Chapter 20

CHAPTER

TWENTY

"They showed up looking for you," Ushen explained as we all dined on their heavenly breakfast foods. The eggs were fluffy, bacon crispy, vegetables charred just enough to give them a roasted flavor, and the tortillas were like warm clouds hugging them all in place. I was riding the bliss of stuffing my face as the wendigo spoke.

"I didn't trust them," Ushen continued. "They were the DHAP officers you brought to me once, long ago. They said to me, "Dallas is in danger, this computer file contains Florence Pierce's magic tech details." I told them I would not bring them to you, but I would relay the information."

"That's when they showed up at our place," Dex explained around a bite of food. It was the first time I saw her chewing on something besides gum. "They knew I worked for Sias making goodies somehow."

"I know things," Ushen said, like it was universally understood. "I brought the tech to Dex to help you. I knew you were staying here with Marthas, so I brought her to you when breakfast was ready."

"You knew about this?" I quizzed Marthas who was finishing his eighth burrito.

"I knew about it when they showed up on my security camera." He gave his pocket a pat where his phone was. "I'm learning about all of this in real time with you, Wilde, and figuring out how you're going to repay me for my doorframe."

"How is that on me?" I began to argue, but then waved it away like a fly. "Fuck it. Never mind, you're bulldozing this place anyway. Dex, what were you able to get from Florence's intel?"

"Remember when you brought me that fine piece of technology you found lodged in a vampire's head a few months ago and I said I was too homegrown to recreate it? Well, our friendly neighborhood wendigo here just handed me the blueprint of how it all works in some encrypted files from DHAP," Dex explained as she finished her last bite.

"They must have found it when they raided her offices," Sias mused. "What can you do with that information, Dex?"

"Well." She wiped her mouth with a napkin and leaned back in her chair, placing one hand on her full stomach. "I guess that depends on what exactly you have planned. It's all over the news that Pierce is MIA, and there's allegations she had something to do with the "unexplained, necromancy-related phenomena" happening throughout the city. I'm guessing since that one's involved, you're going to go headfirst into something stupid." Dex tilted her head my way as she spoke with Sias.

"I'd say it's more brave and heroic," I said at the same time Sias agreed with her and Zane nodded. "Hey, I have two boyfriends you can have. Free to a good home. Zane's almost potty trained but watch for Sias. He's a humper."

"The plan is to go after Florence," Zane told her, ignoring me. "We know where she is, but she's got more of those tech vampires with her."

"A lot of them," I cut back in, deciding to be serious for the sake of timing. "More than we can handle with just the four of us."

"Five," Funus spoke up for the first time in Barnaby's lap. "But I suppose I won't be lending a hand to the fighting."

Dex stared for a long time as she processed the talking skull, taking out a pack of gum and extracting a stick without saying a word.

"Okay," Kimi finally broke the silence, poised like she was waiting to catch whoever was going to faint from shock first. "Did anyone else see that skull talking or am I just really high?"

Dex shoved gum into her cheek and peeled her eyes off Funus to look to Kimi.

"What skull?"

The intoxicated jinn's eyes widened and she began panic giggling.

"The skull? In…wait." She turned and pointed to Malphie, who had parked his large body halfway lodged under Sias's chair. "You see that too, right? The big skeleton dog with the bone?"

Dex lifted her shoulders and said nothing, igniting a peeling shriek of laughter from her friend.

"Told you not to eat edibles before leaving."

"You are cold ," I told Dex through my laugh.

"Can someone handle the poor, intoxicated girl so we can get back to business, please?" Sias rubbed at his temple.

"Maybe have some coffee," Funus offered, trying his best to be helpful, but it caused Kimi to cackle in terror. I let out a snort of amusement, not missing how Zane covered his mouth to hide his smirk. Sias rolled his eyes and looked to Dex to fix the problem, but the oni just shrugged like she had no idea what the issue was.

"You all need therapy, church, or both," my brother told us as he went to the jinn's rescue, taking Kimi gently by the elbow. "C'mon, I'll get you some water."

"This edible is insane," she was telling him, following like a high puppy. "Oh, can you bring me more burritos too?"

"He's nice. How'd he end up here?" Dex mused as she watched Austin guide Kimi to the couch. "Should we kick him out?"

I glanced around at the table and considered it.

"This is kind of a club of assholes, isn't it?"

"Goddess help me! Focus, hunter," Zane barked and looked to Sias. "Can you charm him so he stays on track?"

"No, no!" I sat up straighter in my chair and got back into character. Dex, Marthas and Austin did not need to see me drunk on Sias magic, because that Dallas got really loose with the truth and I didn't need to give them more ammo to tease me. "I'm good. Focused. We are back on track now."

"Great," Sias's purr sounded more like the low, threatening growl. "As we were saying, Dex, we are planning on taking the fight to Florence but we're concerned about the swarm of vampires she has with her."

Dex crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her chair back, rocking it on its back legs.

"How did the blockers work last time?"

"Not great," I admitted, wincing as the memory of Zane getting shot crawled over me like acidic spiders. "Their magic doesn't behave the same way as regular magic, so it just dampened it. With the amount of vampires I think there are, even substantial blockers aren't going to keep us from getting overwhelmed."

Dex stretched her gum out over her tongue and blew it into a huge, purple bubble before popping it with her tusk. Gathering the chewy substance back in her mouth, she chomped it a few times as she mulled over some ideas.

"You need a kill switch."

"That sounds promising," I said. "Something to disarm the vampires?"

Dex pulled her phone free and started typing, nodding along to a string of thoughts she kept hidden behind her chewing.

"You ever use something that emits an electromagnetic pulse to cut off power?" She turned her eyes to me but her thumbs kept typing.

"I've used a magical equivalent, yeah. Set up some wards to shut down security magic or disrupt spells."

"I can't get you something that will kill a horde of vampires, but I can get you something that will fry the chips Florence stuffed in their skulls." She finished typing and cracked her knuckles. "In theory, we can shut down whatever is causing them to retain their bio-magic abilities after death. Maybe even the playing field a bit."

I slapped the table. "That's what I'm talking about, Dex. That. We need a vampire muting switch."

"If we can get their bio magic turned off, that's a huge step forward," Zane agreed. "Is that something you can make quickly?"

"Normally no, but with these blueprints I can whip up something within a day."

"We don't have a day, love," Sias said. "We need it now."

"How now is ‘now'?" Dex lifted her eyebrow.

"If we can't carve our way through these vampires before sunset, we might not have another. We need it immediately."

"Shit." Dex picked her phone back up and started typing again. "Okay, hold on. Let me brainstorm."

"Not to pile on," Zane said, piling on, "But say we get this kill switch, and it works as intended, it doesn't change the fact that they still outnumber us."

"They're also in a closed location with one entry point," Austin came back into the conversation, having planted Kimi on the couch with a blanket and more food to keep her calm. "We'll be tunneled into a meat grinder."

"There is more than one way inside." Funus lifted his bright eyes to him. "I know of a secret entrance that we can use that might give us an advantage."

"That helps, but we'll still be overrun quickly," Zane cut the celebration down before it could grow legs. "We need something to thin the numbers after we deploy Dex's kill switch."

I looked to Austin, hopeful he was going to bring it all home with a grand weapon he had secretly kept stashed away.

"This is when you say you stole a life magic bomb from the armory before you left Magnus, right? It's been tucked away in your bag and you were going to keep it to yourself until the moment was just right for a grand reveal?"

"What is it like in your head?" Austin asked me, sounding not at all like he was about to whip out a surprise bomb and go "taa-daa!" "Seriously, I know you got hit on the head a lot when we were training, but Saint's light, man."

"So, no bomb then?" I tried deploying the puppy dog eyes. "Not even a little one?"

"Is he serious?" Austin looked to my vampire and incubus.

"It would be nice if you had stolen something useful," Sias admitted.

"At least some extra life bullets or something," the vampire mumbled. "We're desperate for some good news right now."

I scrubbed away my wasted puppy dog eyes and stared down at the destroyed to-go boxes of breakfast foods Ushen had brought us. My mind was beginning to sound a lot like angry white noise as I tried to craft a plan that had us coming out ahead, but as it stood, we had something of a halfway successful, but still suicidal, mission. We might be able to get in and cut through some vampires before getting wiped out, but the odds weren't fantastic. Even if one of us managed to get to this unnamed asshole who murdered Florence and was armed with the scythe, how would we take them out? How would we kill them, destroy the scythe and keep the damn door to the Goddess sealed before we were ripped to pieces?

As I contemplated how hilariously screwed we were, and debated about eating away my misery with another burrito, the scraps of breakfast food left over were pulled off the table to make way for the good news we needed. A metal case added a few more scars to the old table as Marthas slid it across the surface, throwing the top open once it was in the center. Inside the foam and charm lined case was a cache of powerful enchanted weapons, brimming with all sorts of illegal magic to help us punch a hole through some undead fuckery.

Immolation bullets, true silence attachments for guns, endless sight scopes, concussion wards, paralytic grenades, acidic projectiles—enough magically infused illegal shit that would have put Marthas away for a good twenty years had DHAP ever discovered it.

I slipped on a pair of knuckle knives that popped with electricity as I curled my fist and cackled like a cartoon villain.

"I'm keeping an itemized list," Marthas growled as we started picking out weapons like kids at a deadly candy store. "Don't think you dying is going to get you out of paying me."

Austin was marveling at the grenades as he asked, "Do you have any life magic? Healing kits or anything?"

Marthas opened up a flap on the inside of the case and extracted three vials of concentrated life magic capped with wax sealed enchantments from exclusive covens.

"This will heal a hole in the head if you do it right," Marthas told us.

Zane sucked in through his teeth as I touched the side of one, testing to see if it would burn me. The glass was warm like sunlight over a window, but I came away with my remaining hand still intact.

"If you make me buy you two artificial limbs, I'm going to be pissed," Sias scolded me.

"These cost me a million each, Wilde. You get one," Marthas warned as I experimented with not burning my hand off.

"We'll take all of them," I argued. "Add it to my tab. We need all the firepower we can get."

"Your ‘tab' is already substantial, and I don't like you," Marthas reminded me. "One. And if you argue with me once more, I'll shove it up your ass."

"Did you forget that this might lead to the Death Goddess getting kicked off her throne and unleashing some unknown horror upon the world?" I gestured to the treasure trove of goodies. "This is a hell of a start, and it gives us a real chance to make it work, but we need life magic to slice through the undead. You can kick my ass and make me work for you until I die, Marthas, but I need that life magic."

Marthas barked a laugh and slammed the case shut as I reached for the life vials. His hulking frame leaned over the case as I glared at him, his dark eyes simmering coals.

"And if you fail, I need to make sure I can keep myself and my crew safe. You're not the only asshole with people depending on you."

"If you don't give me supplies, we will fail," I hissed. "You want your crew safe? Their families safe? We're going to do that. I know you hate me, man, and I don't blame you. I've been an outrageous dick to you since we met, but I'm trying to do right here. Please."

Marthas ground my words between his molars, the muscle next to his nose twitching as he suppressed a snarl. He opened the case up and pulled one of the vials free, pushing it into his pocket, then left the rest for me.

I would have loved all three, but I wasn't going to push my luck. Two concentrated life essence vials would have to work.

"Okay, here's the plan." I went to rub my hands together and floundered, then opted to settle on an inspiring, leadership thumbs up. "Dex, head back to your place and work on the kill switch. Once that's ready, we'll get on the road to the Silent Steps. If we pack some spare gas containers, we can cut down travel time. We'll need to get there as fast as humanly possible."

"And when we get there?" Austin asked. "What's the plan?"

"My favorite, we go in hard and fast from behind," I said. "Hit them with the kill switch, mow down the grunts, and get to the door. Austin, let Zane lead since vampires won't notice him as quickly. Sias and I will follow, and we'll fan out with you following up behind. Barns," I turned to him as he straightened his spine, guarding Funus with his hands resting on the top of his skull.

"I'm going with you," he said before I could utter a single word otherwise. "I'm part of this now, and I'm not going to stay behind while everyone else runs off to play hero. I'm putting my foot down, Dallas Wilde." He stomped his foot for maximum effect. "I will not hear anything to the contrary."

"I need you to seal the entrance behind us," I continued. "Do not follow us inside, do you understand? Seal the door and plant the concussion wards around the crypt."

"Yes. I-I can do that." Barnaby nodded quickly. "Sorry. I assumed we were going to fight about this."

I tossed him a smile, which frazzled him into mirroring it. "I wouldn't dare do this without you, Barns."

"Good," he whispered after a beat, giving Funus's head a sweet pat. "I'm glad that's settled then."

"This is the part you're going to be mad," I cautioned. "We need to take Funus inside with us. He's the only one who can tell us where the door is."

Barnaby crumpled his face like he was trying to hold in an explosive sneeze, but nodded once he fought down the urge to argue.

"That seems reasonable."

"We'll take care of him," I promised. "I won't let anything happen to your skull—whoa. Funus, you okay?"

Funus's eyes were flickering like a dying bulb, the yellow in his eyes paling almost white. Malphie made a whining noise from under Sias's chair, his eyes doing a similar pulse with his teeth still resting on the massive leg bone Ushen had brought him.

Sias kneeled and stroked the skull of the hellhound, lifting its massive head to try and soothe him.

"It's alright, Malphaslanexus. I'm here."

"Funus?" Barnaby lifted the skull up, worry creasing his brow as Funus's jaw hung slack. "Darling? What's wrong?"

I felt a chilling and unwelcome sensation knock against the back of my mind. It lingered long enough to feel like dread or fear, its roots extending out into my chest to tangle itself around my ribs. The icy claws shook my lungs as I inhaled, wincing through the sting as another knock rattled my consciousness.

Funus clattered his jaw like he was freezing, his eyes swelling in a bright rush as he snapped back to consciousness. Malphie crawled forward into Sias's lap, forcing him to sit on the floor to hold the big, scared beast.

"Do you feel that?" Funus whispered quickly, turning his eyes to me.

I had started rubbing at my chest, the chill shaking me like I was sitting in a frozen lake.

"What's going on?"

"The door," he exhaled, terror lacing through his words like an electric wire. "It's been activated."

The fear that had lingered where the knocking started solidified into a knot that gripped the base of my skull, choking all thought from my mind. My body shook as I felt the ripples in the void, breath fogging like the room had fallen twenty degrees.

"We're too late?" Barnaby asked, holding Funus to his chest like he was trying to warm him up. "It's over before we even begun?"

"This can't be how it ends." Sias curled his arms around Malphie, stroking his fur with darkening fingers. The void hound was trying to comfort him, but was weak from the shake of the void. His big body shook, a sad whine escaping as Sias did his best to soothe his discomfort. Sias's second set of eyes were cracking open, mirroring the main set, a swirl of angry yellow and sorrow blue.

Zane had fallen back into a chair to lean his head into his hands, murmuring to his Goddess. I don't know what plea he was giving her, but it broke my heart to hear him sound so desperate.

"Can you stop it?" Austin swung his attention between me and Funus. "Slow it down somehow?"

"Funus, you said the door was activated." I curled my fists to keep from trembling and focused my efforts on keeping my voice level. "Does that mean it hasn't been truly opened yet?"

"The ritual has begun," he confirmed, stilling his clattering jaw. "But the door is still shut. We don't have much time now."

"It takes over a day to get to the Silent Steps by car," Austin said. "Do we have other options? A plane? Fucking teleport? Anything?"

"I don't have access to my plane now." Sias adjusted Malphie's head in his lap and scratched where his ear should have been. It made the undead hound kick his back leg a little. "Marthas, you didn't happen to spring for a custom teleport when buying all of these illegal goods, did you?"

"Have you priced those lately?" the frugal gang leader shot back. "Fuck no."

Another ripple of the void buckled my knees, and I caught myself against the table, causing Zane to surge to his feet. He caught me by the upper arm as I swayed, my eyesight going crossed for a heartbeat.

"I got him," Zane told Sias as he tried to wiggle his way out from under the void hound. "Stay with Malphie."

"Oh, Funus…" Barnaby was trying to keep Funus's lower jaw from falling off, his eyes flickering and dimming before brightening again.

"I'm alright," the skull said, sounding very tired. "I'm alright, darling."

I lost the battle with gravity and let Zane guide me into a chair, my head swimming with each knock at the door. Zane's skin was growing ashy as he smoothed my hair back, the flush from last night fading with the disruption to the void. The bright crimson of his eyes dulled like drying blood, his palm cold on my cheek.

Sias's eyes had started leaking black tears, horns curling in and discoloring the gold. He held Malphie to his chest and rocked him, the big beast growing suspiciously quiet as its eyes dimmed.

My heart was suspended in ice as it cracked, the weight of failure stabbing at me from all sides. The void was thrashing, churning from the disturbance at the door, and all of us suckers caught within its power were going for the same ride. My connection to the endless was weakening, and I didn't know what that meant for the two souls attached to me.

My world was starting to spin in a slow circle, the sensation not dulling as I squeezed my eyes shut and leaned my brow against Zane's.

"Stay awake," he whispered.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry—" I tried, his head moving in a slow shake.

"Focus, hunter. Now is not the time for self-pity. This isn't over yet. Drink this and get some energy back."

I felt something against my lips, followed by the metallic taste of blood stabbing my senses. I licked my lip out of instinct, thinking I had somehow bit myself when I had been shivering. My tongue touched the line of vampire blood Zane had traced over my lips, and I felt my connection to the void sharpen like a blade.

My chest tightened, the ice of the void a weight that sank me down into the seam between life and death with just that tiny drop. I dipped through the veil, peeking to the other side like I was slipping into a dream. It was just a flash, just a moment, but it stretched long enough to turn everything upside down.

The void was in chaos.

The calm nothingness that stretched forever was now a roiling storm of cracked obsidian, shattered pieces frozen in a sea of broken ripples. The carved pathways from last night were crooked and bent, the souls that should be swimming in peaceful oblivion wild and furious. I tried to claw my way back to the surface to escape, to rush back to the other side before the nightmare could swallow me. The golden threads were fragile and weak, snapping the moment I grabbed hold. The shadow with red eyes that had guided me before was lost in the storm, dispersed and gone like smoke.

I was sinking.

Falling.

Doomed to shatter and break apart, turn into jagged pieces that would never find their way back again.

I tried to grab something, tried to scream for help, tried to kick my way back toward the seam of the realms but I was nothing. I had no body, no essence, nothing to keep me tethered to the reality I had fallen from.

All I had was panic, fear, and the soul deep realization that myself and everyone back in Marthas's basement was going to end up exactly the same.

Dead.

Broken.

And lost.

In my despair, in my helpless struggle raging against the inevitable, I saw a tiny bubble.

A perfect little pearl of iridescent splendor floated to me like a life raft amongst the madness. I watched it float by, followed it as it was partnered with another, and then another.

Within the shattered darkness, a wisp trailed past me with the swimming elegance of a koi. The trail behind it was smooth, like a stroke of paint on canvas, leaving behind a line of art that seemed to never end. It curled around something I couldn't see, or rather, something that refused to be seen.

I felt her there, resting outside my peripherals.

The Goddess of the broken domain had found me again.

The painted pathway from the pseudo-koi cracked open like a bolt of lightning, streaking through the madness before ending at a vision of the Silent Steps. The sun slid over the open mausoleum, the iron gate swinging open and crashing to the side from an unnatural gust of wind.

The image went black as she slid a bony hand over my vision, her presence swallowing me into a silence so deafening, so horrible, unbearable and suffocating, that I felt my soul scream for mercy. Fear like I had never experienced splintered me into fragments, each one falling into dust like old bones thrown against stone.

My lips felt the comforting, sweet kiss of death, of the Goddess.

Then—

Calmness.

Peace.

Nothingness.

Except one.

Tiny.

Bubble.

With the flick of a fin, I was sent back to life with a plan.