I laughed and hugged her tight as she peppered me with a litany of thanks. Riley felt so good in my arms that I was sad she wasn't my Tua. And that thought soured my mood. It brought back the notion that Roo was working against me. While I had no doubt that Riley wasn't involved in my father's machinations she still wasn't mine.
“Shift back, Riley. We need to be ready for anything.”
“Okay, Terry.” She dropped to her feet and shifted. She planted a kiss on my cheek and skipped away. Seeing a giant koala skipping was probably the strangest and most uplifting thing I had ever seen.
“She is something else,” Andrea said while she walked up to me while watching Riley. “She's so carefree yet capable of murder at the grip of a hat. I'd be afraid of her if she were on the other team.”
“She is on our team now, but she isn't on our side, not really,” I said.
“What do you mean?” Andrea's smile faded replaced by a frown.
“She is one of my father's Tua. She will turn on us if he wants her to.”
“You really think your father would do that?”
“He already turned his back on me once. What's to stop him from doing it again?”
“I'm going to assign someone to keep a close eye on her,” Andrea said.
“Have the rest of the drop team do it. Let's keep them together in case we need them.”
“Will do, Terry. We are ready to keep moving when you say the word.”
Chapter 33
Andrea and I lead the pack up the stairs. I continued to pull forty percent from them so I could be an active participant. Being seen leading even though I was injured gave me a lot of street cred with the pack according to Andrea.
It was strange how happy she was for me to be a leader over her. I had to wonder if something in the bond we shared caused her to feel certain things about me. If so, I didn’t know what to do about it, but I didn’t like it. Maybe there was a magic item I could use to remove that affect.
“Is it just me, or i this too easy?” Andrea asked.
“It is now, but there was a significant force we had to beat in order to get here. I don’t know if I would call that easy.”
“Truth, but we should be running into more right now.” She said.
“I’ll give you that, but if getting into the command center is easy, I’ll take it.”
“Here we are,”Andrea said as we reached the third floor landing. “You ready, Terry?”
“Ready as I will be,” I said.
“I’m going first with you behind me. Everyone else has their assignments. Get the door and I’ll go.”
I grabbed the door knob and Andrea counted down with her fingers. When her fist was closed I threw open the door. She rushed in and I followed.
We found a large room taking up most of the floor. There were computer workstations along the left and right walls and a raised platform in the center. A semicircle work station took up the side of the platform facing us. No one challenged us and as far as we could see there was no one here.
Andrea and I split up going around the platform. The wolves behind uys split as well taking up positions around the room.
“There is no one here,” I said.
“Lets see if we can take possession of the room,” Andrea said. “Princess, you’re up.”
The former soldier went to one of the computers on the platform and began typing. She had extensive training in the military for computer espionage. Andrea and I stood in the center of the platform while Princess worked. Neither of us spoke as we waited. The fact that there was no resistance on this floor had me worried. Why would they leave the command center abandoned?
A screen as large as the wall we faced came to live. Static dominated it for a second and the sound of it filled the room. Then the image changed to a man I knew too well in a fancy suite.
“Claude,”I said.
“Oh good, you remember me. I’m thrilled,” he said in a deadpan voice. “Unfortunately for you, this is not social call.” The camera panned back and I saw Dris tied to a chair with a gag in his mouth. “As you can see we have your little mutt. If you want him back you will have to come up to the fifth floor alone and retrieve him. If anyone of your little troop leave that floor I will kill your buddy here.” The screen went black.
“Shit,”Princess said.
“What is it?”Andrea asked.
“I’m locked out. Someone else has control and I can’t get in.”
“Probably the dickbagthat was on the screen,”I said.
“What are we going to do?” Andrea asked. “You can’t go up there, I don’t care what he says.”
“You’re right,”I replied. “It’s an obvious trap and there is no guarantee that he will let Dris go.”
“So what do you have in mind?” Andrea asked.
“I’m going up there.”
“What the fuck?” Andrea’s face took on a look of anger. “You just fucking said it’s a trap. And now you’re going to walk right into it?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but you have to trust me. I can’t leave Dris hanging and I tink I can take that guy.”
“How do you figure that?” She asked.
“Because I am never alone. Not as long as I have you and the pack, and not as long as I have Tua. I will trust you to figure out a way to help me if you trust me to not get myself killed.”
“I don’t like it, but I don’t want to see Dris killed. I don’t want to lose either of you. Make sure you don’t die, Terry.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
I made for the stairs and headed up. The stairwell remained empty for my trek up. The door to the fifth floor was unlocked and I entered. There was a small room with a large desk in front of the far wall. An attractive dark skinned woman sat behind the desk with an earpiece.
“You are expected, Mr. Cole. Please go on in.” She pressed a button and the large wooden doors next to her desk buzzed. I opened the doors and went in.
The office was huge. Like the space on the third floor it took up most of the floor. Along the far wall was an immense desk and Claude sat behind it with his elbows on the top and his fingers steepled. In front of the desk sat Dris in a chair with his back to Claude. A camera sitting on a tripod stood on the middle of the room.
“I have to say I am surprised you came,” Claude said. “You are either really brave, or really dumb. Either way, you will die today. Sit.”He pointed to an empty chair in front of his desk.
Seeing no way to get Dris clear yet i did as instructed. Once I was seated across the desk from Claude he spoke.
“Why must you continue to be a pain in my ass?”
“Because fuck you.”
“Eloquent as always. Did you come here for the Dragon, is that it?”
“Pretty much,” I said. “She is one of mine and i will not let her go. Not while I live.”
“I’ll take care of that soon enough. Here is the deal. I will let your friend there and the rest of the bitch’s pack go if you agree to be a willing test subject.”
“That’s it? I thought I was going to die?”
“You will, or you will for all intents and purposes. Say no, and we kill you and all the wolves you brought with you. Say yes, and you disappear, essentially being dead to the world. So what will it be?”
“What makes you think you can kill me if I say no?” I asked.
“You may not be aware of this, but the poison is spreading. I can see the black veins creeping up from the collar of your shirt. I know you are hurting and you can’t be as strong as you were. So I probably won’t have top shift to beat you.”
“Let’s test that,”I said as I slide my chair back.”
“I had a feeling you would say that,” Claude said. He rose from his seat and began unbuttoning his suit coat. “You will allow me the time I need to get ready? I don’t want to get my suit bloody.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
He took his coat off and folded it setting it on his desk. He then removed
the shite shirt and blue tie he wore under it. The shirt he folded and set on the coat. The tie he also folded then set next to the coat on his desk. I figured he was stalling to let me get anxious. It was a mind game I wasn’t falling for.
His last act was to straighten the tie so it was even with the coat. Then he launched himself at me.
A fist connected with my face knocking me back. Another blow hit my face and I went back another step. The third blow I caught with my hand. I was still pulling forty percent and I had entered the slow time state the second he moved to attack.
I twisted my hips and threw Claude over my shoulder. he hit the ground and bounced back u to his feet. He charged again and I sidestepped hitting his temple with my closed fist.
As Claude fell he shouted. “Mode one ACTIVATE!” By the time he hit the floor he was a large werewolf. The Remains of his clothes fell away as he stood.
“You will pay for causing me to destroy my pants,” Claude growled.
His transformation was something I expected. Considering how easy he was to beat with the forty percent I was pulling I didn't pull anymore. As it was I kept thinking that I was hurting my pack with the amount I currently used.
The tall monster lunged at me claws first. I jumped back and his claws tore my shirt. He was faster than I thought he would be. He came at me with a series of slashes half of which I dodged and the other half I blocked with my forearms.
It was my turn to attack to I dashed forward to get close as he had longer arms than me. It was something I picked up from a Rocky movie. I hit his chest and stomach over again with closed fists rocking his solid body. I went to finish with an uppercut, but he caught my wrist stopping ne cold. I tried pulling free but his grip was iron.
Claude chuckled then lifted me by my arm and slammed me to the ground. Before I had time to deal with my breath being knocked out of me he swung me up and back down on his other side. He swung and slammed me over and over enough to lose count.
He let go and walked around me looking down. Words were leaving h8m, but it just sounded like an adult from a peanuts cartoon. Pain from my wound was intense. It was joined by its friends, pain in my upper body and pain in my lower body.
I groaned and Claude laughed. He bent down and his next words were too close to miss. “...and then I'm going to fuck all of your little bitches.”
Rage drove a wedge between my mind and the pain. I pulled another twenty percent and my hand shot out. I grabbed Claude by his stupid werewolf face and shoved him.
I jumped up and charged hitting him in the chest with my shoulder before he hit the ground. He rocketed away from me slamming into a wall. I was there punching him hard enough to send cracks through the wall behind him.
A large arm swung out knocking me across the room and knocking some sense out of me. Before I could get up Claude landed on my stomach knees first. My breath and blood exploded from my mouth. The large werewolf pounded on me over and over. I raised my arm and it was smacked back down.
My mind drifted searching for answers. I could pull and get stronger, but could I stop? The memory of my Tua down came back up and I knew I wouldn't pull.
“Now you get to live and watch me take everything from you,” Claude said. “Then…”
He choked and moved off. I raised my head opening the the one eye that would. Dris had the large man by the neck and was slamming him against the window. Claude had one arm locked up in the choke hold and the other pressed against the glass fighting back.
With the power available I had enough strength to get back up. When I had my feet under me I had to try ignoring the dizziness I felt and stumble to Dris. When I reached them I stumbled and fell catching myself on the glass. A growl built in my throat as I fed my anger to use it. I pushed off the glass with a roar. Using both fists together I slammed them down on Claude's arm. The blow hit with devastating force snapping a bone that jabbed out of his skin. I hit the ground after losing my balance.
Dris slammed Claude against the glass causing it to explode outward. He let go allowing the momentum of the hit take Claude. The wolf howled as he fell five stories.
Chapter 34
Andrea and the wolf pack broke through the door a few minutes later finding both Dris and I on the floor next to the broken window.
“I'm not sure if I can call this a win or not,” Andrea said as she knelt down next to me. “What happened?”
“We fought the bad guy and won. It's all that matters.”
“No, what matters is that your wheezing with every breath. Your face looks like hamburger and… there is too much and to list.” She looked over at her second. “Thanks for saving Dris.”
“He did a good bit of the saving,” I said.
“Either way, you did it. We get to live to fight another day. Good job, Terry.”
A roar that sounded like it came from a giant rock monster came from the stairwell.
“You might have spoken too soon,” I said.
The double doors leading into the office burst open and Lycan hybrids flooded the room. The wolf pack engaged the new threat.
My old friend the rhino Lycan charged Andrea. My wolf stood to meet the charge but he was too strong. As he pushed my wolf across the room his foot clipped me.
My body spun like I was a breakdancer doing the back spin. Then the floor dropped out from under me and I fell five stories.
There was the sensation of weightlessness that lasted for a second. Followed by the same tingling sensation I used to get in my balls when I went to high on the swingset. Finally there was the stop which surprisingly didn't hurt.
The reason for the lack of pain was the darkness that surrounded me. NoLike the last time I was in my mind space, my Tua lay around me unconscious. This time, Dragon stood a few feet away. Her large wings were folded behind her and she had her head tilted down. Her eyes were locked on me even as her face was not. My heart soared at seeing her standing there. The last I saw her she was in the care of Roo while we assaulted the building and she was not awake yet.
“Dragon,” I said as I stepped closer.
My unique Tua growled at me and stepped back.
“What’s wrong?” I said with confusion in my voice, but I remembered our last encounter here. “You have a name.”
She stopped moving back and raised her head a little. It was enough to see the tears and anger on her face. She waited for me to continue, so I did.
“I don’t know what it is. You’ve never told me. Can you tell me now?” I stepped closer and she stepped back. “Please,” I blurted out. “Don’t move away. I want to help you, not hurt you. How do I do that?”
“What is my name?” She growled.
“Wait, you don’t know. You want me to tell you?” I stepped closer and she didn’t retreat. I took it to mean I was on the right track. “Do I make one up and give it to you?” She shook her head. “Okay, this I can work with. I have to figure out what your name is, right?”
Dragon nodded and she actually took a half step closer. I was on the right track. But how was I supposed to know her name if she didn’t? It was a tough situation to be in. Not just that, but I had to wake up and help my pack defend against the Lycan horde.
A whimpering noise drew my attention to just behind Dragon. Cassie sat there with her knees up against her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs. She hadn't moved from the last time I saw her and I started to realize there was a reason she was there behind Dragon. It wasn’t because they happened to be there like that. Dragon was in charge right now. She was the dominant personality while their body was shifted into the dragon form. Cassie was just as lost as Dragon and when i solved the issue they would both be free. A mystery I would have to deal with later was how I knew that.
“Your name is Cassie?” I asked.
Dragon growled and stepped back. “No,” she spat. “Not her. I am me, I have a name.”
My brain went into overtime trying to think of what she wanted, but it was not coming. How could her name be di
fferent if they were essentially the same person? It didn’t make sense. Then it did. I knew her name and it was right there the whole time.
I stepped up to Dragon moving faster than she had when she stepped back. She tried retreating but I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. While I knew fire would not hurt hear I had a feeling she could still fuck me up if she wanted too.
“I know your name. Your name is Cassandra.”
“No not… my name?”
“Yes,” I said while hedging my bet. I pointed down at the blond who was no longer whimpering but looking up at me. “She is Cassie, and you are Cassandra. Two parts of the same whole. Yet different from one another.”
I let go of Dragon, or Cassandra and held my hand out to Cassie. She took it and I pulled her to her feet. Having missed her since she was unresponsive I pulled her into a tight hug. “I missed you, Cassie.”
She returned my hug and nuzzled my neck. “I missed you too, Terry.”
Then I pulled back but kept one hand around her waist. With my other, I pulled Cassandra against me. “I get it now. You two can never be the same being. You will always be two separate entities in one body. Since that is the case, I need you two to work together.”
“I don’t know how to do that,” Cassie said.
“Same,” Cassandra said.
“It won’t be easy, but you have to work it out. I’ll be here to help in any way I can. I looked form Cassie to Cassandra. We are never alone, and I will always be here for you. I stepped back and let them go. I reached between them taking their hands and moving Cassie’s hand into Dragon’s.
“Together we are stronger than we are apart. I’m going to go now. The pack needs me. Come to us when you are ready.”
I left my dark mind space wondering why it was dark. The thought was quickly replaced by wondering why I hurt so much. My left eye cracked open enough for me to see the towering black buyillding. That was why. I fell five stories and landed on my back.
A whooshing sound from my right startled me causing me to jerk and send a fresh wave of hellish pain through my body. I hadn’t expected there to be any sounds close to me. Turning my head slightly I saw Claude in his Werewolf with wings mode. He looked down and smiled at me then lifted off into the air with a beat of his large wings.
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