“So what does that mean?”
“To be perfectly frank, I’m not entirely certain. The goblin kept wailing about some manner of “demon box” and a great “devouring terror”...whatever the hell that is supposed to be. Does that description ring any bells?”
“I don’t know. Not particularly…but with Serene anything’s possible. Devouring terror? What else did the goblin say?”
“He and his band were meeting with a pair of vampires in an abandoned agricultural storage unit of sorts to hand off their captives and receive payment. Beyond that…I’m afraid it was little more than gibberish. Whatever transpired there scared the living daylights out of the vermin, and from what I gather, he’s the lone survivor of his band. Seems he’s been running blindly through the night ever since escaping.”
“If he knows all that why the hell did you let him go?”
“Do you honestly wish to sit next to that bleeding filth in the back seat, listening to its screeching, while its rank odor befouls this entire vehicle? Bringing the creature along would be substantially more trouble than benefit, and I genuinely believe he told us everything he comprehended in that small mind of his. Don’t worry; he’ll be quite harmless for a good long while. At any rate, for the time being I have bigger fish to fry.”
“Serene…what have you done now?” Alex asked softly to himself, resting his forehead against the door window.
Before long they reached a large tin structure set in the center of a vast field. If the lands around were ever used for growing crops you wouldn’t know it. Thick grasses, weeds and prickly bushes had overgrown everything in sight. There was no activity to be seen anywhere, nor the glow of light from within the tin building. However, somewhat to the right a sleek black vehicle had been parked. Vega turned off the sedan’s engine, but left the headlights on. For a good while the two investigators peered carefully through the windshield, silent and motionless.
“Three flashlights,” the Cyclops at last asked of Vega. “Come on out,” he added, turning back to Alex. “There’s nobody here anymore.”
Flashlights in hand, Vega approached the parked vehicle, while Alex followed Hammett up to the building’s door. The tall, rusty doorway creaked and groaned as the Cyclops slid it open with an effort. All was dark within the structure, but even still Alex could see that a significant portion of the far wall had been wrenched open, as though something massive had plowed right through it, tearing the metal like tin foil. The inspector’s footsteps were squishy as he carefully inched forward, and lowering his light onto the floor revealed a great deal of sticky green goo. Alex crept behind the Cyclops, and panning his flashlight about revealed a scene of complete disarray. The odd sticky substance dripped off the walls and ceiling, and covered practically everything strewn about the ground. The level of destruction inside was so substantial and complete, in fact, that it immediately reminded him of seeing Serene’s mansion leveled on that fateful night that seemed like years ago.
“This served as the goblins’ vehicle,” Hammett said, studying an odd contraption tipped over on its side. The machine, now heavily dented, looked as if it had been welded together from various disparate vehicle components. “However Necrosia must have driven her truck through that massive hole over there,” he added, shining his beam upon the far wall, and then along a set of wide tire tracks impressed in the green goo leading outside, “although what could have torn through this metal in the first place is beyond me.”
“Well…” Alex added, surprised to find himself chuckling and feeling tremendous relief at the thought of his friends’ escape, “Serene has a knack for destroying things. But I don’t know what all this…” He stopped his thought in midsentence as a loud, crisp crunch emanated under his feet. “What the…oh God!” He had just stumbled upon a set of bones, a complete skeleton in fact, cleanly stripped of all flesh.
“Now we know what happened to at least one of our Cosa Nosferatu guests.” Hammett smiled, lifting the skeleton’s skull out of the goop. The skull looked like a regular human’s, but the sharp, pointy fangs of a vampire were unmistakable. “It appears as though the flesh has been melted right off…not to mention the very clothes off his back. Fascinating.”
“There’s another one over there.” Several feet away, Alex’s light revealed an additional skeleton lying on the ground, sprawled as though it were in the process of running away from something.
“Umm,” Hammett nodded. “And here we have a goblin skeleton next to this pile of rubbish. What in the bloody hell happened here?”
“Whatever this green crap is, it doesn’t seem to be dangerous anymore.” Alex stomped his feet on the ground with a scrunched nose.
“I wonder. Find anything useful?” Hammett asked as Vega plodded into the structure, having finished his search of the vampires’ vehicle. But the Spaniard simply shook his head in the negative. “As much as this scene fascinates me, we haven’t the time to loiter about. This mystery will have to wait for another time. Necrosia can’t be that far ahead of us now. Get back in the car and we’ll follow their trail.” As Vega and Alex exited the structure, Hammett hesitated a moment, slowly panning his flashlight from floor to ceiling. “What I wouldn’t give to have been a fly on the wall when this went down.” He turned to move to the car and froze. For a fraction of a second Hammett sensed a presence, he intuited that something had flitted past behind him and that he was being spied upon from the shadows. Swiftly he spun around, flicking his light in all directions. The tremendous brown eye squinted as the Cyclops carefully scanned his surroundings. There was no one in there with him. Worn and sleep deprived, it must have been his imagination. For the briefest of moments he almost thought that he saw…no, it couldn’t be.
Chapter 30- The Demon Box
What the fly on the wall witnessed…
Moody fumed with rage and disappointment in herself. Surprised and overwhelmed by a pack of freaking goblins? Goblins? How could she be so careless? Freaking harpy spawn even managed to give her a bloody nose and busted lip in the process. Of course, she gave them plenty to remember as well. As soon as the opportunity opened she would make it her sole goal in life to kick their collective ass from one end of the continent to the next. What she wouldn’t give to have her hands on one of those long sets of ears right now. She’d tie them in a freaking knot…and that’s just for starters. At the moment, however, that possibility seemed highly unlikely; both her hands and feet had been bound tightly. Hell, she’d be happy to scream and cuss at them for the time being, but the dirty cloth tied around her face ensured she could utter no more than a muffled groan.
For the past half hour the hunchback had been sitting on the floor next to Serene, also bound and gagged, inside what looked like a warehouse. This place more than likely served as a base of operations for the creatures; stacked about were supplies, mechanical odds and ends, presumably stolen items, and various tools and implements. The space had been surprising well lit, rather uncommon for a goblin dwelling. In addition to the goblins’ strange vehicle, they had brought the pickup truck inside as well. Three of their number, in fact, were having a fantastic time rooting through the contents of the pickup, acting as though they had hit the mother lode. Another skinny representative of their band stood several feet away from the two captors, no doubt assigned guard duty, but he fulfilled his assignment only halfheartedly, constantly looking over his shoulder with envious eyes to see what his buddies were discovering in the bed of the truck. A fifth goblin paced impatiently by a large sliding door, as though he were waiting for someone or something. This guy seemed somewhat larger and fiercer looking than the rest, and Moody presumed he was the boss of this half-assed outfit. Unfortunately, Alex wasn’t anywhere to be seen. If these scumbags did something to the little man, so help her…
A single thud echoed throughout the structure as the sliding entrance door received a heavy knock. This signal caused the looting goblins to pause their activity, standing up somewhat straighter, while the boss
goblin pulled the door ajar with great effort. Without so much as a word two men slipped inside, and the boss goblin shoved the door closed behind them. Moody’s heart sank at the sight of the unmistakably well-dressed figures. The only thing worse than being captured by goblins would be a transfer into Cosa Nosferatu hands. Now she understood why the goblins had lit so many lamps- even they didn’t trust the CN. The boss began babbling in its own language how difficult it had been to snare the two captors, but the vampires appeared to pay the creature no mind, walking straight up to Serene. One of the CN bent down and cupped his hand tightly under the inventor’s chin, studying her eyes and features carefully. Serene stared back at the vampire defiantly and proceeded to launch into a vulgar tirade, although not a syllable was intelligible through her gag.
“This is Necrosia without question,” the vampire studying Serene said to his partner. “Very well, goblin. You have earned your compensation.” The boss, however, demanded to know what they could get for the hunchback as well. “We have no need for the hunchback. Do as you will with her. The arrangement was but for the woman only…I don’t care what she did to your men, the hunchback is not our concern. Besides, you have already been given whatever valuables they were transporting…which should be more than generous.”
For the next several minutes the boss argued with the vampire, citing numerous reasons why they deserved extra payment for the hunchback. The vampire, obviously unimpressed, quickly began to lose his patience, but when the boss goblin added that the hunchback was a close associate of the inventor’s and knew much of her devices, he began to soften to the idea of paying for the extra captive. If the hunchback proved even remotely useful to his master it could only mean good things for him. As the two engaged in a spirited negotiation on price, the second vampire found himself a place to sit, while the other four goblins resumed looting the pickup.
It was agony to sit and watch their fate be sealed before their very eyes, helpless to do or say anything, not to mention being forced to watch as the goblins ransacked their belongings. One of their number had recently stumbled upon Serene’s “Varlic” grenades, and after smelling a canister with a disgusted look, tossed the bag over his shoulder onto the floor. Then, adding insult to injury, one of the little long eared bastards discovered Moody’s goblin hat in a box in the pickup, the one her hunchback friend Toto had made for her. The goblin stretched it across his wide head and began hopping about, sticking his tongue out and babbling nonsense while his compatriots hooted and clapped joyfully. They had gone too far. The last straw shattered the camel’s back. Eyes flaming with hatred, Moody got up on her knees, ready to charge head first across the warehouse. She didn’t give a damn what the consequences would be. And then she paused. Something new transpired that changed the situation entirely. Eyes wide, she looked at her boss, who also had her sight transfixed on the pickup.
One of the goblins had procured the mysterious jack-in-the-box Serene and Tiberius had “modified.” The curious toy tilted back and forth under the creature’s long fingers. He shook it, sniffed it, and licked the skull and crossbones symbol at its top. And then he discovered the handle. Dum dee dum dum. The handle completed one revolution and a happy jingle creaked out. The goblin laughed with amusement; he wanted to hear more. Dum dum dee dum. Moody wrenched her gaze from the box to look at Serene. The inventor’s eyes were as big as saucers with expectant curiosity. But now another goblin wanted to try, and with a slap of his hands batted the toy away. All four goblins scuffled and snarled, biting and elbowing, until one among them emerged victorious. The new owner shook the toy furiously for a second, and then started turning the crank once more. Dum do dee dee. Moody didn’t realize she had stopped breathing. What the vampire and goblin boss were up to now didn’t matter. At any given moment the toy’s lid would pop open…and then what? Dum dum dee…boing! The lid sprang open, and a small puff of green smoke belched forth . That was it. No explosion. No flash. Hell, there wasn’t even a freaking jack in this box. Of course, the sudden opening of the box startled the goblin immensely, sending him back a foot with a yelp. Otherwise, Serene’s genius invention turned out to be a total dud. The other goblins laughed and jeered, and one kicked the box away several feet, before returning to the looting in earnest. Moody turned back to Serene with utter disappointment in her eyes. Instead of appearing deflated, however, the inventor seemed even more enthralled than before. Unnoticed by their enemies, the box had begun rattling about, knocking over from one side to the next. Finally, one of the goblins noticed this anomaly and hobbled over to have a closer look.
An abrupt screech drew all eyes toward the rear of the structure. In the blink of an eye the box had burst open, spilling forth a gelatinous green blob which swelled to more than fifteen feet in diameter in a heartbeat. In the center of the blob one could make out the obscured image of the goblin, quickly dissolving until nothing but its bones remained. The three remaining goblins by the truck began howling wildly, throwing objects at the goo. The blob quickly lurched forward, moving just behind the previously seated vampire. Caught completely off guard, the Cosa Nosferatu agent ran, but was hastily absorbed into the rolling monstrosity. The piles of supplies and goods were hurled about, as the anomaly careened through the room like a pinball. The goblin boss had dashed off to gather his remaining men together, who were running about aimlessly hooting and wailing, trying to restore some sort of order in the ranks, but met little success. Amidst the bedlam, only the remaining vampire appeared to retain his wits.
The CN agent rushed to Serene’s side and lifted her off the ground; he would not be leaving empty-handed. Without the aid of his partner, however, Serene proved to be difficult to handle, even bound as she was. The inventor squirmed and kicked, twisting out of his grasp. Without hesitating, Moody propped herself on her knees and lunged head first into the vampire’s side. The blow sent him reeling, crashing down onto the floor. Seeing an opportunity with her enemy sprawled out, Serene lifted her legs high and slammed her feet down into his crotch with a painful crunch, while Moody followed her first blow with a vicious kick to the head.
The vampire seemingly incapacitated for the time being, Moody frantically rolled toward a pile she had been eyeing earlier. A good number of sharp tools and serrated knives had been knocked over, and she immediately went to work on her bonds. In her haste she ended up cutting her hand, but before long she was free. The hunchback rushed to an enthralled Serene, who watched the blob terrorize the goblins, and cheered it on through her stuffed mouth.
“That’s right you sons of harpies!” Serene yelled the moment Moody removed the gag. “Feel the wrath of Necrosia! Die! Die! Do you see that, Quasimoody? Isn’t it wonderful? That’s my creation!”
“Get up, you damn fool, before it eats us too!” Moody screamed back.
The two dashed off toward the goblin vehicle just as the blob rolled toward them. The remaining vampire screamed as the green goo rolled over him, melting his body from the feet up. Only two goblins remained now. The boss goblin had abandoned all hope of fighting this abomination, and was rummaging through a stash of goods in a corner before making a hasty retreat. The subordinate had crawled under a pile of junk and quivered in fear with its hands wrapped around its head.
“Go! Go! Go!” Moody yelled, pushing Serene in the direction of their pickup.
Slipping on the gooey floor, the hunchback and inventor scrambled to their vehicle. Through a tremendous stroke of good luck the keys were still in the ignition. The engine fired up and Moody shifted into reverse, backing the truck into the corner farthest away from Serene’s creation. Now that they had gotten to the relative safety of the truck, the question of how they would manage to escape the warehouse came to mind. Moody had no desire to get out and attempt opening that heavy sliding door. And it didn’t help her thought process with Serene constantly yelling in the seat next to her. She had to do something, but what? She had to move. Now. The blob rolled toward their position in earnest. Moody slammed on the gas
pedal and surged in the direction of the goblin vehicle, barely clearing the blob as it passed behind. The pickup plowed into the side of the goblin contraption, surprising the boss who was in the process of slipping inside. The impact rolled the goblin car onto its side, pulling the boss underneath. A new noise echoed through the structure, that of twisting metal, as the blob burst through the back wall and rolled off into the darkness. Moody didn’t even have to think about what to do now.
“Run! Run my creation! Be free! Free!” Serene yelled into the night as Moody drove through the hole in the wall and into the unknown beyond. “Oh…I’m so proud!”
Chapter 31- On Edge
“Stupid piece of crap!” Moody kicked the pickup’s front tire as hard as she could. They had only gotten a handful of miles away from the warehouse they were being held in before the truck died in a plume of smoke. The front hood had been badly caved in when she collided with the goblin vehicle, the damage far more extensive than she would have imagined.
“Well, you’re the one who charged straight into the goblin car like a raging bull,” Serene replied, with a tone that clearly stated that their current predicament was entirely the hunchback’s fault.
“Hey! I just saved our asses back there. It wouldn’t kill you to show some gratitude for a change.”
“Yes, yes. A bravado performance. Now what are you going to do about the vehicle?”
“I can’t do anything. It’s way too dark to see what I’d be working on even if I had the tools to make repairs…and this sucker’s going to need a lot.”
“Isn’t that a bloody inconvenience! Damn it all. I’ve noticed that you’ve developed quite a nasty habit of wrecking our transportation as of late, what with the other pickup back in Eville…”
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