Chapter 8

Fifteen minutes went by before the forest rangers pulled up in front of the house. Bob, the lead ranger stepped up and said, “We checked the access road to the wetland bottom you said they were in and they’d cut the chain on the access path to get in. We have a vehicle blocking them from exiting there. The only way they leave now, is through this drive.”

“It may be a moot point, I heard them trying to start their vehicle, but it just clicked, like their battery was dead.”

I then went through the morning’s events with Bob. Alecia and Lisa who were standing beside me confirmed them. Bob kept eyeballing Lisa in a rude fashion which was starting to piss me off. I’d never taken him for a racist, but apparently, he was.

I jumped in and said, “Why don’t we go over the hill and talk to them” and started walking that way.

That got Bob back on track “We will do that. You people stay here” he responded.

I sent a mental message to Hitomi, “Go ahead and get Ciri to the falls.”

I saw a flash of light from the cliff side. Then got a message from Yoshika “They had a trail cam set up here. We’ve removed it and are going to the cavern below the falls.”

I hadn’t known there was a cavern. When this disruption was finished, I’d have to check it out.

A few minutes later, the rangers came trooping over the hill with seven young hostile teens in tow. Bob approached me with his hand resting on his sidearm.

He said “These girls tell me you have a young women being held against her will in the house. What do you say to that?”

“I say it’s bullshit.” I pulled the D ring key chain off my hip and handed it to him. “Go ahead and search the house, the door key is the one with a notch in it.”

He nodded and took the key from me, then went in the house. I followed him with my senses just in case.

Meanwhile, Alecia was searching for an artifact among the coven.

In my mind, I saw Bob opening all doors in every room and looking under the beds. He was at least being honest about it. I sent a message to Alana, who was in the storage room to shut down the charging array just in case. I then refocused on Bob. The bastard was going through my refrigerator. I was pretty sure there was no way he actually believed a body could be there.

A few minutes later, he came out, looked at the storage shed and ask if they key was on this ring. I used my power to disappear the lock and said to him, it’s unlocked, I have some guest from out of town staying in the Winebago. He looked at me and said, “How about you call them out here before I go in there?”

Sara, Bethany, and Alana were all in there, so I called through the door asking them to step outside. They walked out and joined Alecia and Lisa. After questioning them all, Bob went into the building. It didn’t take long to search, but when he came out he was carrying one of the Nd boxes. He looked at me and said “This look like a drug storage case. Before I open it, what’s in here?”

“It’s a hermetically sealed and purged box for neodymium storage. Neodymium rapidly oxidizes when exposed to air. If you insist on opening it, be aware I will be filing a lawsuit. You will ruin the metal if you open it.”

By this time, I knew something was up. The tall blonde in the coven was smirking. Alecia sent “She has his DNA in her mouth. She probably blew him before they came back, so he’s searching for something to get you with.”

Alecia cast a compulsion on the bitch at that point, then pulled out a cellphone and started recording.

The compulsion made the bitch speak her mind. “I didn’t blow you just so we’d be standing here. Open the damn thing.”

The two rangers with Bob, asked “What’s she talking about.”

Bob was desperate at this moment; he’d seen the phone recording so he yanked open the box. Two ounces of metal fell out of the box and hit the ground.

The other two rangers got on their radio and asked for their supervisor to come out.

The supervisor didn’t take long, as he’d been securing the chain boundary the bitches had cut.

After hearing from the two rangers, and interviewing me, he took Bob into custody.

I looked at the supervisor and said “Can you search again? I don’t want this to come up again or be under suspicion.”

He sent the other two rangers into the house to search it again. A few minutes later, they came out and searched the storage shed. They reported both buildings clean. At which point, the supervisor called a county sheriff to pick up the coven. I didn’t sense any artifacts on them, but they still had a vehicle and a camp site.

Sending a message to Hitomi I said “Search their camp and vehicle and confiscate any artifact you find.”

After the coven was hauled away in cuffs along with idiot Bob the former ranger. I gathered all the women in the storage shed. I looked at Hitomi, who produced a bracelet. I took it and scanned it. This artifact was created by a dwarf female. I handed it to Sara and asked “Anyone you know?”

She replied “No, but it’s creator is inside of fifty miles from here. We can bring her to a location of your choice with ease.”

I looked at Hitomi “A portal to the cavern if you please.”

I watched as a black dot appeared surrounded by glowing gold and green runes, it expanded, then we all went through it. When I got to the other side, I saw we were in large cavern. I could hear the falls to one side and saw a small passage.

I turned to the others and said “Bring the artifact’s creator here.”

Gale first set a ward. Then they set a portal rune in the cave floor. I was working my shared memories while they did this, in case I’d have to do it on my own at some point.

After a few minutes, the runes began to glow. A short, raven-haired girl with huge tits popped into the center of the runes. She looked like she was scared to death.

I looked at her while holding up the artifact “Why the fuck are you betraying your own kind?”

She looked at the artifact and then at me. “I was forced to create that and others like it to save my master. But they killed him anyway the bastards. I need a new master to escape them.”

“How did they control you if you have no master, why not just run away” I asked?

“They have an ancient control artifact. I can’t run away.”

I looked at her and asked “Who is ‘they’ and where are they?”

“They are a loose association of hunters and witches. The later are particularly stupid as they will be killed after the hunters are done with them. The hunters are from the church. They will not suffer their kind to live anymore than ours. Please kill me instead of sending me back. The compulsions do not allow suicide and I’ve been tortured and starved for the last thirty years, I’d rather be dead.”

“Hold that thought” I said.

I sent a thought out to the group. “Should we help her or give her, her wish.”

After a few minutes the consensus was to help.

I looked to the girf trapped in the center and said “If you had the choice of death or a new master, which would it be?”

She replied “If it’s you, then I’d choose a new master. Otherwise, I’d choose death.”

“I’m going to scan your body first, disrobe please.”

She dropped her clothes which I scanned for artifacts first. I then scanned her body. I found an artifact embedded in her spine. I flashed an image of the scan to all present. I ask Alecia to cast a truth compulsion on her. Then I asked her if she was aware of the artifact. She replied in the negative.