The second dark ages box.., p.38
The Second Dark Ages Boxed Set, page 38
part #1 of The Second Dark Ages Series
“We do,” she agreed.
Akio turned back to Sabine. “For now, your job is to stay and protect, connect with your family, and work through the events of this last day. We won’t be that far away.”
“Japan,” Sabine retorted, “at least from what I know, is damned far away.”
“Yes, but Akio and I won’t be in Japan,” Michael said. “I don’t think William is going to leave Europe.”
“Why not?” Mark asked.
“Who’s William?” Sabine asked.
“I suspect that William is the man you’re calling the Duke,” Michael answered and nodded towards Lilliana. “I’ve seen what he looks like from our Alpha here.” He turned to Mark. “He was always an aristocrat lover, playing the political game until I caught him abusing his powers.”
“What did he do?” Yuko asked.
Michael’s face went dark. “He was taking the blood from people who didn’t have a clue about him, and abusing them. You would call it a date rape drug.” He looked around. “Okay, I have no idea what you would call it since I doubt those drugs are around anymore.”
“You didn’t kill him?” Sabine pressed.
Michael’s face was annoyed. “Obviously not, or we wouldn’t be having this discussion right now,” he said. “I punished him by shutting him up in a crypt and blocking it. I expected him to take decades to die, a fitting punishment for those ladies who would have to live their lives with the scars from his abuse. He would live long enough to regret ever hurting them and as they finally passed away, so would he.”
“How did he survive?” Eve asked.
“I’ve no idea, although I could make an educated guess that the nanites in his system must have damped it down, allowing him to hibernate far longer than I would have supposed.” He looked over at Sabine. “I’ll make sure to kill him permanently this time.”
“So,” Akio asked, “are you good with our plan, Sabine?”
She turned to him and smiled a little. “Can we negotiate for another thousand rounds of ammunition?”
“What are you thinking we need to do?” Mark asked. He was excited about going to Japan, but his concern for Jacqueline’s feelings was front and center.
She smiled wistfully at Michael and Akio as they started walking Sabine back to the resistance group. “We go to Japan.” She shrugged. “Michael never said he would protect me forever, and I have to admit that the fighting, what little the old bald-headed bastard allowed me, was enough for now.”
She stopped when Michael turned his head and glanced at her, reaching up to touch his ear.
“Who apparently has goddamned super-hearing,” she whispered before speaking louder, “Love you, Michael!” He smirked and turned his head back. “Why am I always sticking my foot in my mouth?”
Mark, watching the two men, answered truthfully. “You’re passionate in your feelings and have almost zero ability to filter what comes out.”
Jacqueline gazed at him, but his thoughts were elsewhere. Her eyes narrowed, but her voice was sweet. “So, the ability to filter is because I’m too slow?”
Mark’s mouth opened to speak, but then he clamped it shut as he turned to look at her. “Oh no you don’t!” He shook his head. “I answered truthfully, and now you’re twisting my damned words. Why?”
Jacqueline’s annoyance was plain on her face. Mark waited and watched as she flipped a hand. “Probably because occasionally girls are very needy emotionally; we need constant approval. Since guys are usually very guarded with their answers, we seek to confirm them in the most efficient way possible.”
“By luring us into a verbal trap and springing it?”
“No, by checking your answer appropriately when your guard is down.” She paused a moment, then smirked. “We create traps and spring them on you when we’re pissed about other things and just want a target. I’ll try not to do that to you.” She thought back to the times she had argued with her dad as a teenager. “I’ll try pretty hard,” she amended.
Mark reached around her shoulder. “I’ll try to damp down my lust for all things tech, and give you time.”
“At least tech doesn’t have a nice rack or sashay as she walks away.” Jacqueline replied.
Mark looked out over the horizon, ready to get out of this horrible place. “No, but it doesn’t say ‘I have a headache’ when it’s plugged in, either.”
Yuko snorted when Jacqueline punched him.
“Or pummel me when I just speak the truth,” Mark grunted, holding his stomach.
Kirk, James and Timothy were the first three out of the building as they started towards the people coming in their direction. Kirk looked up and noticed that two guys had their rifles aimed in Michael, Akio and Sabine’s direction. He turned to Timothy and asked, “Can you make sure those two assholes up there pull their guns back? I don’t want to discuss things with someone who’s unnecessarily antsy.” Kirk turned back to look up at the top of the building. “Or have to listen to someone moan when we pull a rifle out of their ass.”
Timothy turned and jerked his head at Alan, who peeled off and jogged over to the other building. Kirk looked at him, and Timothy smiled. “I’m on to you, Kirk. James is related, so if I’m gone, you’re good if Sabine wants a guy.”
James laughed as Kirk argued with Timothy. “I’m not trying to keep you and Sabine apart!” The laughter from those behind them had Kirk realizing it didn’t matter what he said. “Fine, keep up the fantasy.”
A couple of minutes later, they were close. Kirk watched Michael’s easy walk and was a bit jealous of the fit of the coat, the weapons on his hips, and the sword on his back. Kirk had to admit that his full head of hair beat Michael’s chrome dome though.
“Thank you,” he got out, holding his hand to shake. First to Michael, then Akio, who pointed to Sabine, who was surprised and reached out to shake his hand.
“Yes,” Kirk agreed and smiled at Sabine. “You too.” She was embarrassed by the attention, he could tell, but she didn’t seem at all uneasy about how the weapons and holsters fit. From what they knew, she’d only been using them for twenty-four hours. But he sure as hell wasn’t going to get into a shooting match with her.
“Thank you,” Michael replied. “Sabine is going to stay here with you, since this is where she was headed before she decided to join us last night.” That got a snort from Sabine and a slight smile from Akio. “She’ll need to rest, and there could be some emotional damage from our fight.”
“Damage?” James said.
“Yes,” Michael agreed.
Timothy interjected, “People were killed.”
“They were only Weres.” A guy with brown hair commented from the back.
Sabine’s eyes turned flint-hard. “And I have a Were friend. Would you like to meet her?” she asked, her anger showing on her face.
He raised his hands and Kirk came to his defense. “Remember, we hadn’t met a good Were,” he nodded to Michael, “or vampire, no offense intended.”
Michael nodded. “None taken.”
Kirk returned his gaze to her. “For years, Sabine. It could take us a while to come to grips with it.”
Sabine nodded her understanding and added, “Sorry, I’m a little overwhelmed and still feeling twitchy.”
“That will go away,” James told her.
“No,” Akio interrupted, “it probably will not.” As they turned to him, he added. “She has seen much battle right now, and I believe she has changed, period. She ran for miles from the Weres last night. She doesn’t have a bone in her body that is willing to quit. I doubt that she will change from this new Sabine.”
“Okay,” Sabine thought a moment. “That’s both scary and rather cool.”
Kirk turned to Timothy and raised an eyebrow. Timothy silently mouthed back, “I’m not quitting.”
Chapter Nineteen
Yuko closed the door after Eve, Jacqueline and Mark entered the container. She turned to the two additions. “You will be able to drop seats from the sides there,” she pointed left, then right, “or over there.” She was pleased when the two took seats next to each other.
Young love was so beautiful. She turned to Eve, who shook her head. “What?”
Eve smiled. “It is nice to see the change in your willingness to fight after all these new adventures.”
“I was not unwilling to fight,” Yuko interrupted. “I was unwilling to kill. I’ve told you how many times? My job was to be a diplomat.”
Mark asked, “Did it drive Akio crazy?”
Eve answered, “Not so much crazy, as it increased his concern that she would try to talk her way out of a situation where immediate action was warranted.”
“That is because Akio is very quick to judge when violence is warranted.”
“And we,” Jacqueline asked, circling her finger to indicate everyone present, “just left him with Michael?”
Mark snickered.
“It’s not like Michael isn’t already slipping into old patterns,” Eve replied. “We have data from his time in the old United States. If a situation required him to get involved, then he usually left a massive path of death.”
“Those assholes needed a little killing,” Jacqueline responded. “I was there, and I can tell you the world is a better place.”
“It could be,” Eve answered. “I’m just saying that Akio isn’t going to change Michael’s predilection for fast and fatal response.”
“I wasn’t suggesting Akio was going to change Michael’s style,” Jacqueline argued. “I’m suggesting that what little hesitation Akio had before is going to disappear around Michael.”
“It will be like two kids in one of those candy stores I always hear about.” Mark agreed.
“You hear about?” Yuko asked.
“Sure.” Jacqueline shrugged. “Not much candy in the city-states in the US. I suppose there are candy stores, but I’ve never been in one.”
“Oh.” Yuko waved a hand. “Then we will remedy that tonight.”
Mark’s eyes widened. “Tonight?”
Jacqueline turned to him. “Didn’t we tell you?”
Mark looked sideways at her, his eyes narrowing. “No. Somehow in the short amount of time since we got on this craft, you’ve made plans, and the guy is the last to know.”
“You should get with the program,” Eve replied.
“What program?” Mark asked, exasperated. “And are we going to leave any time soon?” He lifted his left arm and pretended to smell under it. “Because I smell kinda ripe.”
“Not kinda.” Jacqueline said. “You are ripe.”
“We have been in the air for more than five minutes,” Eve answered.
Gerard exited a second time and glanced around to see if there was anyone in the vicinity. He listened for a moment but heard nothing, so he left the small church and walked towards the next building. The front door of this one had been ripped off and left on the floor. Stepping over the door, Gerard took the stairs to the top of the building. He wasn’t up there for more than a couple of minutes when he saw a large container box rise above the buildings and head almost straight up into the atmosphere.
Gerard spat to the side. He glanced one more time at the sky, then turned around and went back down. It took only a moment to listen again, then return to the little old church and make his way back to the last room. He pushed aside the old shelf and slipped into the crevice. Using handholds probably worked into the wood centuries before, he moved the shelf back into place.
He took a small glowing ball from his pack and used it to illuminate his way through the passages. Due to the Duke’s blood enhancements, he made short work of the trip to the minor passageway. On arrival, he reached up and unhooked the small latch that disengaged the trap set in the passageway. Twenty more paces and he rearmed the trap, then took off at a slight jog. The skulls seemed to laugh at him as he passed.
The one vampire the Duke had been trying to hide from was here. Gerard didn’t know how Akio had figured out the plan or exactly how he had taken out the packs.
But they knew enough about that meddlesome pain-in-the-ass to know he probably had technology left over from his bitch queen that he used to stop the attacks.
The Duke was not going to be pleased when Gerard woke him.
Michael and Akio walked a quarter mile from the humans after leaving Sabine behind. The black x-wing Pod came down out of the sky as Michael turned to Akio. “Backseat?”
Akio grinned. “I usually use the front, but I’m not sure it really matters.”
“Nah,” Michael said as the canopy started rising, “I’m pulling your leg.”
Both men pulled off their weapons and stowed them in the ship. Akio slipped into the front seat. “Where do you think he is?”
“Somewhere down in the catacombs, behind a shit-ton of traps.”
“Yes, vampires are somewhat diligent about being found when they sleep in the daytime.”
“True,” Michael agreed.
Akio whispered some commands to Eve, and the ship started to rise. He turned his head slightly. “Did you start that?”
“I don’t remember,” Michael said. “I probably did some of that in my youth, but we all, human or not, tried to be safe back then. It wasn’t the best time in the world to be running around anyway. Everyone took precautions.”
“So, we need to consider what a multiple-century-old vampire might use to protect his lair from you?” Akio asked.
“You would have to believe your adversary was specifically me to be effective; only David ever caught me.”
“Bethany Anne didn’t give any explanation when she and John were talking about it that one time,” Akio said.
Michael allowed the comment to marinate a moment before responding. “Let’s just say I never gave her any information to pass along, and I’m a bit anxious about running around in Myst sometimes. It was a rather humbling experience, to be sure.” Michael stopped a moment before adding, “Rather like my hair.”
“Hair?”
“Yes, as in the stuff that I lack on the top of my head?” Michael replied as they gazed over the ruins of Paris. “Ever since I came out of the Etheric, I can’t grow any hair on my head, and it is pissing me off.”
“Why?” Akio asked. His own head was clean-shaven.
“Because I looked better with hair, to be truthful.” Michael said as he switched from looking out the left side of the canopy to the right. “I realize it’s all ego, but I’m as fragile as the next…” Michael swallowed and tried again. “I’m as fragile…”
Both men lost it, laughing at Michael’s inability to call himself fragile and keep a straight face. “Sorry. The real reason,” Michael finally said, “is that I hate being bald. It’s emasculating.”
“Was that hard to say?” Akio asked. He pointed below. “Should we land down there?”
Michael turned to look where he was pointing. “Yes, that’s a good location.”
As the sun was setting, the black Pod slowly descended towards the remains of the Cathedral of Notre Dame.
Inside the Catacombs
William Renaud woke up and opened his eyes immediately. He registered the steady pace of someone walking quickly.
Straight for his room.
He got up from the bed and grabbed his weapons. There was a quiet knock on the door, then Gerard’s voice called to him.
He looked down at his watch; a candle burning in the corner was all the light he needed. “What is it, Gerard?” he asked. Then said, “You may enter.”
His closest advisor opened the door and stepped in, then closed the door behind him. He turned to the Duke and spoke candidly.
“My Lord, we have a problem.”
Michael watched as the lightning played across the sky. The storm clouds had rolled in as they landed, and he enjoyed the play of the light and shadow over the stonework of the old cathedral. He pulled his sword out, and unholstered one gun. Akio grabbed two swords and left his pistol in his holster.
Michael was already walking into the church as the black Pod lifted into the sky. Akio headed towards the doors of the church as Michael disappeared inside.
Akio made it into the building just before a deluge of rain started outside. He saw Michael in the middle of the church, looking around.
Akio came up beside him. Michael turned and gave him a crooked grin. “I’m just seeing what’s different.”
Akio turned to look at him. “From the last time you were here?”
“No, from when we built it,” he replied and walked purposefully away. “Come this way. The entrance to the catacombs is over here.”
A moment later, Michael asked Akio, “Feel like a game of Hide and Go Kill?”
Operations Room, Japan
Eve was working on a few screens as Yuko came back in, using a towel to dry her hair. “Problems?”
“When do we not have problems?” Eve answered.
“I mean,” Yuko pointed to the screens, “are there any issues with the technology?”
“Well, no.” Eve said. “Although if the computers could talk, they would probably complain about how they are way out of warranty.”
“Okay.” Yuko folded the towel and hung it over a chair to dry. “What’s going on?”
“Two of our police contacts have passed us information that there will be a gang meeting tonight between Banri’s gang and Choki’s.”
Yuko stared at the little AI. “That doesn’t matter to us. That’s a police responsibility. What’s the real reason they are contacting us?”
“They believe there will be Wechselbalg involved.”
Yuko’s eyes narrowed. “That isn’t normal. Akio always responds when we get wind of something like this.” She considered options. “Okay, we both now think it is a trap, right?”
“When did I say it was a trap?” Eve asked.
“When you didn’t say anything and let me think. You are just as bad as Akio about trying to teach me something I learned over a hundred years ago.”
