She finally said, “You need to turn yourself in, Mike. The police have been instructed to shoot you on sight, my mom said. What the hell do you want from me?”
“I need to talk to you.”
“Yeah right, you’re not murdering me, asshole.”
“What? No. That’s a total fabrication. I was set up. The video in the police station isn’t me,” I tried to explain.
“So what? It’s like some Running Man type shit?”
“Exactly, but on a crazy demonic shifter level that this city has never seen.”
She scoffed, “You aren’t helping your cause, crazy man.”
“I realize that and I’m not even calling for myself. I’m calling for Reginald.”
“What? Is there something wrong with him?” She spoke with concern in her voice.
“No. Well yeah, but really no. It’s just he wants to get downtown to see the eclipse and I was supposed to pick him up, but…”
She cut me off. “But you don’t have a car.”
“Actually, I borrowed his car, thank you.”
“Then why don’t you pick him up?”
Ooh, there you go Mr. Self-Righteous. She turned that around in a hurry. I said, “I can’t. Long story.”
“Yeah, you seem to have a lot of long stories. Mystery girlfriends too.”
The life of a wizard, what can I say. “I don’t blame you for that or what is going on at the moment. The way things look right now, I don’t blame anyone for thinking I did it. Hate me for the rest of your life, but could you just give Reginald a ride down to the city? He wants to go to the Party at the Point. Please.”
“I might have to take you up on hating you for the rest of your life. From what I’ve seen inside you, it’s hard for me to believe you did it, by the way.”
My chest heaved as I breathed a huge sigh of relief. It meant everything to hear that. It was strange to have such strong feelings for a girl I hadn’t kissed. “I’ll be able to prove it when we meet at midnight. If you still want to do that?”
“Fine, but you will have to prove to me that you didn’t do it. I’ll know if you are lying. For sure. You have to let me do just one thing to prove your innocence,” she said.
“Deal. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“This is simple.”
“What do I have to do?” I wanted to know.
“Let me stare into your eyes for thirty seconds. Straight. No blinking.”
I thought about it for a second. She had some sort of special ability she was hiding. I didn’t have any negotiating power. “Sounds like a plan. Are you going to pick up Reg?”
“Of course, I am going to pick him up. Not because of you, by the way. I’m picking him up because Reginald is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. I’m leaving right now before I go to work. I’m still not sure about you.”
“That’s totally fair and I promise, I will make this all up to you.” I wasn’t exactly sure how.
“We’ll see,” she teased and hung up the phone.
I really couldn’t believe that went well considering how everything looked right now. I hung up with her and immediately called Reg. It rang several times before he finally picked up.
“Young buck, what’s happening?”
“Slight change of plans.” I didn’t want to tell him about the car. “I’m kind of stuck in a situation here so…”
He cut me off, “No worries, I can watch the show from my back porch.”
“No, Reg, that’s not what I was going to say. Satoku is going to pick you up and bring you downtown before she goes to work. You can get dropped off wherever you want and I will come and meet you. She isn’t happy with me right now and doesn’t really want to see me.”
“I can understand that. You’ve backed yourself into a corner right now. It’s cool, I’ll meet up with you in a little while then.”
“Reg, can you do me one more favor?” As if he hadn’t done enough for me.
“Probably. I’ve been told I’m pretty crafty.”
I smiled. “Can you bring Colossus with you?”
“Man, that’s a long time to have a dog out and about at a big party.”
“I know, I just don’t want to leave him alone or even worse, with Ronald.”
He laughed. “I’ll bring the dog. I’ll call you when I get to the city.”
“Sounds good then.” I exhaled, and thought about what excuse I could give him about the car. Everything seemed to be happening so fast.
I walked around for a while until Reg called and I met up with him and Colossus.
22
Reg dressed up as a Ghostbuster sans proton pack and he had even found a costume for my dog. The pullover looked like a vampire cape with a white shirt and red bow tie. I smiled and immediately felt guilty about it. I needed to stay focused and not let my guard down, but the dog looked frickin’ adorable.
I scared the hell out of Reg when I rolled up on him in costume. “It’s me, Reg.”
He smirked and nodded. “Nice costume. Scary. I can’t recognize you for anything. You look bigger too. Beefier.”
I had blown myself again. Wait, that didn’t sound right. I’d trapped some more air into my system to give the appearance that I was carrying more weight. If my best friend didn’t recognize me, that was a good sign, although it slowed me down.
My dog resisted at first because of the Anubis costume until he smelled and licked my hand, figuring out it was me. We stopped at a public bench and I sat down so we could form a plan.
The sun started to fall and people in costumes walked by on the sidewalk heading to the big party at the Point.
“Did you think about trying that place that the Jersey Devil took you to after that date?” Reg asked.
“Hmmm. That’s not a bad point. I still don’t know exactly where that place was. I should have paid more attention on the way out of there, but I’m not sure I could get back there.” I hoped Reg would drop it because I didn’t want to tell him about his car.
“That’s a real problem because you know they aren’t going to be able to get a pack of a thousand shifters into the city without being noticed. They are going to be out in the middle of the woods or a big field maybe.”
I thought for a moment. “Maybe you are right about the field, but the woods would taint the power of the eclipse. If you want to stay down here while I check out those ideas, feel free. I know you don’t need me to have a good time and you don’t have to worry about all this nonsense. Plus I don’t want to get you hurt.”
“Ha ha. I could kill you with my bare hands right now. That’s mighty nice of you, but I think I can handle myself just fine. If you want, we can drive around together and try to put the pieces together.”
That was a horrible idea. I couldn’t risk having Reg mad at me right now. It would mess with my emotions. Emotions were very important in magic, which did not bode well for me right now. “Why don’t we give it some more thought before we just start driving around aimlessly?”
“Damn, that thing looks real right there,” Reg said, and pointed to a person in a werewolf costume.
“That looks too real.” I sprang to my feet with my dog in my arms and we followed the person. The streets were crowded, and the werewolf kept weaving in and out of packs of people. Reg and I stayed hot on his or her heels. The tall, costumed person headed toward the Point.
The Point was also called Point State Park, located at the confluence of the three major rivers in Pittsburgh. The city held festivals in the area including the Eclipse Party at the Point going on tonight. Thousands of people were expected to be there.
I had to find out what was going on here. I speeded up and closed in on the wolf, releasing a little gas and losing some mass. I kicked the werewolf’s ankle, causing him to fall forward on his knees, and I blended into a small pack of people. The wolf jumped up, looking around for the culprit.
I checked the sidewalk where the werewolf went down and noticed blood stains. I rejoined Reg and to
ld him that the shifter was real. We kept following the shifter and I noticed two more costumes that looked too real. Another werewolf and a tiger that strongly resembled Suzette after she had shifted. It couldn’t be. Why this early?
I leaned down and whispered to Reg, “I got a feeling he’s going to do it at the Point. Almost everyone is going to be in costume, so his shifters will kind of blend in.” I wouldn’t admit it, but it was pretty frickin’ brilliant.
“That ain’t no good. How you gonna put a stop to all that?”
“I still don’t know that yet.” We passed a group of cops and I lowered my head, forgetting I was in costume. “Let’s get down to the party and see what’s going on.”
“Sounds good to me,” Reg said with a smile.
We got to the Point, basically a big open field with vendor stands and drink bars scattered throughout the venue. We grabbed a couple of wildly overpriced beers that I so graciously bought with Reginald’s money. A few hours went by and the place began to fill up. We walked toward the tip of the Point with giant fountains of water at the confluence of the rivers.
A stink of wet dog started to fill the open area and I noticed more shifters, more police, and I even thought I saw Alayna’s henchmen from the Deep Burrow. I knew one thing, my magic detector sounded the alarm, loud and clear. I stopped after the first beer so that I could get my mind ready for magic. I couldn’t use the entire playbook with so many innocent people around, so I needed to be sharp.
The entire eclipse process was supposed to take about four hours and end just before midnight. I started to wonder if the shifters were trying to absorb as much of the eclipse as possible. The total eclipse was only supposed to last an hour and a half. I assumed the Jersey Devil was going to make his move during that time.
I hadn’t seen the demi-devil or his human figure yet as we strolled around the party. I wondered if anyone other than Reg understood how dangerous this situation was. The shifters had murdered only days ago and now they were mingling with drunken, unsuspecting partygoers.
We walked around for hours and the full eclipse was going to end in a half hour. We were deluged in a sea of shifters, but the leader couldn’t be found. My stomach churned at the prospect of the Jersey Devil locking the gates of hell. Failure seemed imminent, but we kept searching.
I needed to get a better view and took the mask off for a quick peek. The chilly Halloween air felt good on my sweaty head and I could hear the rushing rivers and fountains. I spun around a few times trying to find my ultimate enemy. I made eye contact with a cop and his partner pointed at me.
Damnit.
I threw the mask back on and could barely see as I led Reg into a crowd of people. I increased the speed and let out some gas, causing me to lose some mass. My belt sagged, and I puffed some more air into my body. We moved toward the fountain and I felt confident we’d lost the boys in blue. We slowed down and the search continued for the demon ring leader.
The shifters had started acting like zombies and bumping into everyone as they staggered around. In their defense, they did look like heavily intoxicated partygoers too. Pressing my hand against my chest, I felt naked without my necklace and triskele amulet.
Found him, her rather. That didn’t take long at all. The Jersey Devil in female human form sat on a bench about twelve feet away. He didn’t notice me because of the costume, my increased mass, and all the magic floating around the party. I blended in on those accounts. I handed Colossus to Reg and got rid of the costume staff.
“Ignis et imperium. Ignis et imperium.” I let my magic build inside, opening the reservoir and going to a level I never had before. I had to be careful not to kill anyone as power and fire combined for a lethal combination inside my chest.
I was debating which form of magic to use when the gunshots rang out.
I immediately felt the burning pain in my trapezius and dropped to one knee. Mayhem broke out and party people scattered in every direction, which ultimately helped my cause. The screaming and yelling was so loud I couldn’t tell if more shots were being fired.
I checked my shoulder and it felt like a grazing wound, but the area gushed blood. I turned to Reg. “Go. Get out of here before you get hurt. Wait. One second.” I grabbed his forearm. “If things don’t work out for me, tell Satoku…tell her I was only trying to help. I was only fulfilling my oath. And you know how much I care about you, right?”
Reg looked me in the eye. “You gonna be all right, man. Stop with that sappy shit. I’ll stop slowing you down now.”
“I’m going after the Jersey Devil even if that means the cops are going to shoot me. I’m scared, Reg, but I got to do it. Just in case I don’t make it out of here. Thanks for everything. You’re a great friend.”
Reg didn’t have time to respond because the crowd separated us. I noticed that the shifters hadn’t left, and several were in fights with cops. The shifters’ movements were slow, but they were ripping officers to pieces once they grabbed hold. As the crowd thinned out, I kept moving toward the fountain. My costume gave the shifters the impression that I was one of them.
The gunshot wound had knocked some magic out of me and I could still feel some vines slipping from the cut. I built up some more fire and strength and heard more gunshots. I crouched down behind a few shifters and checked over both of my shoulders.
Bingo.
I stood up, spun around, and faced the Jersey Devil in demon form. He was wearing what appeared to be a fur coat until I took a closer look. It appeared to be human hair. The hair of his shifters to increase his hold over them. Crafty demon.
The Manticore and Empusa flanked the demi-devil. Another hail of gunshots broke out and I heard the bullets whizzing past my head as I hit the deck. They narrowly missed the Jersey Devil, who held a staff toward the sky and shook it around.
I hugged the ground. The Jersey Devil pointed his staff at the police and every cop stopped in their tracks and fell to the ground, motionless. It hadn’t affected any of the shifters who walked in circles like zombies, absorbing the energy from the eclipse that was ending soon.
I got back to my knees and noticed the Empusa and Manticore were still flanking the Jersey Devil. Round two, bitches.
I kept building intensity inside and manifesting it. I looked up to a lonely storm cloud in the sky and pulled in the electricity from it. My body was about to burst from all the internal pressure.
I stared at the three enemies and sent a wave of magic at them. They didn’t recognize me because of the costume and increased mass. The invisible pocket of fiery power crushed all three demons, sending them back into the fountain. Mabon appeared out of nowhere. He had been behind the giant Manticore, but now he lay on his side only fifteen feet away. I ripped off the mask as the disguise wasn’t important anymore.
I ran to rescue the Celtic God, releasing gas along the way, so much that I returned to my normal size, and just as I went to scoop Mabon up, his body slid away toward the Jersey Devil who had made it back to his feet. His fake fur coat had been burned off from my heated magic pocket.
The demi-devil used the power of magnetism to pull the Young Son to him. The Empusa sent a blast of sulfuric acid in my direction that stopped me in my tracks and I barely dodged the spray at the last moment.
The Jersey Devil yelled to the Empusa. “You two can take Mabon away for now. I’ll send a signal when we need him back at the close of the eclipse.”
23
The Empusa’s hair, which blended into her flying cape, began to ripple in the still air. She clutched Mabon under her arm as he fought to get loose and they took off into the sky with the Manticore behind her.
The Jersey Devil’s lips started to move, but he wasn’t saying anything. Not good. I felt an amazing pressure around my body and I started moving toward the Jersey Devil. I held both arms out and it was almost like I was flying except for the tips of my shoes dragging on the ground.
The speed increased as I neared the demon and I noticed that I had cause
d a huge gash to the Jersey Devil’s potbelly. Instead of blood, a thick white cream seeped from the wound. I still couldn’t control my body as I rushed toward the enemy.
I got within ten feet and the demon lifted his leg.
When I got within striking distance, his foot sprang forward, hitting my chest with the strength of a sledgehammer, contorting the five layers of my epidermis, crushing my ribcage, pushing the bones back into my chest cavity, cracking three ribs, possibly breaking one, creating an internal emergency for my organs and blood vessels, causing extreme pressure on my lungs and heart. My head whipped forward, planting my chin into my sternum, my brain thrust forward colliding with my skull, vision blurred, my teeth crunched together biting off a small piece of my tongue, snot rocketed out of my nose, the stitches in my forehead came loose, blood rushing to escape the reopened wound. the wind chased out of my aching lungs.
I was launched backward and landed on my ass, the wind chased out of my aching lungs.
“GGGAAAHHH,” I gasped for the air that had just been booted out of me. Is this guy a fucking mule? I took short, wheezing breaths and they hurt like hell.
The Jersey Devil smiled and twirled his staff above his head. “Should have quit while you were ahead, or behind. Should have stopped poking around in this stuff, Mikey.”
It was the most pain I’d ever experienced in my life. I wanted to roll up into a ball and cry for my mother to save me. I wanted to scream for him to kill me. Right then. Right there. Most men would have never gotten up. I thought about my mom and knew what she would want me to do.
Fuck giving up. Let’s rock.
I might die at the hands of the Pittsburgh Police or the Celtic Gods, but I’m not losing to this demon.
I struggled, barely making it to my knees as the pain circulated around my chest, but I wasn’t giving up. “At least I ruined your plan to lock the gates of hell.” It hurt to talk, breathe and move. Other than that, I was doing great.
“Ha ha ha ha ha. I only need them to bring that stupid God back to set the spell during the total eclipse. I’ll kill you quickly and get back to what I was doing.”
Shifting Problems Page 17
