by WEST
Cole turned toward him with growing unease. “H-humans? What do you mean, sir?”
Levi shrugged. “Perhaps a demonstration is necessary to convince him,” he said, looking at the chief. He turned back to Cole and a kind of shimmer passed over his body, the air itself seeming to be full of tiny ripples. He simply—changed into someone else. The tall, handsome man in front of him disappeared, and in his place was a creature out of a dream. Or a nightmare.
He was big—that was Cole’s first impression—with muscles everywhere and a gleaming expanse of golden brown skin. His skin glowed with some kind of inner radiance, and his face was inhumanly beautiful, chiseled and perfectly formed. His hair was midnight black and hung down to his shoulders. His softly glowing eyes were slanted up at the corners and the pupils were long and thin. Trailing down his neck and shoulder and farther down his arm to end at his wrist were gleaming, colorful scales, like the scales of a snake, not a tattoo, as Cole had first thought. The scales lay in little patches of iridescent green and purple and azure blue.
The creature watched Cole carefully to judge his reactions and when he noticed his gaze falling on the scales, he glanced up directly into Cole’s eyes and smiled, revealing gloriously white teeth, the two incisors long and pointed like a vampire’s fangs. Most shocking of all, however, were the two tiny black horns growing from his forehead on either side of his head, and the small, leathery black wings that stretched out behind him.
Cole cried out and stumbled backwards, falling over his chair in his haste to get up and away from the creature in front of him. For the first and only time in his life, he felt like he might faint and saw the floor coming up rapidly to meet him as he fell into darkness.
****
He could only have been out for a few seconds at most, but when he came to, he saw Chief Thompson’s worried face hovering over his, only a few inches away. “Can I get you some water? Do you need to lie down?”
Cole looked around him wildly before locating the devil-creature now sitting back in the same chair Cole had recently vacated, projecting the same attitude of boredom as before. The horns and the wings were gone, and he had taken back his original shape. The shimmering glow had vanished, and he was staring straight ahead. Cole scooted backward, almost climbing onto Thompson’s lap, who patted his shoulder reassuringly, trying to calm him. “It’s okay, Agent Gregory. I reacted much the same way myself the first time I saw a half-demon.”
“A what? A half-demon?”
“Oh, please,” the creature in the chair said. “Don’t coddle him. He’s going to have to get used to worse than me if he’s to become a member of WRAITH. Believe me, there are much more frightening creatures in the Realm. Trolls, for example, can be nasty little creatures. Not to mention the goblins…”
Thompson gave him a dirty look and peeled Cole’s arms from around his waist. “It wasn’t necessary to do that. I think you enjoyed frightening him.”
A little smile played around the half-demon’s lips and he lifted one shoulder. “Perhaps. But only a little.” He looked down at Cole and gave him another wicked smile. “Sorry.”
“What-what do you mean by demon?”
The devil creature lifted one shoulder. “Nothing religious, as you no doubt are conjuring up in your mind. The demons are a race indigenous to the Vargr Realm. The king, for example, is a very highly evolved demon. There are lower level demons like ogres and imps and gnomes. They’ve interacted with humans over the centuries and given us all a bad name.”
Cole got back on his feet unsteadily, embarrassed that he was still clinging to the chief’s arm, but seemingly unable to let go. “I-I don’t understand, sir. What-what’s happening?”
“I’m trying to explain to you, Agent Gregory. The prin…”
“Commander Levi,” the demon said, breaking in and speaking directly to Cole. He smiled at Chief Thompson. “Humans are never able to pronounce my full name properly. Simply call me Levi.”
“Uh...Commander Levi,” Thompson continued with an odd glance, “is the head of the law enforcement arm of the WPDA. It’s called WRAITH, or Witness Relocation and Inter-dimensional Tactical Hunters. It’s a team of both Vargr and humans who cooperate to close the Blood Gates in order to keep the Vargr from coming through. Before King Egill came to the throne, the gates could be opened with any blood sacrifice. The high king changed all that.”
Levi nodded. “Now the gates can only be opened by the aid of a powerful wizard. We know most of the ones capable of such magic, and keep close tabs on them, but on occasion, gates are opened, despite our best efforts. It’s our job at WRAITH to close those portals and keep them closed. Also to capture the ones who manage to slip though and deal with human witnesses to the Vargr.”
“H-human witnesses?”
“Yes,” Commander Levi replied. “The few who refuse to be convinced that what they think they saw wasn’t real. They don’t delude themselves like other humans.” He smiled. “Of course, those humans are exceedingly rare, but they do exist. And they have to be neutralized.”
Cole felt a cold chill down his spine. “Neutralized? You mean murdered?”
“No, Agent Gregory,” Levi replied, sounding to Cole more than a little condescending. “The Vargr high king and his council don’t murder your citizens. Our wizards try to wipe their memories—if that doesn’t work for some reason, they have to be relocated. Do you remember hearing about Amelia Earhart? The one with the plane?”
“Amelia Earhart? Of course. She-she…”
“Her little plane flew into a blood gate used at the time by one of the Faery tribes. This was, of course, in the days before King Egill came to power and effectively closed most of the gates. She landed there among the Carraigs and had to be relocated.”
“The Carraigs?”
“Tiny, flying faeries like the one in the book Peter Pan. Like Tinkerbell? There are several tribes of faeries, some more evolved than others. Most faeries don’t fly, though that particular tribe does.”
“Amelia Earhart was relocated? Where?”
Thompson looked uncomfortable, but Levi answered readily enough. “To the Vargr Realm, of course. She was quite happy after a few years, I believe. Eventually mated to a demon named Felipe, I believe.” He smiled over at Cole again. “But don’t worry about it too much. As Thompson said, it really is exceedingly rare.”
“But why?” Cole asked, hating the way his voice sounded high pitched and whiny. “Why keep this such a secret? The public have the right to know.”
“The right to know?” Commander Levi shook his head disdainfully. “Can you imagine the wide-scale panic if humans realized that their worst nightmares were all too real? That vampires and werewolves, not to mention goblins and ghosts and Faeries and demons—all the frightening immortal creatures in their myths and legends actually did exist?” He shook his head. “Your world is far from ready for that.”
“He’s right, Cole,” Thompson said. “The public can’t be aware of all this, at least not yet. That’s why the WPDA and WRAITH exist. To prevent that from happening.” He sat back down at his desk and regarded Cole carefully, as if ready to jump back up at the first sign of more hysteria.
“The Vargr high king and his council contacted us when they did because of the presidential assassination. It was caused by a minor demon who had traveled through one of the Blood Gates.”
“But why would he kill the president?”
Levi shrugged. “To cause chaos and mischief. Lower level demons don’t always have to have a good reason. We never actually got to question him ourselves before he was dispatched by one of his own species. One of them opened a gate and he slipped through before they could close it. They were hoping the High King wouldn’t find out about it before they could cover it all up.”
“And the Vargr wouldn’t have wanted the assassination to happen?”
Levi looked at him as if he’d said something very foolish. “Killing your world leaders dr
aws unwanted attention to our world. Too many unanswered questions. I understand that rumors about the president’s killer still abound.”
“Yes, about Lee Harvey Oswald. You mean he was…”
“Vargr, yes. A gnome, a lower level demonic creature, glamoured to look human.”
Thompson came over to perch on the side of the desk in front of Cole. “Before King Egill, too many of these crazy things were taking place in our world—too many Vargr were opening up Blood Gates to this realm. Some of the ones who came through were relatively harmless, but others were actually preying on human beings.”
“Preying on us? How exactly?”
“By drinking human blood and eating your flesh, for one thing,” Levi said grimly. “It’s considered a delicacy in some domains of the Realm.” He looked Cole up and down before he smiled. “You look rather tasty, as a matter of fact.”
Chief Thompson leaned down and put a hand on Cole’s shoulder, giving the commander a dirty look. “He’s teasing you, Agent Gregory. But you should know that many of the so-called serial killers who drank human blood or ate human flesh over the centuries were actually Vargr. Elizabeth Báthory, Albert Fish, Jack the Ripper, Jeffrey Dahmer.”
“All…Vargr?”
“Yes, of course,” Agent Levi replied before Thompson could speak. “We have, naturally, become more civilized over time, but we have our criminals, just like you do. It’s not all about the taking of blood, of course. Some come for other reasons. Humans are somewhat irresistible to the Immortals. Take Faeries, for example.” His eyes seemed to glow again as he gazed at Cole. “Faeries have long been known to kidnap human babies and leave changelings in their place that soon wither and die. Have you heard of this?”
Cole shook his head. “No, of course not. Why?”
“Just wondering. Demons like humans too, for different reasons. Incubi and succubi are not myths. Surely you’ve heard of demon lovers?” He glanced at Cole again and Cole felt his cheeks grow warm. He knew Levi was teasing him for some reason—probably—but he couldn’t stop reacting.
“Some of them opened Blood Gates to come to this realm to smuggle back in valuable drugs available only in the mortal realm. The brains of small human children can be harvested and boiled down to a powerful elixir that the Dark Elves can’t resist. Also the enamel from the teeth of children can be scraped off and crushed into a powder. This powder is a powerful and potent drug to the Immortals, so there are those who come after it.”
“You mean…”
Levi smiled. “You call them ‘Tooth Faeries’ I believe. They’re actually sylphids.” He shrugged, a look of distaste on his pale features. “Minor elementals. They’re little better than drug pushers.”
“Oh my God…”
“Most of the travel through the Blood Gates was for illegal purposes and still is to some extent. When criminals manage to find a wizard who can open one for them, we come after them, but we’re not always in time. Sometimes they do little harm in your realm, but at other times, they can be what you term—monsters and serial killers. They’ve even been known to go on shooting sprees in schools and theaters. Places where a large group of humans congregate.”
Thompson nodded. “Hence the need for a concerted effort by both humans and Vargr to locate all the Blood Gates as soon as one opens and see to it that they’re properly closed, then go after the wizard who opened it. The consequences are severe, but Commander Levi tells me there are still a few who risk it. After Kennedy was assassinated by Vargr, King Egill contacted all the world governments and made his proposal. Help the Vargr find and close the gates, along with anything that might have come through, and in return, they’ll do their part to keep the Immortals from our world.”
“As easy as that?”
“Well,” Thompson said. “King Egill also asked for an occasional tribute from the mortal realm.”
“What kind of tribute?”
“Humans to act as consorts for him and his sons.” Levi said. “The high king is a high level demon, after all. He enjoys human lovers.” Another glance at Cole. “He hasn’t asked for any in a few years, but now that his oldest son is coming of age, he wants a suitable consort for him. The WPDA is readying for the trip over to the Realm now to discuss it.”
“But that’s-that’s barbaric.”
Levi frowned at him. “It’s an honor to be the consort of the high king and his Blood Princes.”
“Yes, Agent Gregory,” the chief said impatiently. “This will go a lot faster if you stop questioning everything we tell you.”
Cole felt the hot blood rush to his cheeks at the reprimand. After all, it was terribly unfair. They were telling him these incredible things and they didn’t think he should question them?
He flushed and tried again. “How are these Blood Gates opened?”
“With a magical spell and a blood sacrifice.”
“Magic…” Cole repeated dazedly. “Of course.”
“It’s imperative to keep an open mind, Agent Gregory. You’ve seen for yourself that what we’re telling you is true. The Vargr Realm does exist and they’re not like us. The laws of nature as we know them don’t exist in the Vargr Realm. Magical spells don’t work in our world—the laws of physics prevent that. That’s why the gates have to be opened in the Vargr Realm, where magic is more commonplace. If you can’t accept all this—if you can’t wrap your mind around it—then you’ll be dismissed. And neutralized so you won’t remember any of this conversation.” Thompson regarded him carefully, sizing him up.
“Personally, I thought you were too young and inexperienced to even consider,” he continued, “but there are reasons the Director of the WPDA wanted you, and I’m not privy to those reasons. If you agree to do this, you’ll be sent to Mexico City to the WPDA HQ immediately for training. What I need from you now is a yes or a no.”
Cole looked back and forth between the two incredulously. “Don’t I even get some time to think about this, sir?”
Thompson shook his head. “No, Agent Gregory. I’m afraid not. You can’t leave this room until you agree or until you’ve been neutralized. So which is it, son? Are you in or not?”
Cole looked back at him as if he were in some kind of dream. Maybe he was still at his desk, asleep and drooling on the desktop. In a few minutes, someone would wake him up and tease him good naturedly about what he’d done the night before to be so tired. And the answer would have been—nothing at all. Since he’d come to Washington, his life had been, up till this very moment, mundane and boring. Because law enforcement was notoriously homophobic, he’d tried hard to keep a low profile. He hadn’t even been on a date since he arrived in DC.
He thought he had his whole life planned out and it had stretched out before him in a bland and even line, never varying off course, never even taking an interesting detour. Was that really the life he wanted for himself? Or should he throw out everything he thought he knew about the world—hell about life—and embrace this crazy thing?
“I’m in, sir,” he said and out of the corner of his eye he saw Levi turn his head to try and hide his self-satisfied smile.
****
“Stop your wool-gathering, Agent Gregory, and help me carry these things to the car.”
Cole gave a start as he came back to the present and hurried to pick up the box Captain Vizier had indicated. “How far exactly is this Blood Gate, sir?”
“Not far. Shouldn’t take long to get there at this time of day. It’s in the center of town, actually, near the site of the old Aztec city, Tenochtitlan. Near the ruins of Templo Mayor, right off the city square. ”
Cole swallowed hard. “The…uh…Aztecs were…”
“Vargr, yes. So were the Mayans. The priests, at least.” He glanced over at him distractedly. Cole nodded and hoped he didn’t look as sick and nauseated as he felt. He’d never been big on history but he remembered reading of the many human sacrifices of the Aztecs, all in the name of religion, supposedly.
Vargr priests—what else could he expect from creatures who had a demon as their high king?
The trip out to the site, near the famous Zócalo didn’t take long, just as Vizier had predicted. Cole rode through the busy streets of Mexico City in a car with three other lower-ranking agents while Vizier and his retinue led the way in their limo. The team about to pass through the portal consisted of Captain Vizier, two other high-ranking officials of the WPDA, a couple of secretaries, three WRAITH agents and Cole, himself. The gate was well-guarded and one of the few official gates left open at all times to effect transfers from the mortal realm to the Vargr.
The modern Zócalo in Mexico City was massive, one of the largest city squares in the world. Surrounded by beautiful Spanish colonial buildings, it was bordered by a large Cathedral to the north, the National Palace to the east, and various other federal buildings all around, with the Templo Mayor, the only remnant of the original Aztec site to the northeast, just outside of view. When Cole got out of the car to follow the others, he thought they might head for that site, but one of the agents beside him shook his head.
“Too public. We’re going to the cathedral. The Blood Gate is locked away in the lower levels.”
Cole nodded and followed the others to the huge, impressive Metropolitan Cathedral but they didn’t go inside the front doors. Instead, Vizier led the team around the building to a side entrance, with steps leading down to the basement level. They passed through two military checkpoints, flashing their badges at the guards, before coming to a nondescript door set into the wall at the end of the hallway. A guard opened the door for them and there in the middle of the floor was the portal, looking like an ordinary circle of red paint.
There was nothing ordinary about what happened next, however. Without a moment’s hesitation, Vizier and two of the other officials with him stepped into the circle. For the second time in his life, Cole saw the shimmering and rippling of the air, the figures blurred and then they were gone. Simply vanished into thin air. The others followed until it was Cole’s turn. He’d taken an uneasy step backward, but one of the WRAITH agents on his left took his arm and pulled him into the circle. He saw the air shimmer again and then everything went black.