Chapter 18

Spencer is the first to recover from the blast of intense light since he didn’t get the full effect that his partner had. Samantha on the other hand, being impaired, is still focused enough to have her sword drawn; her rifle slung off to the side. The room is larger in the light than with night vision. Spencer scans the room taking in all the creatures. A Goji stands at the back with a smile spread across his face. Spencer doesn’t hesitate any longer and begins to open fire on the closest of the creatures. By now Samantha has recovered her sight and is already cutting at the first creature she sees.

“Spence!” she yells. “Get to that control room; I’ll take care of this!”

“Are you fucking insane?” he yells back.

“Now’s not the time. I can handle this, now go!” The tone of her voice tells him there is no room for an argument. He would probably under other circumstances present an argument but she is right—it is not the time.

“Good luck!” he yells instead.

“You too!”

Spencer begins to slip toward the far door, ripping creatures apart as bullets shred them apart. The Goji shifts about to intercept him when Samantha calls him out, “You’re mine bitch!” The Goji stops and regards her then looks back to Spencer. He’d have plenty of time to dispose of her then Spencer.

He decides to wait resuming his position against the wall, hands folded across his chest. He’d have to see just how skilled the small human is. Besides, he didn’t leave the control room unguarded. With a flick of his wrist the Goji attacking Spencer stops suddenly and refocuses their attention on Samantha. Spencer flashes a quick glance at his partner as he slips through the unlocked door.

Samantha ducks under a swipe from one of the much larger Goji coming up with Kotetsu and driving it up through the creature’s rib cage. Using the momentum the sword tears through the creature’s back slicing the next one in half as it launches itself through the air at her. Twirling the blade in front of her, she spins it around and back, catching another creature through its mouth and out the back of it skull as it attempts to attack her from behind. She pulls the sword free swinging it up underhanded cutting across another creature’s chest then she twirls her body with the sword into a sweeping motion toward the ground cutting the legs off another.

A four legged Goji comes on bearing at her, its jaw open wide. She leaps into the air kicking out at another creature as it leaps at her anticipating her move. Samantha’s foot connects, launching it backward and giving enough of a push forward. Angling Kotetsu downward she drives the blade deep through the large four legged Goji’s head. The sword’s tip pierces through its lower jaw and easily pierces the floor below it. Sensing an attack, Samantha uses the steady blade as a weight holding it with both hands and leaps over the now dead creature. The attacking Goji swings out a clawed hand just barely missing her foot. She lands facing the beast, pushing Kotetsu up through the floor, ripping concrete up into its face followed by the sword. She stands looking away from it to face the head Goji and smiles. Behind her the creature stands; a blank look set across its face and then it splits into two pieces.

Spencer creeps through the hallway which like the rest of the building is cast in darkness. This hallway is similar to the one containing the offices. He is tempted to check out each door, but the door at the end has a glow penetrating from its underside. There is really only one thing he could believe it to be and that is his destination. He slowly creeps along keeping alert and ready for anything. Though he can’t see the Goji letting him pass, he knows that there has to be some kind of trap waiting for him.

The urgency to get back to help Samantha pushes to move faster. By now he figures the entire complex is on alert. He reaches the door and jiggles the handle to find it is locked. Stepping back, he heel kicks it. Pieces of wood splinter and fly out as the door slams open. There isn’t a need for subtlety anymore. The man is bathed in light and the sound of equipment and computers. This is not the control room, but the laboratory he saw on the monitor. It is empty, which he considers it to be a good sign. There is also only one door cutting out any further guess work. Sprinting across the laboratory, he fires into the door as he runs. And by the time he reaches it, it is riddled with bullet holes, making it easy to bust through as he throws his body into it.

The door bursts into pieces, leaving much of it still hanging. The agent lands flat-footed on the other side with his weapon ready in case there is trouble. The room is well lit—not too much and not too little. A lone figure stands at the opposite end dressed in a business suit and tie. He is tall with dark black hair brushed back. Spencer instantly thinks it to be Lucius Magnus. “Welcome, Agent Reeds,” the man says crisply, “I have been expecting you. Where is your partner?”

“She’s dealing with the minor details,” Spencer answers pointing in the direction he just came from. He scans the room taking inventory of the computer and monitors. Looking past the man, he sees a large viewing window with the scene of the crater in full view.

“Minor details?” he asks with a laugh. “I truly hoped to kill both of you myself.”

“Sorry bud, but that’s not going to happen.”

“Overly confident are we? Just like a human; you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all,” Magnus mocks. “Predictable too.”

“Oh I’m more than predictable,” Spencer says as he slowly reaches around his back.

“I think not,” Magnus contradicts. “The trap was baited and you took it.”

“Vargas did a pretty good job at fooling us and paid the price for doing so.” He pulls a grenade free and is about to pull the pin when what Magnus says next stops him.

“Vargas?” he asks seeming amused by the thought. “He was on your side and you killed him. Your enemy was in front of you the entire time and you didn’t know it. And here Typheryian was worried you would be a threat to us.”

“Things just keep getting better,” Spencer mutters looking away.

“Foolish human,” Magnus mutters. “It always amazes me how you have defeated us throughout the ages. But that is all about to change.”

Spencer looks at the Goji straight in the eyes. “Things change but usually at a slow pace and it’s you that is the fool.” He raises his rifle and fires. The Goji is quick to move out of the path of bullets, which is what Spencer had hoped for. The bullets pelt the glass behind him. Spencer is already moving for the glass by the time the first shot hits. He drops the grenade halfway across the room then jumps through the glass just a moment before it explodes. The explosion engulfs the room and everything in it exploding outward through the window, but he is well away from the flames plummets toward the crater.

The Goji takes its last breath as Samantha pulls Kotetsu slowly out of its back. The blade disappears from its chest as she casts a smile to the leader still standing contempt at the opposite side of the room. She releases her grip of its neck letting it fall to the floor. The Goji’s body turns to stone before it even hits the floor where it shatters into thousands of pieces.

“Impressive,” Rythern says clapping his hands together. “A worthy adversary too I might add.”

“Come and get some then,” Samantha taunts.

“It will be my pleasure to kill you.” The Goji has horns adorning his head like a crown and smaller spikes jutting out along his arms and spine. His wings look like that of a dragon’s. It gives him the appearance of looking like some wicked demon from the depth of hell. As he steps away from the wall, he pulls a sword free from its sheath attached to his back. He keeps the weapon pointed toward the ground, keeping his eyes locked with Samantha’s as he slowly and gracefully approaches her. “Such a nice sword does not belong in the hands of a human; a mistake that Natalya will eventually regret.”

The woman doesn’t respond back, but rather stands still in a defensive stance waiting for whatever trick the Goji has for her. He stops short of her by five feet and smiles. They stand for a brief moment staring each other down when the creature strikes out. His sword slices at an upward angle then right back down just as quickly causing the woman to step back from the first strike and raise her own sword to block the next. Rythern slides his sword free and steps away turning his back to her briefly. “It’s too bad I am not allowed to kill you,” he says, turning back around to face her; his sword lowers once again toward the ground. “Of course accidents do happen and with so few of us, the consequences wouldn’t be too harsh.”