by Justin Sloan
"Don’t you have those others?" He stood, cocking his head as he looked at her, like he was trying to decide if she was lying. "Wallace? Royland?"
"I do, but I need someone in the streets, someone who knows them. And the other leaders… well, half left, the other half tried to kill me, so I’m more inclined to trust you right now." She looked down at the fake Pumas again. "But mostly, I just want you to buy me another pair of these."
He chuckled. "You’ve got yourself a deal." He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. "And then maybe, we continue that date? Maybe something classier than a street hot dog this time?"
She nodded. "Maybe, yeah. But first, I have a pest problem, and have some exterminating to do."
"External, I hope?"
"I’m going to kill Commander Strake." Turning to go, she motioned for him to follow as she finished her sentence, "and anyone that stands in my way."
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Swamplands
Night had fallen again by the time Valerie and her team of two had reached the marsh northwest of Old Manhattan. According to their directions, Strake would be hiding out around here, and they’d spotted movement from the police pod.
Valerie brought it down, not entirely smoothly, and landed with a squish. The swamp was said to be the location of a massive slaughter following the collapse of civilization, and no one came this way—whether out of respect for the dead, or because they believed in ghosts.
"This place smells like shit," Diego said.
"You saying I shouldn’t have brought you?" Valerie said with first a glance at him, and then to Sandra.
Gripping the sling of her rifle, Sandra scoffed. "As if I would’ve given you a choice."
"She’s got you there," Diego said. "If the two of you had to go at it, I’d put my money on Sandra."
"She’s your little girlfriend." Valerie assessed the ground before her and hopped across a wet area she was certain would suck her down into the mulch. "Of course you have to take her side."
Diego shrugged. "If nothing else, she’d win because you could never hurt this beautiful woman… right?"
Valerie laughed at that. "Of course not." She looked around, “Probably.”
Something stirred in the reeds nearby, then a movement from the tree branches hanging nearby.
"Don’t make me laugh," Valerie said, pulling her sword. "We don’t know who, or what, could be nearby."
"I don’t get how this shithole of a land could be dry and arid just a couple hours south of here, and then like this." Diego followed Valerie’s lead and unslung his M4. It was dated, but he’d said he felt comfortable with it.
Valerie didn’t give two shits what gun he chose, as long as he kept himself and Sandra safe.
And just then that’s exactly what he needed to do, because suddenly three Nosferatu leaped out of the waters, a fourth from the tree.
Not that they were anything to worry about, but she’d hate for one of them to make a move when she wasn’t looking and get too close to Sandra. She darted forward and slashed at the closest one, sending its head spinning into a pool of nearly black water. But she’d acted too fast, forgetting where she was, and in the process lost her footing.
She swung her arms, frantically trying to catch her balance. Something plowed into her from behind, a Nosferatu, she saw as it took her and together they plunged into the water.
Her spluttering and cursing was more from annoyance than anything else, and the fact that she’d dropped her sword and now didn’t see it anywhere. With a swift punch she sent her attacker’s head snapping back at the wrong angle, then she leaped forward and finished the job by pulling it completely off and chucking it at one of the others.
Rifle fire commenced as the other two moved in on Diego and Sandra, and one of the Nosferatu stumbled back, filled with holes.
Valerie spun, searching for any sign of her sword in this muck—she refused to lose it. Not after all this time!
The Nosferatu that had been shot recovered and charged, and this time Diego had to dodge sideways and catch the monster with a rifle-butt to the back of the head. The second caught him from behind.
Sandra was aiming in with her sniper rifle, but it was too close range, and she’d never get a shot in with them all over Diego like that.
Valerie cursed again, and then her foot hit something hard. She thrust her hand downward and a moment later came up with her sword—it didn’t look as pretty, with sludge clinging to it, but it’d still do the trick.
She charged forward and tore the one Nosferatu from Diego’s back, quickly ending it with a sword through the head, then turned to see he had managed to toss the last one aside just in time for Sandra to blow it’s head to smithereens with a well placed shot from her rifle.
"Yeah, no more laughing," Diego said, staring at the dead Nosferatu with a wild look in his eyes. "We promise."
Valerie shook her head in disgust as she cleaned her sword on one of the bodies. "Let’s just keep moving."
"Should we get the pod?" Diego asked.
"Better to stay out of sight," Valerie said. "He’ll see that thing coming."
They continued in silence, watching the land give way from marshes to a more hilly swampland. Remains of buildings, a wall here, a sign there, stuck out of the ground like old bones—the skeleton of a world that once existed here.
As they went on, she became keenly aware of a presence, and constantly felt eyes on her. Crossing one hill, she turned in time to see a form disappear behind a tree, but she wasn’t up for games, so just as quickly, she went after it.
The vampire spun on her when she cornered it at the base of two rocky outcroppings, and then charged for the attack. His breath was hot on her before she turned and maneuvered her arms to send him flying into the air so that he landed with a large thump half-way down a hill.
Valerie leapt onto him and pulled him up, just as he was catching his bearing. "Whose side are you on?"
The vampire shook his head, eyes adjusting to the situation. "I have no side, and frankly have no idea what you’re talking about."
Sandra appeared, breathing heavy and out of breath, and immediately aimed at the vampire’s head. Diego was right behind her.
"Is he with Strake?" Sandra asked.
Valerie looked into the vampire’s eyes, dark and clouded over, like he’d been out here alone, without much blood to feed on, for too long. She shook her head.
"I’m going to give you a choice," she told the vampire. "You can go back to the city, tell them I sent you and that you want to join up, to fight those who would oppress vampires and Weres. You do that, and you’ll be taken in, and fed." Valerie stood and held out a hand to help him up. "How’s that sound?"
"Sounds great," he said, accepting her help to stand. "Except for the part about the shit-licking Weres." He was fast, reaching for a blade at his waist, but Sandra had been ready.
BAM! His head exploded, some of it splattering Valerie.
"Ah!" Valerie said, wiping it off of her. "Can you not do that next time, for the love of fucking balls!"
"I’m not sure that’s the right way to swear," Diego said with a smirk.
Valerie glared at him, then walked over, grabbed him, and wiped her face on his shirt.
"Oh, come on!" he said, grossed out.
"Now you know how I feel," she said.
They both looked at Sandra, who cringed. "Sorry. But I did save you."
"You don’t think I could’ve stopped him?" Valerie asked, but without waiting for a response, she turned and continued their march on.
"Do you think she had that?" Sandra asked Diego.
He shrugged. "She’s a badass, yeah. But that vampire definitely had the drop on her."
"Damn right." Sandra held her head high, only then realizing Valerie had turned and was watching them.
"You forget I have damn good hearing, in addition to my reflexes," Valerie said. "But, if it helps… thank you."
She nodded, thinking she was
being very generous, considering how nasty having brain splattered on you was, when she heard Sandra say, "You know, she wasn’t always this arrogant."
The comment hurt, but she let it go, and just kept walking. They’d be close behind. As they went, the hills gave way to flat land again, and Diego was telling Sandra about how this reminded him more of the area around the Golden City. Valerie, however, had her thoughts elsewhere.
Maybe Sandra had a good point. Was she changing too much? Becoming too arrogant, and forgetting her role here. It wasn’t executioner, and she wasn’t a god. She was Michael’s charge, his Justice Enforcer.
Not that she’d kill Strake any less when she found him, but she found solace in the knowledge that she was doing it for justice, and because honor demanded it.
This wasn’t some petty feud, some quest for revenge.
And she still remembered where it had started—with that child back in France. How many other children had died at the hands of Donovan and his vampires? How many could she have kept alive, if she’d acted sooner to take him out of the picture?
That thought haunted her, along with the faces of all those vampires, Royland included, she had found having their blood drained from them at the orders of Commander Strake.
She’d make sure it never happened again, first by ending his life, and then going after the CEOs.
One step at a time.
"Val!" Sandra said, and Valerie turned to see she was pointing in the distance, to the southwest of where they’d been heading.
Just visible in the distance was a dim light, coming from a square shaped building.
"Electricity out here?" Diego said.
"Looks like we found our man." Valerie picked up her pace, and was soon at a jog. She checked the pistol at her thigh, one hand holding her sword steady in its sheath as she ran.
A glance back showed that Sandra was doing her best to keep up, and Diego too. It wasn’t the right time to be thinking so, Valerie knew it, but she felt happy for those two, and vowed to make sure they knew that. Part of her felt like the awkward older sister who sees she might be losing her best playmate. Then again, she thought as an image of Jackson’s pearly white teeth and his handsome smile flashed into her mind, maybe she was in the process of finding her own playmate.
Focus, she told herself, and pushed on.
Soon they were close enough to the building to see that the old, weather-worn sign said it was an old public safety complex.
"A prison?" Diego asked, looking at the bars on the windows and whatnot. It was a tall building of red brick.
"Whatever it was, it won’t be keeping anyone safe tonight," Valerie said, and was glad to see that bring a smile to Sandra’s face. "What, you think that was funny?"
"Not exactly," Sandra said. "More, I’m glad you haven’t become so cocky that you’re above lame jokes."
"Hardy har-har." Valerie rolled her eyes playfully and said, "How ‘bout we kick this guy’s balls into outer space and then have a little discussion about who has changed and who hasn’t?"
"Deal." Sandra said. Her eyes went wide and she motioned for them to duck. They all threw themselves to the ground, just as a shadow appeared at one of the windows.
As fast as it had appeared, it was gone.
"If that person saw us," Valerie said, "we’d better move fast, before they’re able to tell everyone else."
"And if they didn’t see us?" Diego asked.
Valerie shrugged. "Still no reason to put off what can be done now."
Diego looked to Sandra, but she just nodded and added, "Hey, I’m with her on this one, let’s roll."
So they moved toward the building.
Only, it soon became clear this was some sort of fallback fortress—especially when flood lights burst on, aimed right at them, and the bullets started flying.
Valerie and Diego could heal, to a degree, but not Sandra, so she was Valerie’s first thought. She dove over her friend and, holding her close, ran with Diego close on her heels. Two bullets took Valerie in the shoulder and she cried out, more pissed than anything else, and manage to reach one of the old walls where she could hide Sandra.
Cement exploded, sending particles down on them. And then Diego came around the wall, grasping his side where blood was prevelent.
"Not the cake walk we were hoping for, huh?" he said between grunts of pain. He huddled up next to them, and Sandra took him in her arms, quickly tearing off her jacket and applying it to the wound.
"They knew we were coming," she said among curses.
"He ran once before, I’m not giving him that option this time." Valerie peeked out from behind the wall, then dodged back as more bullets punctured the ground nearby. "Get ready."
"Ready for what?" Sandra asked, her voice cracking.
"That!" Valerie said, pointing as three pods flew over. A rattling sounded and Valerie knew they only had a split second before more bullets started raining down on them. "FUCKING SHOOT!"
She leaped up and ran, hoping the pods would follow her. A quick glance showed her that two did, but the third was aiming in on Sandra while she pulled her sniper rifle out and aimed back.
This wasn’t going to end well—not in its current trajectory.
Valerie darted left, back toward the wall, and then put all her strength into her jump. She leaped and kicked off the wall, toppling it over as her kick propelled her toward the nearest pod.
Her sword shone off of the floodlights as she pulled it out, then sang as she brought it down into the window of the first pod, directly into the driver. Hanging there, she brought her legs up to kick off of the pod. With a push as she pulled her sword free, she leaped for the next pod as this one fell.
The sounds of shooting sounded, and Valerie’s heart dropped at the thought of Sandra being riddled with bullet holes. It brought a new fury to her and when she landed on the second pod, she grabbed hold, screaming at the pain in her shoulder from the bullets still in there, and yanked open the door.
A man in an Enforcer Uniform was in there and turned with a horrified expression to see her there, hanging to the side of the pod with red glowing eyes and sharp fangs.
She punched him hard enough to fracture his jaw, then tossed him from the pod as she climbed in. Next she maneuvered the controls to turn it toward the third pod, only, it wasn’t there!
Confused and pumped up on adrenaline, she swung the pod around, then back, and then looked down just in time to see it on the ground crashed, an Enforcer pulling himself out only to be met by a shot from Sandra’s rifle.
Valerie lowered the pod, door still open so she could shout out, "What happened?"
"Diego distracted it, I shot," Sandra said, patting her sniper rifle like it was her best friend.
"Hell yeah," Valerie said. "Guess they didn’t get the memo that the Enforcer uniform has been retired."
"They’ll hear soon enough," Sandra said, glancing back to the man with the fractured jaw running away.
"Would you mind?" Valerie said, then gestured a shooting motion.
Sandra smirked and then lifted the rifle to her shoulder, knelt, and aimed.
BOOM!
The man sprawled out across the ground, dead.
Shouting came from back at the fortress, and that gave Valerie an idea. She lowered the pod and said, "Get in, they don’t know what’s happened."
"Nice thinking," Diego said, and Sandra helped him into the pod.
"You going to make it?" Valerie asked.
"If he doesn’t," Sandra said, "I’m following him into hell to drag his lazy, not finishing the job ass back here."
"Why hell?" he said.
"After all the people we’ve killed?" Sandra asked, confused.
"But they were all bad." Diego shrugged. "At least, probably."
Valerie thought back to that teenage girl, the one who’d been fighting on Jackson’s side, and how she had almost become a casualty of that little skirmish. Who knows how many had simply ended up on the wrong side, or whe
n the wrong side wasn’t the wrong side at all.
"How about we all just focus on not dying?" she said, and then, after trying to figure out the controls for a moment, touched a green line on the screen and the pod shot forward.
It nearly hit the wall, but then she swiped up and left and it was over, heading for the fortress.
"What was that you said about not dying?" Diego said with a pained laugh. "Right before almost killing us?"
"Mock me again and I’ll stick my foot so far up your ass you’ll forget about the pain in your side."
"Touch his ass and you’ll have me to deal with," Sandra said, with mock-seriousness.
"Can we not talk about shoving or touching my ass," he shouted, "and watch the fuck out for that!"
Ahead of them, the fortress walls seemed to suddenly leap up. This pod was faster than Valerie had realized it would be. At least no one was shooting at them yet, but there was a lot of shouting.
"Get ready to jump," Valerie said.
"Ready to…?" Diego asked, but there was no time to explain.
Valerie had aimed right for the center rooftop doors, figuring that was the best way to make an entrance. She opened the pod doors and shouted, "Now!" and then turned, grabbed them both, and leaped from the pod.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Strake’s Fortress
They all hit the rooftop, rolling as the pod continued its trajectory and smashed into the doors, knocking them off their hinges. There was no explosion, but a lot of shouting from nearby.
It took a second for Valerie to catch her bearings, and then she realized men and women in Enforcer uniforms were running over from the turrets.
Diego was shouting in pain, cursing her name, so she figured he wasn’t going to be a lot of help.
"Get him out of the way," she said to Sandra, then grabbed her sword from where it had fallen nearby, and stood, facing the oncoming Enforcers. With the wound in her shoulder, she had to switch hands for the sword, but the other one still worked well enough to draw her pistol and send a couple of shots into the mix, making them dive for cover.
