Chapter 21: We’re Gathered Here Today

It took nearly two hours to convert the rest of the congregation, but felt far longer. This was mainly due to some of the parishioners milking their moment for all it was worth, unaware that they were essentially consigning their souls to oblivion, Hell, or who knew where.

As a demon, Lily was fully aware that the afterlife wasn’t anything as simple as Heaven or Hell. It certainly wasn’t a binary situation, nor did Purgatory count for all the souls in-between. Did true salvation exist? Supposedly. But that was true of most religions that tried to lay a path for people to follow.

So as each person gave away their free will forevermore, she wondered how many of them would find a second chance. Were they trapped in a body that didn’t obey their commands? Or had they become so fully entrenched in Deacon’s bullshit that they believed they were hearing the voice of God in their head?

Honestly, it didn’t matter. These people had fallen for the act, hook, line, and sinker, and were now part of a gross violation of whatever pact had been established by the higher-ups. Even now, she could feel Legion’s power swelling as he took control of those souls and wrapped them around his true self like a shield.

Speaking of Legion’s true self, even after hours of observation, she still couldn’t pick out where the bastard was hiding. Based on what she knew about the creation of Leeds, somebody here was personally hosting the demon. Legion Prime certainly hadn’t been close enough for Lily to spot, but every now and then, she could sense his presence like a heavy weight in the center of her chest. The Prime was clearly here, and had made certain to squirrel himself away where Lily wouldn’t spot him.

As the last parishioner gave themselves into Legion’s dark embrace, Deacon visibly relaxed and sat back against the stage. His daughter brought him a bottle of water, which he cracked open and sucked down in a matter of moments. Once finished, he handed the empty bottle back and wandered over toward Lily’s cage.

“What a performance, right?” He held his hand out toward the now silent congregation behind him. “It takes some time, but the results are certainly worth it.”

Lily scowled at him through the bars, but said nothing. There really wasn’t much to say to the man.

“Having you here helped. We usually use the girl, tell everyone she’s been driven mad by the devil or whatever. It’s pretty much an art form.”

“You’re sick,” she replied. “Using a vampire child is probably the worst of it. Why not send a personal invite to Lucifer himself?”

“Oh, we are definitely not on speaking terms.” This came from a young woman, one of Legion’s new meat suits. “He caught wind of a previous project of mine and shut it down. I personally think he was jealous of everything I had already accomplished, to be honest.”

“He always was a proud bastard,” muttered a different Legion.

Deacon chuckled and pulled something out of his pocket. It was a small vial full of white powder. Without wasting another second, he unscrewed the lid and snorted the vial of powder up his nose.

“Need a little bump after saving so many souls?” Lily sneered at the man. “You don’t get high on the big guy anymore?”

“Just keeping my head in the game until sunrise,” he replied, then stuck the vial back in his pocket. “We’re expecting a very special guest tonight, and I want to make sure I’m awake for it.”

Lily moved away from the bars. “Oh? Should I change into something special?”

Deacon frowned, then shook his head. “You have to understand that this man is not to be trifled with. You’re a demon, I get it. You’re built to seduce and antagonize. I’ll warn you now that antagonizing this man won’t get you the reaction you want. At best, he ignores you.”

“Ooh, I’m so scared.”

Timotei, who had wandered over, smacked one of the bars, causing it to hum in vibration. “You should be. This man likes to take things apart and see how they work. And you? You are a thing to him.”

Lily frowned at the vampyr, who actually looked concerned. “Wait, you’re serious? You all are scared of this guy?”

A nearby Legion nodded. “He’s been around for centuries and we don’t know much about him. I worked with him once on a project. It was one time too many.”

“But on the plus side, he paid handsomely.” Deacon gestured at the building around them. “When I tell people I came from nothing, it’s true. But the Curator, well, he provides. This little experiment of ours was so interesting that he secured us several locations like this one, scattered across the countryside. A safe place for Legion to create his flock.”

Lily looked from Deacon to Timotei, then turned to the nearest Legion. “So, what, you’re afraid he’s going to drop by and take away your toys?”

“I’m terrified he’s gonna take away my life.” Deacon pulled a rag out of his pocket and mopped gently at his forehead. “He was convinced this experiment of Legion’s had merit, and his early support was paramount to our success. Money doesn’t matter to this man, nor does power, it would seem. He collects people and things he finds interesting, then takes them apart to see how they tick. That’s all that motivates him, satisfying his macabre personality. And when he comes here looking for his werewolf, he’s going to be pissed.”

“And we’re blaming it on you,” Legion added. “You are our sacrificial lamb.”

“Oh, are you scared that I’ll hurt his feelings and he’ll take it out on you?”

Deacon snorted. “We’re more scared that he’ll take you apart and make us watch. I don’t give a damn what happens to you.”

“You three are the biggest pussies I’ve ever met.” Lily crossed her arms, realization dawning. “You essentially hunkered down and built yourself a small army in case the Curator decides he wants to pick a fight.”

“Correction. I built an army in case we need to get away.” The closest Legion waggled his finger at Lily. “If the Curator decides he’s done with us, it’s every man for himself. I have plenty of bodies to slow him down, but that’s it.”

“He’s a busy man. If we survive tonight, it’s likely he won’t come after us. The Curator is wired differently.” Deacon tapped his temple knowingly. “He doesn’t do revenge, but he hates being inconvenienced. We have enough funding in our coffers to start anew on our own, but we’ll have to do it far away from here.”

“P-u-s-s-i-e-s. Pussies.” Lily signed the word for pussies, in case she wasn’t making her point clear. “I can’t believe I’m being held captive by the equivalent of three teenagers who are afraid daddy is gonna whip out the belt when he gets home.”

Timotei growled and kicked the bars. Deacon sighed and gestured for the vampyr to step away.

“I don’t care what you think of us,” he said. “But as I said before, the Curator values his time far more than our lives, which means it’s time to go back in your box.” He dismissed her with a wave, and a group of Legion slaves wandered in from backstage, each one holding a piece of the box they had transported her in.

Lily narrowed her eyes at Deacon. “I just want to remind you that my time isn’t that valuable. When I get out of this, I’m coming for you.”

“You’ll have to go through me first.” This Legion was an older woman with thick curls of white that stopped just below her ears. When the vampyr growled, she rolled her eyes. “And Timotei, too.”

“Such a loyal lapdog,” Lily muttered as her cell door was opened. She glared at them as they began the process once again of boxing her up. “You think you’re afraid of this Curator guy? Wait until you hear about the guy I’m seeing now.”

They continued to ignore her as she was pinned in place by magic and the walls were erected. She settled into the lotus position in an attempt to calm her mind and allow her to concentrate on any sounds that might permeate the box. Even Spirit Mike kept quiet as time passed, and it was another two hours before she heard the faint rustling of movement outside of her cell.

Opening her eyes to darkness, she heard some words exchanged, but couldn’t even make out the gender of the speaker. After a few minutes of tense silence, the box shifted as someone started undoing the bolts on the outside.

“So what will it be?” she asked herself. “The princess or the tiger? The demon or the dead girl?”

The top flap of the box was yanked away, bathing Lily in bright light as the spell broke and she was allowed to stand. Turning around to see if it was Dana or the Curator, her mouth dropped open upon discovering that it was neither.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” she whispered in horror.

Backlit by a pair of theater lights, Eulalie hefted Mace over one shoulder and narrowed her human eyes at Lily, a grim expression on her face. She held her free hand out to assist Lily’s exit.

“I am here to kick ass and chew bubblegum.” Her lips curled into a sadistic smile. “Do I even need to say the next part?”

Lily opened her mouth to argue, maybe even scream at the Arachne that she needed to leave right away. However, she was interrupted by the sound of metal on concrete, followed by a yell of pain.

“What was that?” she demanded.

“The cavalry.” Eulalie tossed the lid to one side and extended a hand. “The bad news is that the timer has been set. Any minute now, Legion will know that we’re here.”

“And the good news?” Dread bloomed in Lily’s stomach, because she recognized the glint in Eulalie’s eyes. The Arachne hefted Mace onto her shoulder and licked her lips.

“I won’t have to hunt them down.”

The sweltering heat of an Alabama evening had sweat pouring down Tasia’s skin, making her smell like a human salt-lick. Dana fought the urge to lick the werewolf, but wasn’t entirely adverse to shifting her body every now and then just to feel Tasia’s breasts press against her arm. She had already consumed the remainder of Mike’s spooge, aware that it wouldn’t keep much longer in this heat. The sexual energy building inside of her wasn’t as prevalent as before, making her wonder if the semen had already lost some of its potency.

For perhaps the millionth time, Dana hoped she could eventually find something a little more normal to eat.

“Okay, I’m going to need a break soon.” Tasia tripped over a rock, nearly dropping Dana. “Being the hero is hard on my legs.”

“They really are nice legs,” added Dana. “Especially your thighs.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling better, but I’m not going to lie. The whole tampon thing you’ve got going on? Kind of gross.”

“That’s fair.” Dana tugged on the string hanging out of her gut and pulled it out. The ziplock baggie in her pocket came out, and she tucked the bloodied thing away.

“Speaking of your potentially diseased blood, what about mosquitos? They’re eating me alive. Could they transfer your condition to somebody else if they bit you, then bit someone else?”

“No, for two reasons.” Dana held up a finger. “One. They aren’t biting me. They hunt using carbon dioxide, and I don’t really breathe out unless I’m talking. Also, my blood is ... gross. Stagnant, really. The equivalent of sniffing sewer water and deciding to drink it anyway.”

“And two?”

“I’ve been bitten a couple of times by bugs. They die.”

Tasia set Dana down on a rotting stump and sat next to her with a groan. “I thought you said the mosquitos don’t bite you.”

“They haven’t. But I do a lot of work with my hands. I’ve startled a couple of spiders that way, and they’ll bite to protect their webs or whatever. It’s pretty surreal to feel something bite you, then watch it tumble off and die.” Dana thought back to a conversation that she had with Eulalie. The Arachne had gone through the house and gently explained to the spiders living throughout that they were to either hit the road or remain hidden away, but that biting anybody would result in immediate death. Mike had followed up with the arachnids afterward, and just the idea that the two of them had become King and Queen Spider of the Radley house was a little silly. She had once walked into the kitchen to see Mike arguing with a wolf spider that was mad about how clean the pantry was because it hadn’t attracted enough bugs to eat.

Not that she could share any of this with Tasia. Once this whole thing was over, Dana hoped to introduce her to Mike and see what he thought of the werewolf. The idea of Tasia remaining on the run forever made Dana sad, but house business was definitely Mike’s responsibility.

“How are they biting you?” asked Dana. “Isn’t your skin extra thick or something?”

Tasia frowned. “I may have supernatural strength and endurance, but you know that I’m not bulletproof. Bugs have evolved over millions of years to eat whatever the fuck they want. I’m just a slightly chewier snack.”

Dana licked her lips, her eyes on Tasia’s legs. “You’re a whole meal, if you know what I mean.”

“Seriously? In the middle of an Alabama swamp?”

“I may be dead, but I’m not in the ground yet.” Dana grunted as she forced one of her feet to wiggle. “See? I’ve still got game.”

“Dead and horny. You should put that on your dating profile.”

“If you swipe right, I promise I won’t bite.”

Tasia laughed, then covered her mouth. “Shit, this is so unprofessional of me. Your bad habits are rubbing off on me.”

“I would like to attribute most of those bad habits to Lily.” Dana leaned forward and started massaging her legs. During the process of stretching her back, she felt a cold sensation like an icepick drive straight down through her spine. Her other leg started tingling as the nerves finally reconnected. “Ah, there it is.”

“Legs?” asked Tasia.

“Yeah. Spinal stuff is always weird. As long as you can get muscle and bones realigned, the nerves usually seek each other out. With your spinal cord, though, there’s nothing really there to push it into place.”

“You’ve been paralyzed before?”

Dana nodded. “Broke my neck after a trip through a wall. Stuff doesn’t hurt, but it can be pretty disorienting.”

“Have you ever lost a finger or something?”

“Chopped off my legs to fly to Hawaii in a suitcase.”

Tasia’s jaw dropped. “Are you fucking serious?”

“I’m fucking nobody right now. Next time you see me naked, I’ll show you the scars. They’ve thinned out, so you’ll have to get close.” Dana traced lines along the edge of her groin. “Lucky me.”

“So it’s always like this? Spring Break horny while you’re on the mend?”

“Yep.” Dana wiggled her toes experimentally. “It can be distracting, but it is what it is. At least I’m physically incapable of dying from embarrassment.”

“Oh, that’s a good one. Are the jokes a side effect of your magic smoothies, too?”

Dana opened her mouth to respond, then paused to consider. Her sense of humor had been obliterated upon dying, but what now stood in its place was very reminiscent of what came out of Mike these days. “Huh. That’s a good question, actually. This whole ... issue of mine has a lot of facets.”

Tasia bobbed her head in agreement. “I definitely get that. Before and after the change, it was explained to me that lycanthropy was still a big mystery. For example, the kind of wolf someone might become isn’t based on a specific trait, but it usually makes sense in hindsight. The wolf itself is like a deep dive through both your psyche and your DNA.” She held her hands up, keeping the fingers on one straight while curving the others. When she slid them through each other, the curved fingers bent at odd angles, causing only a couple to emerge from the other side. “Where science and magic meet, there is always an element of chaos.”

“Tell me about it. There’s someone I ... know that is fairly advanced in terms of her magical knowledge. Even she hasn’t seen or heard of anyone with my unique condition.” Dana had become so comfortable with Tasia that she had almost admitted that a naga lived with her. Even now, she had scooted against the log and had tilted her head to rest against Tasia’s shoulder. “I do a lot of experiments of my own, actually.”

“Like what?”

Dana contemplated how much to share. “Those drones were one of them. I’ve been using them to scout an area with an unusually disruptive magical field, which required months of learning how to shield them.”

“We have an entire branch of the Order dedicated to that sort of thing.” Tasia sighed, and her shoulders slumped. “Not that it matters, now that I’m on their hit list. I’m just thrilled you didn’t have to dig another silver bullet out of me.”

“Getting shot sucks. One of your guys got me in the brain one time.”

“Really? When was this?”

“Down in the pit.” Dana tapped her temple. “It missed motor function and hit the thinky part. Have you ever had a dream while you’re still drunk? Was a lot like that.”

“I got bitten by a Krasue once.”

“What’s that?” asked Dana.

“Best way to describe it is the floating head of a woman with her guts hanging free, comes out to hunt for people at night. Southeastern Asia has some of the spookier spirits in my experience. We were hunting it at night, and this thing nearly took my partner Amida’s hand off and ... anyway, it got a piece of me, too. We managed to track it down and take it out a couple of days later. Between the nasty infection I got and the weird fever dreams, I think I know what you’re talking about.”

“You hunt a lot of monsters?”

Tasia shrugged. “Not as many as you might think. That whole thing in Hawaii was supposed to be a capstone for me. Master Cyrus was doing some field training and evaluations, and Brother Amida signed on for a chance to work with the man. You would have liked him. Amida, I mean. Far more level-headed than me.”

A moment of silence stretched between them, and Dana realized she should probably say something. “I wish I could have gotten to know him,” was what she eventually went with.

“Yeah, he was a good guy. I was actually scared during my transformation, because some werewolves see restless spirits. I had it in my head that I might wake up and he would be hanging around to tell me what a fucking mess I’ve made of everything. I was already in a dark place. That probably would have sent me over the edge.”

The werewolf went quiet and the two sat in silence, listening to the nocturnal symphony of insects in the swamp. In the distance, something let out a rumble that sounded vaguely like a motorcycle.

“What was that?” asked Dana.

“A gator. We’re out in the middle of nowhere and this is their territory.”

“Should we be worried about them?” Dana started to rise, but Tasia patted her gently on the shoulder.

“No, we’re good. Most animals have a sense about what they shouldn’t mess with. You’d think gators are dumb, but you have to remember that they’re all instinct. When something like me comes around, they tend to run off and...” Tasia’s voice drifted and she went silent. Dana tilted her head up to see that the werewolf was staring off into the distance.

“You okay?”

“What? Yeah, just thinking about something. When I landed in Florida, I had a run-in with a massive gator.”

“Better than Florida Man,” Dana replied, tapping her feet on the ground to test them out.

“It’s not that, it’s...” Tasia’s face was hard to make out in the dark, but she had started rocking on her log. “Holy shit.”

Dana stood on wobbly legs before losing her balance and sitting abruptly next to Tasia. The werewolf was breathing through her mouth now, her body language suddenly dangerous.

“You okay?”

“No. I’m not.” Tasia turned to look at Dana, and it was clear her face had shifted slightly into wolf mode. “I was just wondering if that big gator was running from something that spooked it.”

“Like what?”

“The guy who put me in this position.” She shivered, then scooted closer to Dana. Her body was hot to the touch. “Someone has been hunting down Order operatives, and I think he may have been snooping around one of our secret bases. If that’s true, he was probably there when I arrived.”

“Why?”

“That’s just it, we don’t know. He almost exclusively targets older members, which means he was probably after the woman he killed at the real estate office. But the real problem here is he knew where to look.” Tasia looked at Dana. “The Order has so many locations across the world, I doubt anyone knows all of them. So how did he track a specific agent down to one hideout in the middle of nowhere?”

Dana shrugged. “I guess the bigger question is why did he wait to get her later? If he’s such a badass, then why the sudden caution at your arrival? Based on what you told me about your capture, your monster status was a bit of a surprise.”

Tasia dropped her hands to the log beneath her and started tearing long strips of wood away with her elongated nails. “That’s right. That guy stayed behind to make sure I was captured, but made it sound like I was just a bonus. Damn, I feel like it’s right on the tip of my tongue.”

They sat in silence, Tasia quietly stripping bark with her fingers until the phone in Dana’s bag vibrated. She pulled it out and put it on speakerphone.

“Why are you two just standing there?” asked Eulalie. “Wait, are you fucking? Or did you just fuck?”

“Right to the point, this one,” grumbled Tasia.

“Not yet,” replied Dana. “What do you have for us?”

“You’re still a few miles out from the church, but I have something for you that can’t wait. Those demons you’ve been running from? All one demon.”

“What?” Tasia actually stood up.

“Yeah, that’s what I said. One demon, lots of meat suits.”

“How do you know that?” asked Dana.

“Lily told me. She’s fine, by the way. Just needs someone to pull her butt out of the fire.”

“That’s not possible,” Tasia said, speaking over Eulalie. “Demons can only possess one body at a time.”

“Not this one, apparently. He found a way to bypass the rules. It’s why you couldn’t track him with the pendulum, it was pointing to his nearest vessels or whatever. I didn’t get much more from Lily before he caught on that I was talking to her.”

“Did he hack into your call?” asked Tasia.

“Yes, actually.”

“Fuck.” Tasia shook her head. “A demon who can possess multiple people and hear your phone calls. That elevates the risk substantially. Add in the vampire, and we’re woefully unprepared.”

“Which is why I need the two of you to hurry up and get there. I’ve got a plan that hinges on having a pair of tough bitches.”

“Don’t be rude,” said Dana.

“I’m not, I’m being cautious. The moment a paranormal entity jacked into my phone call, I realized that more precautions are needed. I had the rats do a sweep of where Lily is being held. There are some armed guards at the border, but that’s it for heavy weaponry. The vampire is your main issue.”

“He won’t be nearly as hard this time.” Tasia made a fist, her knuckles cracking dramatically when she squeezed. “I can go full wolf on him.”

“What do we need to do to kill a vampire?” asked Dana.

“I checked with my sources,” said Eulalie. “If he really is old school, you cut off his head and then stab him through the heart.”

“I would like to point out that you can kill anybody that way.”

“If he really is an old school vamp, you’re not even technically killing him. The only reason you do both is a headless vampire can’t control their limbs to pull out the stake. Stabbing it through the heart weakens the body so that it can’t go find the head and reattach it. If you do both, they enter a sort of hibernation until they finally expire sometime later. It’s a whole thing.”

“Modern day ones are far more fragile,” added Tasia. “Stake through the heart will do it. Sunlight will incinerate the weaker ones. They don’t have enough stolen lifeforce in their veins to persist.”

“So what’s the deal with the cross?” asked Dana.

“Guilt, maybe? The jury is out on that one. But for whatever reason, the permission to enter thing is real. Nobody knows why. The one chasing you actually got permission to enter your Florida rental from the landlord. I already left them a 1-star review.”

“Wow, what a punishment.” Tasia crossed her arms. “I’m sure someone will really lose sleep over that.”

“I’m already on one quest for revenge. I’ll add them to the list.”

“Okay, so what’s the plan? Sneak in, grab Lily, then bail?”

Eulalie was silent for several seconds before she cleared her throat. “Well ... no. You see, based on everything I can tell, all of the demon’s meat suits will be in one place.”

“And?” Dana made sure to add an edge to her voice.

“And what? You’ve discovered a demon’s nest, so you burn it to the ground. Based on what I already know, this isn’t a small issue. It’s actually bad enough that I’d recommend the Order get involved if they weren’t so eager to put a bullet in both of you.”

“I’m actually with her on this.” Tasia was staring at the phone, her face lit by the glow of the display. “We’re looking at the supernatural equivalent of a virus, ready to explode. This Deacon guy, he’s been doing his hustle for years, and I’m willing to bet it’s part of the demon’s game. It’ll only get worse from here.”

Dana sighed, realizing that she wasn’t going to get either of them to back down. “So it’s not just a rescue mission, then.”

“Lily is a heavy hitter. They’re keeping her in an iron cage near the main hall, or whatever it’s called where the congregation is. Once she’s out of her prison, the three of you will be more than enough for the demon or the priest.”

“And what about the vampire?”

Eulalie grunted. “I have a plan for him, too.”

“And do we get to hear this plan?”

There was another long pause, and Dana briefly wondered if they disconnected. “Not yet. My rats are all over the church right now. I’ll have something for you when you get there. I have to go. Turn your phone off when you’re close. I don’t want the demon noticing you by accident.”

The connection terminated and Dana slid the phone into her pocket. She inhaled deeply through her nose, taking in the scent of the swamp, then let it all out with an exasperated sigh.

“So much for my swamp hookup,” she muttered, then did a couple of leg bends to make sure they worked correctly.

“That’s quite the assumption,” Tasia said. “What makes you think I’d hook up with you out here?”

“Because you belong outside, in the middle of nature. It’s far more comfortable than the back of a rental car, and I would have eaten you out until you screamed my name.” Dana’s thighs suddenly itched, but she ignored it. “I would have been very persuasive.”

Tasia chuckled. “Maybe we can make time for it after we murder some demons.”

“For the record, I still think it’s a bad idea.” Dana slid the backpack onto her shoulders. “Eulalie isn’t thinking.”

“The Rat Queen?”

“Yeah. This demon we’re hunting is the reason her sister got murdered. She’s far too emotionally invested.”

“Sometimes being emotionally invested makes you stronger,” Tasia pointed out. “Gives you inner strength.”

“While removing perspective.” Dana checked the map on her phone again, then turned in the direction of the church. “So you’re planning to go full wolf when we get there?”

“I am.” The two of them started walking, the ground squishing under their feet. “I’m far stronger as the wolf, but you know that.”

“I remember. Little slow with the sword, though.”

Tasia snorted. “Yeah, that’s my own stupid fault. Order swords are enchanted. It physically hurts me to touch it when I’m transformed. When I’m the wolf, it’s like a tightrope between logic and instinct. Logic dictates I use the blade. Instinct says to use my teeth.”

“So stop overthinking.” Dana patted Tasia on the butt. “Become the proper murder machine you were meant to be, then reel it back in when you need to think things through.”

“You say that like it’s so easy.”

“Oh, trust me. I know exactly how hard it is. That’s why I have someone like Lily around. As counterintuitive as this sounds, she helps keep me grounded.”

“A good partner always should.”

The two of them hiked through the swamp, occasionally wading through bogs that came up to their hips. The swamp went quiet at their approach, followed by the sound of animals scurrying away from them through the brush. Cicadas would occasionally blast the air with mating songs, clearly not worried about the duo as they wandered the marsh.

Eventually, distant lights appeared through the thick vegetation, and the two of them started climbing a long, sloped yard with tall grass. They barely had to crouch to remain unseen as they reached the edge of the property. A makeshift parking lot was packed with cars and with Deacon’s tour bus parked right next to the building. The building itself was slightly ramshackle, but some improvements had been recently made. It was far larger than expected, and had what looked like living quarters built along the south side.

Dana made sure to text Eulalie then turn off her phone as they made their final approach. A small group of men patrolled the grounds with rifles loosely held against their bodies.