because the barricade looks a lot like a web.”
“Interesting. Why aren’t you making us toys like this every time?”
“I told you, magical constructs don’t last long. As it is, we’ll be lucky to get more than a few hours out of these. I’m hoping there’s a bit of loose manna running about due to The Circle and our close proximity to the Anacostia River. Otherwise, you better hope it’s a short meeting,” she said.
“Fair enough. How about you, Vector, what are you bringing to the party?”
A wide smile crossed his face as he pulled a few plastic rods out of his pockets. They looked liked un-cracked light sticks.
“I’ve covered our lighting needs, in case things go dark.”
I didn’t know what was worse: the fact that I didn’t think of light-sticks myself, or that he was so proud of them. I was willing to admit it was a great non-electronic lighting solution. But still, light-sticks?
“Okay, light-sticks, right?”
“Oh, and so much more. First off, these glow much more brightly than your average light-stick. They won’t last more than thirty minutes or so, but we will be able to see everything clearly. The light is far-reaching without being harsh. Our vision shouldn’t be hindered in anyway. Also, they bounce,” he said, throwing one.
The stick bounced off of the far wall, angled towards a table in the corner, ricocheted off of that, and shot back at Vector. He caught it easily and twirled it in his hands.
“They can also be placed wherever we need,” he said, again throwing the stick.
This time it was the side of the rod, not the end, that struck the wall. The light-stick stuck exactly where it hit, holding firm to the wall’s surface. He smiled in my direction.
“And, if we need to blind anyone, I can set them to burn out all at once, flashbang style.”
“Very cool. Anything else?”
“I also made some gas capsules. They should fog up
the area if we need to provide a bit of cover and the fog itself has an odor. The stench is enough to mess with anyone using scent to track us,” he said.
“Awesome.”
“One last thing, in case we need a bit of wolf crowd control,” he said, holding a pair of metal spheres that looked like meditation balls.
“What are those?”
“I call ‘em screamers. It’s sorta like a gas powered mini mega horn. But I used an ultrasonic frequency.”
“Like a dog whistle?” Erika asked.
“Exactly, and I amped them up. It’s gonna cause a lot of discomfort. Just in case we need massive lycan crowd control,” he winked.
“I’d appreciate some warning before you set those off,” she said.
“Don’t worry, I got you covered,” Vector said, handing her a set of ear plugs. “Before I set anything off, I’ll let you know. If you slip these in your ears, you should be fine. They are tuned specifically to these high range frequencies.”
“Perfect,” she smiled.
“Okay, do you two need a hand carrying anything?”
“I’m good,” Vector said.
“Me too,” Kara followed.
“Well, then I think it’s time to get this show on the road. If we leave now there should be plenty of time to look things over before the party starts.”
“Cool, is this when I’m supposed to yell shotgun?” Vector asked.
“Don’t worry my friend, you’re riding with me.”
“Great. I was looking forward to meeting your car.”
“You say that now.”
I sighed heavily and Erika and Kara responded with a giggle. Vector didn’t seem to care either way. Obviously, the file he’d read on me also talked about Vlad. I had to admit, I’d have been pretty curious to meet a dragon car myself. They’re great companions in theory, until you have to live with ‘em. I was not looking forward to Vlad telling Vector about Erika. Maybe I’d get lucky and he would behave. Yeah, yeah, I know, not a chance.
G.H.O.S.T. Teams (Book 2) Shifters Page 11
