by Marc Lindsay
“What do you mean?” Ursula asked. Secretly she already knew the answer to her own question.
“I mean these individuals might have removed them from the playing field,” Ms Jax said, her normally gravelly voice going up an octave. “And any one of us may be next. The only reason that probably hasn’t happened yet is because of our current location here” Ms Jax added.
“When I was out walking the park earlier I sensed someone watching me. When I tried to pinpoint them, I lost the scent. I didn’t want to tell you because I had no proof,” Jason said dejectedly.
“It’s okay. I’m afraid it wouldn’t have improved our situation,” Ursula interjected.
“What do we do now?” Jason asked, a firm resolve creeping back into his voice.
“Well the news here isn’t much better. We’ve turned up nothing,” Ms Jax replied.
“What are our options?” Jason asked.
“We join the festivities,” Ms Jax said.
“You’re kidding, right?” Jason said incredulous.
“We spread out, keep our eyes open and remain in contact, using these,” Ursula said and produced three small objects from her pocket.
“What are they?” Jason asked as he plucked one from her hand and inspected it closely. The object was a small plastic clip that was moulded to fit over a person’s ear.
“First up, what is it? Second, where’s the rest of it?” he enquired and Ursula smiled.
“That’s a state of the art, first generation, spec ops grade communications device, made in Germany and not yet on the market,” Ursula said matter-of-fact.
“And you got it how?”
“Let’s just say they’re friends of the family and leave it at that,” Ursula replied.
“Excellent,” Jason said as he fitted it to his ear. “Have you any other toys?”
“As a matter of fact I do, but nothing I fear that will add to your already impressive arsenal,” Ursula said.
“What are they?” Jason asked intrigued. He stared at the small framed woman who looked more like an old world gypsy than a modern operative from an ancient order.
“I have everything I need carefully hidden from view,” Ursula said with a light blush. Jason caught a glimpse of the beautiful woman she had been in her youth, a woman that looked a lot like Selene.
“Then if we’re all good, I suggest we join the party,” Ms Jax said with a grin.
Chapter 39
As soon as Ms Gaia had left Selene had tried to engage her suit to somehow aid in her escape, but the suit refused to respond. She assumed it had something to do with the enchantments Ms Gaia had mentioned before she left. It had taken Selene well over an hour of fidgeting and wiggling to get herself and the chair over to the far side of the room where with some effort, she was able to grab hold of a straw broom that was leaning against the wall. Selene’s hands had been fastened from behind, so the act of procuring the broom had been far from easy. Now that she had it firmly in her grip, she had no intention of letting it go. The hard part was still to come as she now had to get back to where she had initially started, with the broom in her hands no less.
After another two hours of grunting, shuffling and some cursing, Selene made it back to the other side of the room. She nearly lost her hold on the broom several times, but through sheer perseverance, was able to retain her prize. The basement in which she had been placed didn’t contain many things. On one side there were large sacks of rice, flour and other grains. On the other side of the room where Selene was currently located was a tall single shelf mounted to the wall, high and near the ceiling. This was to be integral to Selene’s plan. Atop the shelf lay a large tin can, its contents a mystery. She was hoping that whatever lay within was heavy, but not so that she couldn’t carry out her plan.
Chapter 40
The sun had officially fled the town of Perigord, leaving only a dim splash of orange to line the top of the mountain range. The Harvest Festival had officially arrived. Perigord Park was littered with thousands of locals who had come to celebrate this rare holiday. As he strolled through the centre of the park Jason couldn’t help but be impressed with the amount of work that had gone into the organisation and setup of everything. There were food stalls that catered everything from battered hotdogs to chak-chas a Russian delicacy. Tents of all sizes had been pitched selling craft items such as wind chimes and lucky rabbits’ feet, to gag t-shirts that read ‘I’m with stupid’ and ‘Daddy’s little Princess’. Throughout the park the Black River Brewery was handing out free refreshments, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, as well as programs of the night’s festivities. Jason declined a cider with a grimace, but took a program. At the centre was a large stage where a variety of bands were entertaining the crowd. While enjoying the music he browsed the program and noted that a number of historical re-enactments were scheduled. Given the time, he would try to catch one of them.
Chapter 41
Ms Jax stayed in the shadows of the surroundings trees, her gaze more than once being drawn to the full moon in the night sky. Her own native planet had two suns and four moons but somehow this adopted world where she now lived held such beauty, especially on nights like tonight that she rarely missed the place of her birth. Ms Jax sighed and was about to step off, when a loud explosion erupted from the Park center. She spun in time to see fireworks erupt into the night sky. Colorful bursts of red, blue and green illuminated the darkness and a collective gasp escaped all who were there to watch. This went on for several minutes followed by a small pause. Just when it seemed as if they had exhausted their supply, another series of colorful explosions rocked the night, much to the delight and squeals of the patrons watching. For the first time that night, Ms Jax wished her dear friend Ulysses was there to share in the spectacle.
Chapter 42
The Stumpp brothers had been the epitome of patience. For the past thirty minutes they had been silently lying in wait with a visual on their target. They agreed that they had underestimated the shape shifter and they wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. When the brothers struck again, they wanted to make certain they hit Ulysses with everything they had, leaving him dead to rights.
Ulysses had just entered their ambush kill zone when there was a sudden burst in the sky. He crouched quickly and looked up to see the dazzling fireworks from town. Climbing to his feet, a second series of explosions rocked him as hundreds of tiny ball bearings ripped into him, fired from carefully targeted claymores. The blast threw him into the path of a series of planted grenades. That blast and fragmentation threw him backwards and before he hit the ground 5.56 mm rounds tore into him. Fired in controlled bursts from two separate locations. Ulysses was able to roll at the last minute, minimizing the damage he received as minor flesh wounds. He crawled into a depression in the earth in an attempt to escape their assault. ‘Clever bastards,’ Ulysses thought and raised his head, straining to see through the smoke-filled underbrush and dirt that was being kicked up by the Stumpp brother’s fire. After several moments he was able to pinpoint their locations. ‘Shame on you two, bringing guns to a beast fight,’ he thought and let loose with a berserker roar, that sounded like nothing on earth.
Both Weres had stopped to reload at the exact moment that Ulysses’ roar ripped through the forest.
“He’s still alive,” one-eye breathed into his headset incredulously.
“Focus brother,” the tall one growled back as his fingers fumbled for the spare magazine. The brothers had barely reloaded and were scanning their kill area when Ulysses came rampaging out of the smoky haze like a missile towards one-eye, who unleashed a full clip that barely stopped the juggernaut. Ulysses tore through every obstacle before him. His goal reach one-eye. Having closed the gap, Ulysses was almost upon one-eye when he tripped another wire, this one releasing a large suspended log with reinforced steel rods that jutted out like spikes. The log came swinging down in a deadly arc from a nearby tree. It collided with Ulysses, knocking him from his course. The protrudin
g steel penetrated his tough hide.
The tall Were came racing to his brother’s side. Both started reloading and readying their weapons.
“Is he dead?” the tall Were asked.
“I honestly don’t know,” one-eye replied, his gaze fixed on the area where Ulysses had fallen. “We’ve hit him with everything we have. If he’s still breathing, I don’t know what else we can do,” he added. The tall one nodded.
“I think it’s time we leave this shit hole. Money or no money, we can’t spend it if we’re dead,” the tall one growled.
“Peter’s dead and that’s already too steep a price we’ve had to pay,” one-eye replied. At that exact moment, the sound of moving timber could be heard coming from where Ulysses had fallen. The two Weres looked first in the direction of the noise then at each other, both of them with expressions of disbelief and fear.
“Grab what you can carry on the run, let’s go!” the tall Were instructed as he got to his feet. His brother stuffed a couple of grenades into the pouches of his vest, then he too got to his feet.
“I’m ready, what’s your play?” one-eye asked.
“We’re gone, ghosts. I don’t want to set foot in this valley again,” the tall Were replied. One-eye nodded then without another word, the pair bolted into the darkness.
Ulysses groaned as he lay under the weight of the log that had blindsided him. Even with his beast’s abilities he had been momentarily knocked out. As he came to, it took him a minute to work out where he was and what had happened.
“I need an aspirin, or ten,” he muttered as he slowly pushed the log off. It took him at least five minutes to clear his head, then another five before he was able to stand. He realized that things had changed significantly since the ambush and the fact that he was still standing meant that his assailants had given up on him. He doubted they were lying in wait, as he was pretty sure their last effort had been just that. So now the only question was, where to now. It didn’t take him long to realize the answer to that.
“Perigord,” Ulysses whispered. He attempted to change, this time into a beast with wings, however his last escapade had wrenched his right arm and he found the ability to fly was not an option.
“Shit,” he growled. “Something fast, nothing pretty,” he added as he changed into a large grey wolf. Leaping into the darkness he made his way back to town.
Chapter 43
The fireworks display lasted well over thirty minutes. The town’s people were completely unaware of the life and death struggle that had been taking place nearby between Ulysses and the Stumpp brothers. Ms Jax was staring up at the light show when a dark silhouette flickered across one of the building roof tops looking over the park.
“Ursula, Jason, this is Amelia. I’ve just sighted something suspicious south of the park, on the roof of the Parthenon theatre,” Ms Jax said over her headset.
“Amelia, this is Ursula. I copy that. Meet me in the alley that runs behind the theatre, we can use the fire escape to access the roof,” Ursula replied. “Copy that,” Ms Jax replied. “Jason. Jason, do you copy?” she added, but was met with static.
“Leave him, us girls can handle this one,” Ursula said.
“Acknowledged. I’ll meet you there in two minutes,” Ms Jax said as she tried to make her way through the crowd inconspicuously. Fortunately the patrons were more interested in what was happening in the sky.
As Ms Jax approached the theatre she caught sight of Ursula ducking into the alley behind. She moved more like an athlete than someone in their twilight years, much to Ms Jax’s surprise. As she too rounded, the corner Ursula was waiting, crouched with a small pistol in her hands.
“How do you want to handle this?” Ursula whispered.
“Well seeing as how you’re armed, I thought you’d take the point,” Ms Jax replied. Ursula reached behind and produced another pistol and offered it to Ms Jax.
“You can use this if you prefer,” Ursula said, but Ms Jax shook her head.
“I prefer these,” Ms Jax replied. With a savage grin she pulled something from her own handbag that clanged together as she brought them into the dim light. They were a pair of rough iron gauntlets, fashioned to fit her large powerful hands. She pulled them on each hand, one at a time. They slipped on perfectly. She finished by tapping the knuckles together like a pro boxer. “I never seem to have any complaints when I wear them,” Ms Jax added.
“Where ever did you get them?” Ursula asked in awe.
“My mother. They are an old family heirloom,” Ms Jax whispered back.
“I should very much like to meet her one day, she sounds like my sort of woman,” Ursula said. Ms Jax remained silent, a thoughtful look upon her face.
“We’d better get going,” Ms Jax said. The two women silently made their way up the fire escape.
Chapter 44
The basement was almost in complete darkness. The first part of Selene’s plan, although timely, had gone off without a hitch. However after making her way across the room with the broom held tight, she started phase two of her operation which although sounded simple on paper, was proving to be a bitch. The darkness had compounded the difficulty of the task. She had to knock a tin can residing on the wall shelf on its side, then send it rolling the length of the shelf into the window basement on the other side of the room. The feat required Selene to lean forward on the chair so that the back legs were off the ground, as she balanced between the two front legs and her own feet, grasping the broom by the very end of the handle. She then needed to plant her toes down hard and stretch as far as she was able, striking the other end of the broom against the bottom of the shelf directly under the tin. So far she had come close on more than a few occasions, but that was it. However despite the dwindling light, she had pressed on. Now in the pitch black her resolve and strength were starting to crumble. After another failed attempt she slumped back in the chair, panting hard.
“Goddamn it,” Selene snarled as she thrashed in her chair, frustration taking hold of her. “A break wouldn’t be too much to ask for would it?” Selene closed her eyes and focused herself. “Everything or nothing,” she whispered and drove with all her might, striking the shelf as hard as she could, the impact smashing into the bottom of the shelf. The jarring impact also caused her to lose her grip on the broom.
“No!” Selene cried as the broom clattered to the ground. Her head slumped forward in despair. At the same time the tin on the shelf had been lifted a good couple of inches from the force of the blow. Landing on its edge, it remained balanced for a split second before tipping and landing on its side. The contents within rattled with a metallic sound, sounding like nuts and bolts or something of that nature. Selene’s head jerked up at the unexpected sound as she strained to see in the darkness. The can slowly rolled along the shelf, its half-full contents giving it an egg like inertia. It increased in speed towards the basement window. Selene followed its progress by sound alone, praying with all her might for her plan to succeed.
The can stayed the course, striking the window with the desired result. The broken shards of glass rained down onto the floor below. Selene sat in the chair dumbstruck at first, then almost immediately she began hopping the chair towards the window. After thirty minutes she reached her target and with a little effort, toppled the chair over on its side. She winced from the fall and the subsequent shards beneath. She struggled with her bonds and was able to locate a piece of glass large enough with which to carefully cut through her restraints. She was a little shaky as she got to her feet. The last few hours had put a terrible strain on her both physically and mentally but despite this, she had never felt so alive. Trying the basement door she found it to be locked, which she suspected would be the case. She spent the next few minutes kicking and shoulder charging the door but too little affect.
Panting from the exertion, Selene looked up at the narrow broken basement window and debated whether she would be able to reach the window, let alone squeeze her petite frame through.
“What other choice do I have?” she muttered to herself as she placed the chair under the window and stepped up. Her first attempt required her to leap from the chair, grasp a hold on the window and heave herself up. This resulted in cut fingers from the protruding glass shards and Selene having to drop down to the floor.
“Shit, crap, bugger,” Selene cursed as she gripped her hands in pain. Looking around the nearly bare room, her gaze lingered on the sacks of grains in the far corner.
“What I really need are a pair of gloves, but…,” Selene finished mid-sentence. She picked up a piece of glass and walked over to the sacks.
It took more time than she wished, but by the end Selene was reasonably happy with the results. Wrapped around each hand were strips of hessian cut from the sacks using the piece of glass. She didn’t waste any time with her second attempt on the window, which lasted all of ten seconds, as fatigue and bad luck caused her to lose her grip.
“If I don’t do this now I’ll be down here all night,” Selene whispered as she climbed atop the chair again, determination set in her face. She steadied herself, then paused.
“Here goes everything,” she said to the darkness and leapt with all her might. Her grip held strong and with a growl and groan of exertion, she slowly pulled her weight to the ledge. Using her feet to walk the wall, she was able to raise her head and shoulders and poke them through the opening of the window. In this position, she was then able to rest momentarily as she readjusted her grip and reached for a small shrub sitting a foot from the house. Testing its ability to take her weight, she was then able to slowly pull herself through the window and onto the earth outside. Laying there gasping from the exertion, she eventually rolled onto her back and stared up at the stars as she caught her breath.
Glancing at her watch she sat up with a start.