by Michael Todd
He screamed loudly, and Stan let go. His eyes were shut. In fact, everyone’s eyes were shut. They were all experiencing living nightmares, and no one but him was coming out of it. Just then he heard a strange sound like tentacles slapping the pavement. He stepped back up to the top of the stairs and looked down the street as a mass of people took off, screaming and shouting and flailing their arms. That was when he saw it, and the terror really set in.
Slithering slowly around the corner, tentacles undulating and slapping the street hard, was Kabbus. His large and bulbous body rolled forward, a cloud of black vapor surging around him and flowing over everything in its path. Stan swallowed hard and shook his head, turning to see a police officer stumbling down the street.
He put out his hand and yelled, “Hey! Hey! Get some backup.”
The cop shook his head, grabbing his gun out of the holster. He pushed through a group of screaming people and jogged forward, picking up his pace as he grew closer to the Leviathan. He stopped about fifteen feet away and raised his arm, pointing his weapon at the beast. His hand shook wildly but he kept his feet planted, trying to keep the thing from going any farther. “Stop where you are!”
Tears streamed down the cop’s face as he faced the enemy; he was not sure what was real anymore. Kabbus came to a stop for a moment, turning his head toward the officer. As soon as he did, the man’s knees buckled and he crumpled into a fetal position, dropping his gun. He grabbed his knees and pulled them to his chest, beginning to rock back and forth. His tears flowed harder, and he mumbled inaudibly as he rocked. As Stan watched, the guy clenched his eyes shut hard and fell into the same state as everyone else on the block.
Kabbus snarled, his features hard to make out in the blob that was his face. His skin held him together but offered no definition, creating little shape besides the tentacles wildly waving from the sides of his body. The mist floated effortlessly around him, and it seemed to suck the life out of every living thing it struck.
Stan gripped the rail as the beast slowly slithered toward the cop and the dark fog covered his body. Stan moved right and left, trying to see the officer, wanting to know if he was okay. Kabbus only paused for a moment before slithering past the officer and down the street. As the black mist lifted from the man, Stan put his hand over his mouth and shook his head.
The officer was still curled in a ball. His skin looked cold and gray, and his body seemed to be frozen in place. His face was a mask of horror, a memory Stan knew he would never be able to shake. Kabbus had gotten what he wanted. He had fed on the officer’s fear.
10
Katie leaned against the tall metal rail, folding her arms over her chest. Pandora stood on the edge of the roof, looking out over the town of Sonora. The water tower was huge and tall, but the technician went straight to work. “So, you say someone thinks there is something wrong with the water?”
Katie nodded. “Yeah. Apparently, there is some sort of psychological event happening here in town, and we wanted to make sure it wasn’t being induced chemically. You know, something in the water making people sick? Causing hallucinations and such.”
The technician was bent over, taking samples and checking the contents. He stood up and leaned back, stretching his spine. He wore a white hard hat and a one-piece jumpsuit with Sonora Water and Sewer embroidered on the front, and his face was freshly shaven. He shook his head. “Now, that is some scary stuff. What kind of chemical do you reckon would cause something like that?”
Katie shrugged. “I have no idea, but that’s what we’re here to find out.”
The technician nodded, glancing at Pandora and turning back to the water samples. He held up the container and shook his head. “Like I said, I was out here three days ago and everything was up to par. You can see here that there ain’t even a drop of anything other than what’s supposed to be in the supply. Now, you could check each individual pipeline, but if these incidences are going on all over town, I would say it’s not the water.”
Katie pursed her lips. “All right. Thank you for taking the time to come out here for us.”
She went over to Pandora, who was still staring into space. “Not the water.”
Pandora took a deep breath through her nose and nodded. “That doesn’t surprise me in the least. Who would put something like that in a small-ass town’s water supply?”
Katie shrugged, then reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen. “I don’t know, but the general is calling. Maybe he’s got something for us.”
Katie pressed Answer. “General. Looks like it’s not the water supply here in Sonora. You find anything out on your end?”
He swallowed nervously. “No, but it doesn’t surprise me that it’s not biological. I got a call. There is something going on in San Antonio now. I couldn’t get a clear reading on what the hell it is, but they mentioned people going nuts and acting like that officer in Sonora did. We know it’s not in the air or water, so that leaves few other major things that would make that many people in one place suffer the same thing. It’s starting to get out of hand.”
Katie closed her eyes for a moment. “I have to agree with you. I’ve never seen anything like this before. The only thing we can do at this point is head over there and check it out. Hopefully, they will be able to provide us a few more clues than Sonora has. Everyone here is shut up in their homes, most too scared to say anything.”
The general breathed out heavily. “I have a bad feeling about this, Katie.”
Katie narrowed her eyes and looked out across the town. “I do too, General. Just in case we are looking at a Leviathan causing all these problems, I think it’s a good idea for you get hold of Timothy. See if he can get a reading on San Antonio with his equipment. We’ll check back in when we have more info.”
Timothy rubbed his stomach. “I think I’m starting to get hungry. I swear, winter comes and I can eat a bitch out of house and home.”
Sean grinned. “Could have something to do with us constantly watching cooking shows. Every time they show something, I want to run out, buy it, cook it, and rub it all over myself.”
Timothy sneered. “Well, that’s gross, but to each, his own.”
Sean chuckled, reaching over and picking up the phone as it rang. “This is Sean.”
“Sean, it’s Brushwood. Can you put Timothy on the phone?”
Sean nodded and handed the phone to Timothy, then turned and wheeled to the other side of the room to make sure all of the equipment was working well. Timothy glanced at the screen as he took the phone. “Hey, General. I just checked everything, and it’s been pretty quiet. Whatcha need?”
The general wasted no time. “Timothy, I was instructed by Katie to call you and have you check something out. Right now, she is on her way from Sonora, Texas to San Antonio, where there has been a rash of unexplained events. Biological agents have been mostly ruled out, and there isn’t really any further explanation for what is happening in those areas. I need you to take a look via satellite and let me know what you see. Demons? Attack? Something else? I am trying to protect Katie so she doesn’t walk into a shitstorm.”
Timothy pulled his chair up and rubbed his face, putting the general on speakerphone. He was not in the mindset just then for something like that, being hungry and all, but at that point, he had zero ability to give up. “I’m pulling both Sonora and San Antonio up on the screen. I will transfer the images to your computer so you can see them too. Let me know when you get the feed. Sonora is on the right, San Antonio the left.”
The general flipped on the screen to his computer and opened the invitation from Timothy. The screen came up. “What are you seeing?”
Timothy narrowed his eyes, initiating a few programs that might help him detect any activity. He could see masses of people, smoke, and general chaos in San Antonio, but nothing else. “I…uh… There isn’t any demonic energy there, General, but I have to say, there is definitely something going on in both places. Right now, more
in San Antonio than Sonora, which makes me think whatever this is, it’s moving.”
Brushwood groaned. “I had a feeling you were going to say that. All right.”
Timothy tapped the satellite feed to zoom in, but everything was blurry. “I’m going to keep monitoring this for you, okay? I’m not sure what is going on down there, but it’s a good thing that you already sent Katie. She should be able to get to the bottom of it.”
The general agreed. “Good thinking on keeping an eye out. I’ll let you know if I get any more information.”
Hanging up, Timothy narrowed his eyes and leaned closer to the screen. “What are you? Show your face.”
He shook his head and sat back down, setting several different warning alarms just in case anything cooperated. “Hey, Sean?”
Sean leaned his head back. “Yeah?”
Timothy finished the settings and turned toward him. “Can you scoot up and get me some snacks and an iced tea? I’m going to be here a while.”
Katie and Pandora stepped through the portal into an alternate dimension and Katie sighed, shrugging. “Guess it didn’t work this time. Strange, since I’ve been to San Antonio before and had the whole picture in my mind.”
She looked out at the pristine cityscape all around her. “Well, this is a beautiful… Hey, wait a minute.”
She whirled and stared at Pandora, who snickered, staring at the naked men working construction. “I took a note from your playbook and thought really, really hard about the place, and we are here.”
Katie rolled her eyes and opened another portal. “Good to know, but we’re working.”
Katie and Pandora stepped out onto the River Walk and the portal snapped shut behind them. There were shops and restaurants lining the place, and a shit-ton of people everywhere. At first, Katie didn’t notice anything strange, so she took a moment to brush sand from the front of her blouse. However, Pandora reached over and tapped her shoulder.
Katie furrowed her brow and then followed Pandora’s eyes. The place was in complete pandemonium. “What in the hell?”
Katie and Pandora moved quickly to the side as people came running through, screaming and yelling with their arms flying all over the place. Some pulled at their faces, others their hair, while others sat perfectly still on the ground, knees to chest, with terrified looks on their faces. It was the strangest thing Katie had ever seen. She didn’t even know where to start.
She took a deep breath, trying to wrap her head around it. “Oh, this isn’t right.”
Pandora shook her head as she looked at the people in amazement. “Nope. Something is really wrong here. Like really, really wrong. We have to do something, and we have to do it quickly.”
Katie shook herself out of the shock and reached up, slapping her hands together. Her eyes glowed bright blue, and armor appeared on her body. Her sword sat comfortably in the sheath on her back. Pandora nodded and called her angelic powers as well.
Stepping forward, Katie pulled energy from her chest and down her arms, her eyes closed tightly. The light glimmered at the edge of her fingertips, and she let out a hard breath as she pushed it outward. A wave of light washed over the people in front of her. One by one they began to calm, but not all the way. They still seemed to be possessed by some sort of spell or something.
Katie stood perplexed, gazing at the people. She glanced back at Pandora, who had the same look on her face. “That usually works really well.”
Pandora clicked her tongue. “We are up against some really strong shit, and I…”
Katie’s eyes shifted from Pandora’s face to behind her on the river. She tilted her head to the side and walked forward. “What the fuck is that?”
Pandora looked at her, eyebrows raised. “What?”
Katie pointed at the river. “That.”
At that moment black fog came rolling down the river, riding the waves just inches above the peaks. It moved with the flow of the water like silk fluttering in the wind. Pandora lifted both eyebrows. “Never mind the fog of death, look at that shit!”
Suddenly a loud horn blew, and Katie gasped. In front of her, floating down the river behind the fog, was a massive barge carrying Kabbus. He was huge and his tentacles were writhing around him, some dipping softly into the water as the craft pushed down the river. On top of the water, cold, gray bodies floated with him, all of their faces frozen in fear. Katie put her hand to her stomach, a sense of nausea taking her over. The scene was more horrific and terrifying than anything she had experienced up to that point, and she had literally rolled through fucking hell.
Pandora shook her head, taking a step back. “Holy fucking shit. I can’t believe it. I mean, I can, but I don’t want to.”
Katie looked at her with confusion. “What is that?”
Pandora sniffed, pulling her sword from its sheath. “That is Kabbus. He is one of the most terrifying beings ever to come to Earth. I thought for sure he was buried so far down in the caves he would never wake up.”
Katie pulled her sword out and held it in front of her. “I guess you were wrong.”
Pandora turned, grabbing Katie by the shoulders. “All right, don’t get too close. We need to stop him before he gets much farther.”
Katie nodded, her wings sprouting from her back. They moved to the edge of the walkway and took flight, going straight up and then diving down and over him. Katie wrinkled her nose as she flew, making a pass by him in order to gauge the kind of fight she was getting herself into. His gray eyes shifted up toward them, but he didn’t say a word.
Katie shook her head. “That’s new. I’m not used to them not talking. Well, except Baylahn, but we were inside of him.”
Pandora grimaced. “Kabbus has no reason to speak. His magic and abilities speak for him.”
Katie’s lip twitched. “Talk about a creature right out of the mind of Stephen-fucking-King.”
Pandora gripped her sword tightly. “Don’t say that. His movies rarely ever end on a good note, and I for one am not getting taken out by some huge blobby octopus wannabe.”
Katie gritted her teeth. “Neither am I. Let’s make one more pass to make sure there isn’t anything else hiding down there. Then we attack.”
They soared downward, heading straight for Kabbus but leveling out just above his reach. His tentacles writhed and slapped the water, but it didn’t look like they had much direction. Katie swerved as she flew over him, one of his tentacles missing her by mere inches. Water splashed on her face and she grimaced, spitting and wiping it off.
Katie flipped right-side up, her legs carefully positioned beneath her. “What’s the strategy?”
Pandora scoffed. “With this sonofabitch, there really is no strategy. Try to kill him in any way you can. But if you notice, he’s still alive, so whatever angels fought him before, they didn’t kill him off.”
Katie blinked. “That is not very reassuring, but then again, we aren’t just any set of angels, now are we?”
Pandora smirked. “Hell, no, we aren’t.”
Both Katie and Pandora flew straight at him, lowering their swords and lunging. Pandora went to the right, pulling her sword back and smiling as she attempted to slice the beast across the neck. Before she could maneuver, though, one of his tentacles came up, slapping her hard in the stomach and sending her flying back to crash into a building.
Katie snapped her head around, watching Pandora’s body smash the wall in as it hit. She pressed on, nerves fluttering in her chest. She raised the sword high over her head and attacked, swinging downward. As her arms moved, a tentacle writhed up from Kabbus’ side and slammed hard into her stomach as well. All the air left her lungs and she soared back, slamming hard into a different brick building. The wall collapsed, and she landed hard in a pile of dust and bricks.
Katie groaned and pushed several bricks off her stomach, then sat up, reaching over and grabbing her sword. Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth and she coughed, watching plumes of dust billow around her. Screams from
below caught her attention, and she pushed herself off the pile of bricks and stood. She sniffed, brushing debris and dirt off her shirt before sheathing her sword. Obviously, this beast was going to need a little more attention than they had just given it.
Katie stumbled out of the debris, looking for Pandora. “Pan? Where are you?”
The dust was thick and she waved her hand in the air, but there was no answer, and she couldn’t see through the haze. She took a step forward and kicked a small stone with her foot. She watched as it bounced along the ground, clinking through the rubble before flying over the edge. Suddenly, her building began to shake. She put her arms out for balance and looked around as the building next to her went tumbling down. The screams of the people beneath it rang out but quickly stopped.
Katie looked across the river as another building began to crumble. Standing right beneath it, huddling together in fear, were a woman and man holding their two kids. Katie waved her arms wildly. “Watch out!”
She raced forward and dove off the edge of the building, heading straight for the people. Before she could reach the little girl’s hand, her wings pulled her back, the building collapsing on top of the family right in front of her. She screamed, covering her mouth. “No!”
The sound of another building rattling forced her to look to her left. On the top of the building, standing on the balcony, was a little old man. He was trying to find a way out, but he couldn’t. She gritted her teeth and flew up to him as fast as she could. As she grabbed the man’s hand, the building collapsed and he hung from her grip, clinging for his life. “Hold on!”
One hand slipped, and she shook her head. “Hold on!”
He looked up at her with sad eyes as his other hand slipped and he fell, disappearing into the dust and debris below. She shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. “Why can’t I save them? Why can’t I save them?”