Supernatural Taskforce Academy: Mission One, Scorpion Blood

by J. L. Weil

  I had to admit that I was impressed, but I still ignored him, moving to the window. Everything about this place gave me the creeps. From the gnarled roots of branches snaking around the house, to the smell of decay and death. Even the air seemed to have shifted, growing cooler and mistier.

  “You go right, and I take the left,” he whispered, raising his gun to eye level, both hands curling around it. “We’ll do a quick sweep of the surroundings before entering.”

  When he turned to get my acknowledgement, he saw me closing in on the window.

  “Is there a reason you are not following my lead?” Scorpion whisper-barked, clearly annoyed with me as he dropped the gun. “We need to do this together. First, we briefly case the surroundings, to make sure we are clear. Then one of us should enter from the front, the other from the back.”

  “Did you forget she has magic? A crap load of it?” I hissed back. “If we corner her, she might explode or some shit. Maybe I should go in there alone. I’m immortal, you’re not. Just wait here.” I shoved the necklace under my shirt to hide the glow.

  “Are you insane? We can’t be impulsive with this, and you don’t need to worry about me. I can take care of myself. Just stick to the plan,” he insisted. “Besides, I’m not letting you go in there alone.”

  “Awe, is the big, bad ex… what did you call it? Ex-Delta? Is the ex-Delta war hero scared of the dark?”

  A frustrated sigh slowly escaped him, nostrils flaring, and he grinded his teeth. “We are a team, and I don’t play games with my team’s lives. Especially not with yours, Renna.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Suit yourself, but I’m not the one you should be worrying about, human.”

  The wind howled at that moment, bringing with it a sense of something wicked and eerie in the air. I wanted to believe it was the witch inside giving me the uneasy vibes, but my instincts were telling me we were still being watched. The wooden shutters beat against the rickety old house that probably should be burnt to the ground. There was no saving this sad and neglected home.

  Ignoring him yet again, I began to pull myself up the window.

  He cursed under his breath, giving up, and coming to my side to protect me. “Need a boost?” Scorpion offered, watching our surroundings, but all I could think about was his hands on my ass.

  “I got it.” I shimmied up the windowsill and swung my legs through the broken window, careful not to step on any shards of glass. Scorpion was right behind me, the sharp eyes of a commander sweeping the room. I half expected him to whisper “clear”.

  Silent and stealthy as a wraith, we moved into the hall, his gun pointed at the darkness in case we got any surprises. Following the sounds of someone chomping on what smelled like a charred hotdog, we pushed forward. Muttering and musings filtered from the main room, along with a steady purr…

  Catina was talking to her cat.

  Scorpion sent me the slash of a grin, lowering the gun and tucking it back in his waistband. No demon, just the witch, and we had no intention of shooting her.

  I rolled my eyes.

  When we paused at the end of the hall, Scorpion hugged one side of the wall and I the other. He gave me some sort of silent hand signal. I blinked, my eyes narrowing. Did he want me to go left or right? Screw it. I gave him a gesture of my own, and was rewarded with a scowl.

  A tang of magic tickled my nose, along with…

  Shit. Cat hair.

  My eyes watered instantly, and I stopped breathing, hoping to stifle what I knew was coming. Yet, there was no stopping my aversion for cats. I sneezed, blowing all hopes of a surprise approach right out the broken window we’d climbed in.

  Scorpion gave me a pointed look that said you’re-the-worst-covert-partner-ever, before swiftly stepping into the main living space. He positioned himself so he covered the front door, and I stepped out, blocking the hallway.

  Catina let out a shriek of surprise, throwing the half-eaten hotdog attached to a stick at my head. I ducked, the ground up guts of pig splattering all over the wall. And people thought drinking blood was disgusting. My nose wrinkled at the scent that filled the room.

  “Hey, little witchling, nice to see you too.” I grinned at the startled girl. Her heart was hammering in her chest.

  “H-how did you find me?” she stammered, backing up a step, large silver eyes brimming with turmoil.

  Someone looked as if she had a rough day. Her long pink hair was braided into two loose knots, stray hairs framing her soiled face, and she was wearing the same clothes she had on in the club, a couple of nights ago. A Boho bag stuffed full was slung into the corner, probably with all the worldly possessions she owned. I hadn’t noticed a car outside, but that didn’t mean she didn’t own one, and stashed it somewhere in the woods.

  Her pesky cat hissed, curling itself around her legs in protection.

  I glared at the ball of onyx fur, remembering the scratch on my cheek, and bared my teeth before veering my gaze to Catina. Knowing more about her background, I forced my body to relax, not trying to spook her into using her untapped powers. The memory of what happened last time returned, that was a mistake I wouldn’t make twice.

  “Oh, good. You remember me. Not that I’m surprise. I tend to leave a lasting impression on people.”

  Scorpion held up both his hands in a gesture of peace, and took a smooth step forward. “We’re not here to hurt you,” he assured in placid tone. “We just want to talk, make sure you’re okay.”

  “Speak for yourself,” I muttered under my breath.

  More glares shot my way. He looked like he wanted to tie me to a tree. “Leave this to me,” he suggested calmly.

  Catina kept her leery eyes on me, deeming me the threat. Smart witch. After Vegas, I couldn’t blame her. A part of me just wanted to tackle her ass to the ground, and hogtie her quickly—lesser chance of undisciplined magic whirling everywhere. Then there was the hunter in me, the side I had to work on leashing. That part wanted her to run. Though honestly, I could use the exercise to work off some of this tension between Scorpion and me.

  The only thing standing between the witch and me was a ratty couch covered in dust and cobwebs. The cabin was sparingly furnished, with only a few pieces of furniture the owners had decided weren’t worth the trouble of taking. A lingering scent of smoke hung in the air, low embers still burning in the stone hearth.

  “What did you do to me?” Catina hurled in my direction, sudden iciness coating her words.

  Oh boy. Someone wasn’t happy with her newfound magic. I didn’t have much firsthand knowledge about newly awakened witches. The ones at the academy had already fumbled through this stage long before being recruited. I could only imagine the crazy crap swirling around in her pretty little pink head.

  “If you give us a few minutes we can explain,” Scorpion interceded, like he had dealt with unstable, dangerous people before, drawing her attention back to him—a safer bet.

  Catina leaned against the wall, doing her best to maintain her cool. “Talk fast. You got thirty seconds.”

  I heaved in frustration, feeling my patience level about to top off. We needed to get her back to the academy before any unwanted visitors decided to show their ugly mugs. “You’re a witch. The stuff I forced down your throat two days ago was an elixir to awaken your magic. And that thing you insist on keeping as a pet, is probably your familiar. Can we go now?”

  Scorpion pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out an exasperated breath. “Renna…”

  I shrugged. “I never said I had finesse. That’s all reserved for you.”

  “Clearly, except you didn’t let me handle it like I asked you to,” he replied, forking a hand through his perfectly combed chestnut hair, and messing it up. As a result, a wild strand fell over his forehead, contrasting with the green of his eyes.

  Why did he have to look so adorable pissed off?

  There had to be something wrong with me.

  Catina’s eyes volleyed between Scorpion and me, as if she was tryi
ng to decide if anything I’d told her held truth. “She’s kidding, right?” she finally asked Scorpion.

  “I’m sorry. I’m afraid not.” He had managed to take a few more steps closer to Catina without her being alarmed. “I understand how surreal all this might seem to you, but it is the truth. I’m human, she is a vampire, and you are a witch, even if you never knew about it. It was quite a shock to me when I found out about the supernatural world, so I understand it is difficult to believe, but you feel the power inside you now, don’t you? You remember what happened at the club.”

  She didn’t answer, but the way she looked at him said he was right, and she felt lost.

  “We want to help you, Catina, but for that we need you to come with us. It’s not safe for you here. There is a place that can teach you all about witches—how to use your abilities, how to control them—and we can take you there.”

  Catina gnawed on her lip, considering it. “If I’m a witch and Zero is my familiar, then what are you guys? My fairy godparents?”

  “Good one.” I snickered. “Do I look old enough to be your godmother? And if I was, do you think I would let you have a cat as a familiar? Of all the animals in the world, you pick that.” I glowered at the cat, feeling that familiar tingle in my nose.

  Catina stuck her chin out, giving me a glimpse of a girl with a backbone if shoved in a corner. “Zero is my friend. Some days, my only friend,” she added, her voice hitching on a lump of emotion.

  Whipping away fake tears from under my eyes, I sniffed. “If you want pity, you’re not getting it from me.”

  She batted her long lashes at me, pouting her pink lips. “I guess that means we’re not going to be supernatural BFF’s, or whatever?”

  I snorted.

  “Renna… cut the crap,” Scorpion warned.

  “Gods, don’t tell me you’re falling for her woe is me act. She isn’t as naive as she’s pretending, trust me, partner.” I sneezed.

  Catina smirked at me.

  “It would be best if we talked at the academy, safer.”

  Her fingers twisted together as she considered her options, which honestly were slim. She could try to outrun us. She could summon her magic and pray that it worked. Or she could come with us to the academy. “Why should I trust you?”

  “Are you going to tell me you’d rather keep running? living on whatever measly money you can make reading cards? You’d be an idiot not to come with us,” I snorted, picking at my nails.

  “Because a few days ago, I was just like you,” Scorpion answered, choosing to ignore my curt words “A human who didn’t have any idea about what incredible wonders lived in this world, or what terrifying threats were trying to take our freedom. There are forces at work here, both good and bad. I’m still trying to figure it all out myself, but I know that together we stand a better chance. We’re not alone. You are not alone.”

  The man had a way of inspiring people with words. I was ready to follow him anywhere. He had a voice as smooth as liquid gold, all warm and shiny, even a fool would trust him. Ethan James was trustworthy.

  “I…” Confusion swam in her big eyes, and I could almost feel her distress. Catina’s hands started to tremble, light radiating from her fingers until the center of her palm glowed brightly like a star. The air shimmered with her power, rattling the floorboards under our feet.

  Crap.

  The rims of her irises haloed white; those otherworldly eyes centered on Scorpion.

  “Catina, it’s okay,” he called her name gently. “We can take this one step at a time… We just want to help you.”

  My blood sparked, and something akin to fear clutched my chest. Not for me. For my human. Anxiety filled me to think what might happen to Scorpion if she blasted him with an orb of unstable magic. I shuddered. I wasn’t about to sit around and find out either.

  Hurdling over the back of the couch, I flashed to the witch’s side, and slammed my fist into her oval jaw. The sound of knuckles hitting flesh thudded in my ears, followed seconds later by a stinging in my fingers.

  Why the hell did it always hurt so much to punch someone?

  Wait… Did I just call him my human?

  As Catina’s face lashed to the right with the force of the hit, Zero’s back arched angeredly—hair sticking up, claws sharpening—and he yowled at me in outrage. The witch’s eyes rolled in the back of her head as her body crumbled to the ground, but I caught her under the arms before she hit her head, dragging her to the couch.

  Scorpion lunged forward, startled by my actions. “Did you have to knock her out?” he asked in a clipped voice, clearly upset.

  Frowning down at the unconscious girl, I sat next to her while a pang of regret spliced through me. I didn't plan to hurt her, but I didn’t see any other way to get her to come with us—and now I was lying to myself. Crap.

  I panicked. That was the cold harsh truth.

  When I saw her wonky powers sputter to life with Scorpion only a few feet away, my breathing stopped. Without control Catina was dangerous, and I couldn’t let her hurt him. I wouldn't take the chance.

  “I don’t suppose you had a better plan?” I retorted instead.

  She would have a bruise on the left side of her cheek, and I couldn’t help but think her skin was too pretty to be marked, even by someone like me.

  “Violence is never the answer.”

  I snorted. “Says the military man with a gun.”

  “Exactly. I would know.”

  “She’ll be fine. Nothing our healers can’t fix. If I wanted to kill her, I would have used my fangs. Besides, I think with what we’re going up against, violence is the only tactic.”

  His jaw strained, but he didn’t answer. Instead, he bent down to scoop Catina off the couch, and carefully held her to him. Scorpion’s hands tightened around her back and legs just as her head bobbed, her cheek resting on his shoulder.

  I shouldn’t have been jealous that he had another girl in his arms. It was irrational, just like the urge to protect him when I shouldn’t give a crap, but I’d been known to be just that.

  “Grab the cat,” Scorpion ordered in a voice that demanded to be obeyed.

  “Are you shitting me?” This had to be some sort of retaliation for not following his orders, but the steel look in his eyes said I had pushed him enough for one day, I would not like what happened if I tried again.

  Mumbling a string of curses under my breath, I glanced around the room, searching for the witch’s familiar. He was slunked under a table, glaring at me with glowing yellow eyes of hate. Crouching down onto my knees, I sneezed twice in a row.

  “There better be an unbroken mirror in this shithole. I’m not traipsing around in the woods with this cat.”

  SCORPION

  After checking the abandoned cabin for mirrors and coming up empty, we had no choice but to trek back through the forest to the communal bathrooms. The moon was high in the sky, but it provided little to no light due to the thick cover of the trees. Thunder cracked. The storm was closing in. Thank God I trained for situations like this.

  My hands shifted around Catina’s back and thighs, redistributing her weight as I stepped over a fallen trunk, the wind picking up. Behind me, my vixen vampiress snarled and hissed, receiving the same in return from her not-so-docile rescue.

  “Enough,” I scolded in a hushed whisper.

  Glancing at them over my shoulder, I saw Renna freeze, her hand reaching for the cat’s neck while his claws were barely an inch from her eye—both poised to attack the other. They looked at me like a deer in the headlights, caught red handed.

  It was true that I was all kinds of pissed off at Renna, if she just followed a simple instruction this mission would have gone differently, but it still took everything in me not to laugh.

  “One more peep from either of you, and I swear…” I let the warning linger in the air, giving them my sternest look, and their hand and paw lowered. A deep frown creased Renna’s forehead, her full lips almost pouted, doing swe
et things to me—fuck!

  The need to kiss her again was killing me.

  “He started it… Achoo!”

  Sighing, I shook my head and turned around again, letting my gaze fall to Catina’s face as we continued through the campsite. My jaw tightened at the sight of the purple and blue bruise that marred her soft cheek, spreading toward her jaw. I needed to talk to Renna about—

  The little hairs along the back of my neck stood on end, the feeling of being hunted slamming against my chest. I stopped in my tracks, only a few feet from the concrete restrooms, causing Renna to bump into me.

  Both her and the cat hissed.

  “Shhh,” I signaled, letting my vigilant eyes search the forest for threats once more. It was midnight, so everyone had retreated to their tents among the trees, and our path was clear, but we were not alone.

  “What is it?”

  “Get into the restroom, now!” I whispered, and rushed to the door, assuming Renna was right behind me. Wrong.

  I looked over my shoulder before going through the open door, to find her standing in the same spot, probably using her enhanced senses to corroborate my warning. She tensed, sensing the threat a second too late, and the ground under us shook when a massive demon jumped out of the trees from our right, landing smack between her and me.

  Zero screeched, hackles up, and jumped from Renna’s arms, running my way while the monster made of stone towered over her. Pure rocks formed his skin in a reddish hue, chest and arms much larger than the rest of his body, and a stumpy thick neck held its head. Two large white horns resembling a bull’s protruded from the sides, where his ears should have been, and glowing red eyes of pure fire centered on Renna.

  A roar erupted from his fanged mouth, and a clawed hand lifted toward her, fisting just as she cracked her whip, but her response was delayed due to her surprise. His fist connected with her chest, like a three-hundred-pound boulder, sending her flying back until her body crashed onto the ground.