by Tom Keller
Screw it. This was getting me nowhere. Like always, I had too many questions and not enough answers. Okay, I didn’t have any answers at all, but I was trying to put a positive spin on it, even if only to appease myself. Since that line of thought wasn't getting me anywhere, I decided to get off the floor and take another look around. But first I needed a pair of revealers.
Revealers were glasses that showed the magic in the air around the wearer. It had taken me a while to find it, but the Omega, the Department car I was driving, actually had a setting that gave the windows the same properties. I'd found out later that the revealer function and the gold tinted magical faraday cage that wrapped the car were standard issue from the PD, as were the glasses. Which explained why there were several pairs in the trunk. I almost grabbed one when I first got here, but to be honest, they gave me a headache. The pair I found on the shelf that I was putting on were antique though, and whatever they'd used to make them work wasn't as bad as my government issued ones. I decided then and there that these were coming home with me. Anyway, once I put them on I realized that a lot of these weapons used magic. Maybe that's why Robert stayed away from here, although that still didn’t explain what his problem with magic was in the first place.
I spent a few more hours looking over the various weapons and implements located in the room. Some were obviously outdated, such as the vampire slaying kit I found in an old wooden chest. Although, to be honest, the hardwood blades on the knives and axe were exquisitely detailed and as sharp as any forged metal. I also didn’t see the need for any of the archery equipment, even if the automatic crossbow with Fae arrows did make me think twice. I had to force myself to put it back on the shelf as I thought of the various things I could say while holding something like that when I kicked in a door.
You know, I thought to myself as I looked over the shelves. With the vast amount of equipment in this room, a human with the proper knowledge and training could hold his own against almost any Demon or Fae warrior out there. So maybe it was kept hidden for a reason. The powers that be might take exception to a human with that much ability. Not that I really cared. As far I was concerned, if Gaea was gonna stick me here then this was mine to make use of. I had a sudden thought and walked over to one of the shelves I'd ignored before.
The sword lying there had looked human enough, but when I pulled it from its sheath, I realized it was something more. It might look like nothing special, but the blade had been forged by the Fae. Gripping it in my hand I could feel the ancient power in the blade. Maybe not my old sword's equal, but it was more powerful than anything I'd seen here. There was no way I was leaving it behind. Being human had its disadvantages, this would help overcome a few of them. The Fae blade wasn’t the only disguised weapon. Although I was like a kid in a candy store, I knew I could come back at any time if I wanted more. In the end, I settled for the Fae blade and a harness with pouches for the magic grenades. Okay, I admit it, I also grabbed a few other trinkets that looked like they might come in handy.
With the revealers on, I was able to determine the grenade's various properties. Well, at least most of them. I'm still not sure about a couple, but I think I have a pretty good idea some of them do. Anyway, with the glasses on you can see the colors swirling inside like fast-moving clouds. Only they're more than just colors. The blue ones contain water or ice, the white are just clouds. I'm guessing those are some kind of smoke grenades. The red are flames, and I'm pretty sure the black with lightning creates an instant shit storm over whoever it gets tossed at. Oh, and one more thing. They're probably illegal as hell these days. There's not a Fae out there that would want these in the hands of humans, Demon Hunter or not. Mages and Wizards were one thing, but these things were equalizers.
I'd chosen the harness because it also contained a sheath for my new sword. Sliding it into place behind my back, I loaded the grenades I had picked up into their respective pouches then stuffed some more of them and the rest of my chosen treasures in a box I'd gotten from one of the shelves, heading back upstairs when I was done. Pushing the bookcase back against the wall I heard a satisfying click and then made my way back through the now darkened house, turning on a light in the living room should I decide to come back another evening. It also gave me a chance to see Charlie in the painting again. Having a last thought, I stopped at the door. I reached into my pocket to pull out the case that held the antique revealers and opened it, then put them on. I swung open the door and stepped out. Now I could see several of the Garden Faeries flitting about in the moonlight. As soon as they realized I was there they gave a squeal and scattered in all directions. A smile broke out on my face as I put the glasses away. Gotcha, I whispered, then walked across the yard to open the gate and head out in my car.
Chapter 11
"Enough, Captain!" Special Agent Lyn Ferrell said, pounding his fist on the table. "I have the full authority of both the President and the Governor in this matter. I don’t care what the Church of Gaea named him, the Lieutenant will not be part of this operation. The last thing I need is someone with a reputation like his anywhere close to the negotiation table."
"I'm not sure you understand the situation here," O'Malley replied, looking frustrated. "This isn’t like the rest of the country. The bad guys here don’t always use guns."
"I'm quite aware of the situation here, Captain, thank you," the Special Agent said. "I am also quite versed in what Demons are capable of. We do operate in the other 49 states, you might recall. But this isn’t a crime spree. This is a negotiation. Which means we are trying to prevent a war, not start one. Your Lieutenant has already had one major confrontation with a high ranking Prince of Hell this month. I'm not willing to let him have another. Based on the report I read, for all we know the Lieutenant's battle with the Executor was at Satan's behest. I, for one, am not willing to take that risk."
"What about the threat to your negotiation team?" O'Malley said. "That affects the city just as much as…"
"We know our responsibilities, Captain," he replied, cutting him off before he could say anything else. "As was explained to your Governor, that threat is not directed at the citizenry. In this case, never fear, we can protect our own."
It had been going on like this for quite some time. There were seven of us in the conference room. Me and O'Malley, the three EAB agents, and the two visitors from Rome. Like I said before, these guys might be EAB, but they had nothing on the agency back home. O'Malley was doing everything he could to hold back his anger. I knew that because under normal circumstances he'd have ripped the throat out of anybody who dared interrupt him. Unfortunately for him, these weren't normal circumstances. I knew O'Malley was only keeping his cool because two of the people in the room were direct representatives of the Vatican. A group I'm sure the Sheriff, if not the Governor himself, had told him to maintain a certain decorum with at any cost. Thankfully, I wasn't under the same restrictions. Hmm… what would Robert do? Suddenly, I felt a vibration at my side. Looking down, I saw my pager had gone off. I recognized the number of the Captain's secretary. Oh well, duty calls.
It was probably worth mentioning that the chief representative from the Vatican in this little circus was the Cardinal sitting across from me. A position which had been conferred upon him by the Pope himself. One of his aides, or so they claimed her to be, sat beside him. Aide, my ass. Although she'd said nothing but introduce herself as Livia, she had cop or military written all over her face, which was probably why she seemed familiar. Neither of them had said a word since Ferrell had begun talking.
"What a shame," I said, pushing my chair back and standing as I held up the pager. "Gotta run." I walked around the table, stopping and looking down at the Cardinal as I shrugged and stuck it back on my belt. I shook my head. "He really doesn’t want me here does he?" I didn't wait for a reply, instead, I pulled a business card from my front jacket pocket and placed it down on the table in front of him. I quickly leaned down, noticing the Cardinal's aide flexing as I moved. I
made eye contact with her for a brief moment, then turned back to the Cardinal. "I can take a hint. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call."
I pushed the card across the table at him and headed for the door, stopping and turning back as I swung it open. I could see that Ferrell and his entourage weren't happy. Not that I cared, but I also noticed that my business card was no longer on the table. I turned to O'Malley and winked before looking back at the Cardinal and gesturing with my head toward the agent. "Oh, I'm sure you're aware of this, but perhaps you should remind your… ahem… expert… that Lucifer doesn't use Executor Demons. If it was the Devil that wanted me dead, he'd have sent Hell Hounds." I paused for effect. "Then again, the way the Special Agent tells it, he probably would have come for me himself." Then I closed the door and quickly made my way down the hallway to O'Malley's office.
"What's up, Donna?" I asked as I came in through the door.
She was sitting at her desk, a portable radio in front of her. She stood up as I came into the room. "I'm sorry to disturb your meeting," she said, handing the portable radio to me from across the desk. "But Mal needs to talk to you. He said it was urgent."
"506M, 301M," I said, using our call signs.
"301, just wanted to advise you that we're sitting across from the old Orr ranch near Russell and Mountain View. We think your friend from the hospital may be inside. I know you're busy but thought you might want to come out and play when you get free."
"Copy that. I'll be there in 15-20." I said, waiting for him to acknowledge my radio traffic before handing it back to her.
"What do you want me to tell the Captain?" she asked, having heard the radio traffic.
"Brief him on what's happening and then tell him I'm heading out to go do some real police work," I replied, a big grin on my face.
"Oh, sure," she said, grinning back as she picked up her phone and pressed the intercom button. "He's gonna love that."
A minute later, I was in the parking lot, slipping off my jacket and digging through the trunk of my car. Let's see now… harness, sword, dagger, backup gun… okay, that should do it. Loading up and putting my jacket back on I got into the car. I picked up the map book that I'd left stuck between the seats and thumbed through it. I knew that sounded familiar, I said to myself, putting it back and starting the car. Mountain View was the same street here as it had been in my world, only there, they'd changed the name to Mountain Vista back in the early '80s. At least I knew where I was going and had a general idea of the layout of the area.
I made a left on Fremont street, grinning as I passed the Showboat Hotel. It'd been popular with locals because of its bowling lanes and coffee shop specials when I was younger. From the signage and its full parking lot, I was guessing it had the same appeal here. Since this Vegas had never built the expressway out this far, Boulder Highway was still a main downtown thoroughfare. The area was lined with lodging and commercial businesses that were generating quite a bit of traffic. Spying the Flying Elf near Oakey gave me an idea for something that I still needed to do. I filed the location away for later.
I started to see fewer buildings and more desert as I made my way southbound on the highway. It was a lot like the old Vegas I had grown up in. This part of town seemed pretty rural, at least until I turned right onto a side street that led to Mountain View. Here there were new developments and even an elementary school being built in the area. With land prices being what they were, I wasn't surprised. This was only about seven miles from the Strip, and with the newer small casinos located further up the highway toward Henderson, it appeared that this Vegas was growing outward just like it had back home. I had just crossed Flamingo, still a two-lane road here, when my radio alerted me that something was happening.
"All units, All units. Reports of shots fired and explosions in the area of Russell and Mountain View. Patrol units be advised magical ordinance suspected. Responding units take appropriate measures. Any available MAD unit reply."
There was a slight pause and then Mal came on the air.
"Control, 506M. Location is 5580 Mountain View. MAD units on the scene. Confirm dark magic ordinance has been used. Request Mad certified patrol units only and have them stand by on the perimeter until requested. My folks are a little busy at the moment. We'll need a CP (Command Post) and safety perimeter set up as units arrive."
I reached for the radio in my glovebox and grabbed the mic.
"Control, 301M, is one away," I said, punching the accelerator as I flipped on my redheads and siren. I pulled out the map book and thumbed to the correct page just as my pac-set on the passenger's seat, which was tuned to our encrypted channel, beeped an incoming transmission.
"301, 506," Mal's voice said a moment later.
"Go ahead, Mal. What do you got?" I replied.
"Garage opened and a white van started to pull out. They spotted us, bailed out and started shooting. We went toe to toe with them for a minute, then the suspects retreated inside. Juarez' team is in the wash behind the property. They've set up a damping field so nobody tries to magic their way out. We're trading some fire but I think we've got them contained for now."
"Copy that," I replied as I blew through the intersection at Tropicana. Roberto Juarez was one of my other sergeants. His team was primarily comprised of Wizards and Mages whereas Mal's were Fae and warriors. "What do you need from me?"
"If you can start securing the area so we don’t have to watch our backs, that'd be great," he said before yelling out something in the background. "Meet me on the south side when you're done. Roberto and his team should be here by then. You'll see my car, I'm covering the south of the house from the desert."
Not exactly my favorite duty, but someone had to do it, and I trusted Mal to know what he needed. The last thing anyone wanted was a supervisor jumping in without knowing everything that was going on at the scene. I double clicked the pac-set in reply, then threw it on the seat as I made the turn onto Rawhide and skidded to a stop a few car lengths up the street. It was close enough to monitor the situation and still provide cover for the responding units thanks to an old brick building that sat on the corner. I picked the mic back up and got back on the regular radio.
"Control, 301M, be advised I have two squads at the scene engaging the suspects. Give us a Code Red on this channel. I need patrol units stationed at both Russell and Hacienda to block all traffic onto Mountain View. I also want a patrol supervisor to meet me on Rawhide, east of Palm, to set up a CP. In the meantime, I need you to direct units to block any intersections south along Palm street between Rawhide and Russell that lead to Mountain View. I also want a couple units to cover the desert area behind the wash to the rear of the target location, then have any medical units responding to stage at Palm and Rawhide."
"Acknowledged," the dispatcher replied, and then began directing units just as a Patrol Supervisor pulled up in front of me. I pulled a black dry erase marker from my center console, grabbed my pac-set and stepped out to meet him. The Patrol Sergeant followed me to the back of his police car. I didn’t recognize him beyond his name tag, but from his demeanor, we'd obviously worked together before.
There was more than one reason Vegas patrol cars used this color scheme, and I drew a quick diagram on the white trunk of his car as I briefed him on what was going on. When I was finished, I tossed him the marker. He'd use the trunk as a whiteboard to document what units had been assigned where and what else was happening. As a plus, one photograph later would serve to make sure nothing was forgotten when the scene was secure and the inevitable reports had to be written.
Tactics were a little different here as well. Back home, the PD, under O'Malley's direction, would coordinate with the Fae and the EAB to handle cases like this. Here in this world, at least in Nevada, we handled situations like this on our own. MAD was the ultimate authority when it came to the illegal use of magic in Nevada.
"These are Dark Mages, so deadly force is authorized," I said, popping the trunk of my car and slippi
ng off my jacket and leather vest and replacing it with the heavy anti-magic and bulletproof vest in the trunk. "How you fixed for weapons?"
"I've got my shotgun with standard magic loads," he replied, lifting the weapon that was slung over his shoulder. "But I've also got an MP-4 in the trunk. What do you recommend?"
I started loading several of the glass grenades in the outside pockets of the black vest, one per compartment, then sheathed my dagger and guns. Considering what he was armed with, and what I knew I did best, I pulled out the Thunder Hammer. "Try this on for size," I said, tossing it to him. I pulled a few extra rounds from the trunk and then handed them to him as well. "Here. You might need these. It's point and shoot, but watch the kick… it's a bitch if you’re not ready for it."
"Umm… " he murmured as he examined the weapon. "Won’t you need it?"
"Not as much as you will," I replied, sheathing my Fae sword. "If anyone gets by us, I'll expect you to make sure they don’t make it past you. We can’t afford to let them get back into the general population. You got a problem with that?"
"It's not standard protocol," he replied with a smile. "But I'll make do." At the same time, a loud animal screech filled the air and he instinctively ducked and looked up.
"Wyvern," I said, pulling out my sword. "That's my cue." I pointed to the Thunder Hammer and grinned. "I'll expect that back when we're done." Then I ran to the open car door and hauled ass to where Mal was waiting. I wasn't a moment too soon.
I could see Mal and Roberto battling the Wyvern as I came around the corner. The Wyvern was being held back by Roberto's magic shield, but that also prevented Mal from getting his sword close enough to strike. I bailed out as my car skidded to a stop and threw a storm of dust into the air in front of Mal's car.
"Drop the shield," I yelled out, hidden from the Wyvern's view by the dust. I jumped on the trunk of his car and threw myself into the air toward the beast.
