by J. C. Diem
Once Lexi and Reece came to him, he would have control over another type of army. One that would never need to eat or rest. He sent a mental nod of thanks to the Viltarans for creating the first zombies so long ago. They would make his victory over this planet and then his allies far easier than he’d thought. He would become more powerful than any of his counterparts in the other dimensions.
With thoughts of grandeur swirling through his mind, he knew he wouldn’t have to relinquish Asgard to the Grimgorg after all. He would be able to conquer all worlds on his own. It was a pity he couldn’t also travel to other dimensions and reign supreme there as well. Alas, not even he could travel to a reality where another version of himself already existed. To his knowledge, no being had that sort of power.
~~~
Chapter Twenty-One
~~~ Lexi’s World ~~~
Snapping awake, Nat found herself in an unfamiliar bedroom. Spotting her swords and sheaths propped up against a corner, everything flooded back to her. She scowled when she remembered she no longer had the power to stay awake during the day. Violet was probably sitting on the couch, sniggering in superiority right now. She could already picture the looks of pity the others would give her. On her world, she was the mightiest warrior in existence. Here, she was just a normal vampire with the ability to teleport and read minds.
Forcing out a sigh, she stepped into the bathroom to check her hair. It was fine, of course. Becoming an unanimated corpse while the sun was up meant she didn’t roll around in her sleep. Feeling hunger pangs twist her stomach, she knew she would have to feed soon.
Grabbing her swords, she stepped out into a long hallway with doors branching off on both sides. She headed right and ended up in the coms room. Looking down into the living room through the wall of windows, she saw Sabine sitting alone on one of the couches. The lamia looked worried and held her cell phone in her hand. Her vivid green eyes flashed to Nat when she teleported herself downstairs. “Where is everyone?” Nat asked.
“They went to their headquarters to speak to their boss and to raise some zombies,” Sabine replied. Her brow furrowed and she pointed at her phone. “I have a feeling something bad has happened. I called Flynn, but he didn’t answer.”
That was all Nat needed to hear. Sending out her senses, she tried to find her friends and allies. She managed to zero in on them only to find chaos whirling through their minds. The shifters had all taken on their wereforms and something was very wrong with them. Nat took hold of Sabine and teleported them both to the PIA headquarters and into pandemonium.
The five shapeshifters were surrounded by forty zombies and a lone Rottweiler. The undead were attempting to stop the werebeasts from leaving. Claws and fangs were slicing them to pieces, but their flesh just kept regenerating. Zeus made no attempt to bite the shifters. He merely did his best to keep them away from the door.
Riveted by the sight of two black werewolves with longer than usual fangs and claws, Nat realized they were Lexi and Reece. Kala and Philip were tawny cougars. Flynn was something entirely different. She’d hoped she would get to see him in his wereconstrictor form and she wasn’t disappointed. Looming over everyone, his hood flared open and his head bobbed from side to side in a mesmerizing pattern. His scales were dark green on his head and back and lightened to cream on his belly. She caught glimpses of an intricate pattern on the back of his head. His arms and chest were humanoid and muscular. With a flick of his long, sinuous tail, he sent two zombies flying across the room. More undead filled the gap before he could slither to the door.
Seeing Natalie and Sabine had arrived, Mark sent the vampire a frantic look. His gun was in his hand, but he was reluctant to use it. Violet hadn’t bothered to call on her axe. She wasn’t about to cut any of her allies down. She, Ava and Elijah stood in front of the door. The warlock held his hands out and a pale-yellow shield of magic surrounded them. It was more to keep the shifters away from the door than for their protection. Cromby had wisely retreated behind his desk and he was staying out of the way. With an anguished look at Flynn, Sabine moved to help guard the door.
Lexi’s zombies were doing their best to keep the shifters here, but they wouldn’t be able to win this fight. The werebeasts had left all reason behind and they were determined to escape. There was only one thing that might work and Nat had to act fast.
Glancing inside Lexi’s mind again, she saw a barrier had been erected to close off her other personalities. Her werewolf was in charge and she was berserk with rage. Her creator had called her to him and these soulless creatures were keeping her from going to Loki. The same thoughts were running through Reece’s mind. Neither of them were capable of listening to her.
Knowing this would require brute strength rather than finesse, Nat slammed into the barrier in Lexi’s head. It flexed and held, but she didn’t give up. Using all of her innate stubbornness, she drilled into the barrier until it cracked. She kept the pressure up until it exploded. Since they were linked together, it also spread to Reece and the rest of her small pack, freeing their minds from enslavement.
The ferocious snarls, growls and hissing cut off abruptly as the shifters regained their senses. Nat expunged Loki’s command for them to go to him from their minds, but she couldn’t undo the fact that he’d created them. If he wormed his way into their heads again, he would take control of them once more.
Distressed that she’d come so close to being Loki’s captive, Lexi shifted back into her human form. Cortez handed her his jacket so she could cover her nakedness. He retrieved her Berretta and gave it back to her as well. “Thanks,” she said in a shaky voice. Whining softly, Zeus trotted over and leaned against her legs. She stroked his silky ears with a trembling hand.
Reece shifted back as well and picked up his tattered shirt. Nat eyed him in appreciation as he tied it around his waist in a makeshift loincloth. Violet was more discreet in staring at Reece’s bulging muscles, but only slightly.
At Lexi’s and Reece’s mental command, the other shifters changed back into their human forms as well. Cromby waited until they were all wearing some form of clothing and had picked up their weapons before he spoke. “What the hell just happened?” he demanded.
Since she’d been the one to save the day, Nat answered him. “Loki took control of Lexi through her zombie. He used the link she and Reece have with the shifters to turn them into their animal forms. He sent out a command for them to go to him. The dead guys stopped them from taking off to wherever he is.” She’d missed the beginning of his invasion while she’d been dead to the world and didn’t have all the information yet.
“Who are you?” one of the male Board members asked.
Turning to the monitors that showed eight frightened humans, Nat knew who they were. She’d gleaned the information from Mark before she’d promised not to read their minds. “I’m Natalie Pierce.”
“The vampire from another reality,” a female Board member murmured almost to herself.
“Were you able to break Loki’s connection to the other shifters?” Mark queried, getting them back to the matter at hand.
She shook her head. “I can only break them free if I’m close to them from the looks of it.”
Cromby sucked in a breath. “You mean Loki will have five thousand shifters to add to his army? They’ll go on a rampage and we’ll have to destroy them all.” His dismay at that prospect was obvious.
“He couldn’t break the command for them not to hunt humans,” Nat told him before he could fall into despair. “He needs Lexi and Reece to do that.” She turned on the alphas to see them standing arm in arm like frightened children. “I saw Loki’s plan and you two need to stay away from him. If he gets control of Lexi, he’ll force her to raise millions of zombies. Nothing will be able to stop him from spreading across this version of the universe and taking over every inhabited planet.”
“We won’t let that happen,” Mark said grimly.
“You mean we won’t let that happen,” Violet corre
cted him, pointing at herself and Natalie. It was clear this was why she and Nat were here. They were going to have to take down this version of the God of Mischief. Lexi would have to take a backseat this time.
~~~
Chapter Twenty-Two
~~~ Lexi’s World ~~~
Cromby sank into his chair behind his desk and glanced at the rest of the Board members. They were still in shock and they would need to discuss what had just happened. Mark took the hint and herded everyone towards the door.
White faced and shaking, Elijah walked beside Violet. She mustered up a smile, but it was pitiful. Just as Fate had warned them, this version of Loki was more dangerous than the last one they’d faced. By taking control of the shifters, he’d drastically reduced their chances of taking him down easily.
As soon as they left the Boardroom, Mark called every alpha he knew. None of them answered their phones. He shook his head and Lexi’s hopeful expression fell. “This is all my fault,” she said. Reece pulled her in close and hugged her.
Her father beat him to a reply. “None of this is your fault, sweetheart,” Philip said. “Loki created our kind long before you were born. Fate must have known he would eventually return. That’s why she sent Natalie and Violet here to help us.”
All eyes turned to the vampire and the angel. Both girls nodded, accepting the burden that only they could shoulder. Once they’d put down this invasion, they would then have to move on to the next world. Unfortunately, they had no idea how they were going to pull it off this time, let alone the next.
“We need to get Kendricks and his men outfitted,” Mark said. Ava took the lead and they trooped along the hallway and around the corner. A set of stairs led up to the next floor and also down to the basement. They headed downwards and ended up in a gigantic armory.
Still rattled that Loki had taken control of her so easily, Lexi was quieter than usual. She’d grown complacent after putting down the last threat to her world. She’d believed no one would ever have power over her again. But that wasn’t the case at all. If it hadn’t been for Nat’s intervention, she would have willingly aided Loki in his quest for universal domination.
Catching that despairing thought, Nat crossed to her with Violet tagging along. “Now you know how I felt when I was fighting Loki on my world,” Nat said wryly. “I went from being all-powerful, to having only some of my abilities when we entered the Grimgorg dome. I had to rely on you two to save my butt, and my world.”
“At least your version of Loki couldn’t take control of you,” Lexi replied. Her bitter tone reflected her resentment at her circumstances, but she didn’t blame Nat for this. She was just glad the vampire had been able to snap her and her friends out of their momentary bondage.
“I can’t wait to see what we’ll be facing on my world,” Violet said morosely. “I wonder what tricks my version of Loki will have up his sleeves?”
“Let’s focus on saving Lexi’s world first before we start worrying about what horrible things will happen to yours, V,” Nat said with a grin. Her eyes were faintly glowing red, signaling her desire to do battle. “Do you think I’ll be able to have a snack before we leave?” she asked, changing the subject abruptly.
Overhearing her, Mark intervened before anyone could offer her their blood. “I think it would be best if you fed from a normal human.”
Nat’s grin showed a hint of fang. “I had the same thought. God only knows what would happen if I drank from one of you guys.” A dumbstruck look came over after she spoke.
“What’s wrong?” Lexi asked in dread.
“I just said God,” Nat said in amazement, then made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a nervous giggle.
“So?” Violet said in confusion.
“Vampires can’t say God, Jesus or Christ on my world,” Nat replied. “It’s been years since I’ve been able to say any of those names without stuttering.”
Mark shook his head at the vagaries of their different dimensions. What applied on one world didn’t apply on others. He was glad this was the case, or Natalie would have been an uncaring psychopath. The vampires on this world used to kill humans when they fed. Lexi’s intervention was the only thing that had stopped them from slaughtering their meals. Even with her tightly controlling their urges, they cared about nothing except their own pleasure.
Seeing a lightbulb practically flash above Mark’s head, Lexi knew something had just occurred to him. “What is it?” she asked.
“We might be able to call on another type of army, but I’m not sure how effective they’ll be against Frost Giants.”
“What army?” Kala asked. Now wearing ill-fitting camouflage clothes that were meant for a male, she was still annoyed that her mind had been taken over. She’d vowed to never let that happen to her again, but she’d been helpless to stop Loki from gaining control of her thoughts and actions.
“Vampires,” Philip said as he ambled over, knowing his old friend well. He’d already come to this conclusion when he’d first learned Loki might be able to control shifters. Apart from their kind, vampires were the most dangerous supernatural creatures on this world.
Mark nodded in agreement. “There are roughly the same number of vampires as there are shifters. Once Natalie teleports them to Vegas, they’ll have the element of surprise. With their strength and speed, hopefully they’ll be able to assist Natalie and Violet to break through the Grimgorg and Frost Giants to reach Loki.”
“Nat won’t be able to teleport anyone into the dome,” Lexi reminded him. “The shamans’ magic suppresses some of her abilities. I’ll have to get my zombies to transport them into the city.”
Mark was crestfallen at the reminder. “I forgot about her inability to teleport when she’s inside the dome. I was hoping we could come at them from two sides simultaneously. The shifters will smell them as soon as they arrive and we’ll lose any advantage of surprise. A pincer attack from two different types of armies would have been ideal.”
The dome should be able to keep the shifters out, but he knew Loki would find a way to let them into Vegas. He was worried that his plan wasn’t going to go as well as he’d hoped. It would have been ideal to teleport the vampires in and for the zombies to appear from beneath the ground at the same instant. They could have unleashed a devastating attack on their foes. It could still work, but it would take some tweaking.
“Which city did they target?” Nat asked.
“Las Vegas,” Violet replied. She’d never been there herself. Gambling wasn’t something she was interested in.
“Why am I not surprised?” Nat said with a wide smirk. “It looks like Fate is still guiding us.”
“Why do you say that?” Lexi queried.
“I just happen to know a way into Vegas,” Nat replied smugly. “It won’t be pleasant, but at least we’ll be able to infiltrate the city without being detected. We can pop up all over the place and attack wherever Mark wants us to.”
“You’re thinking of going in through the sewers?” Mark asked. The sewer system would have to extend far past the city for her to be able to circumvent the dome.
“You guessed it,” Nat confirmed. She grimaced slightly at the thought of having to traipse through the sewers again. No matter what battles she faced, she always ended up wading through human waste at some stage.
“How are we going to gather all five thousand vampires together?” Violet asked. She assumed they would be spread out all over the country. It could take a while to call them all here.
“Reece and I can link to their minds, just like we can with the shifters,” Lexi told her.
Violet blinked at that. “Are you alpha vampires as well as alpha werewolves?” She was joking, but her amusement faded when the pair nodded.
“We’re both able to control vampires,” Lexi confirmed. “I’ve called on them to help us before. It shouldn’t be a problem to get them to assist us again.” Zeus picked up on that thought and bared his teeth slightly. He wasn’t happy at the idea of usin
g the unholy beings to fight their battles.
“You’re sure you can keep them under control?” Nat asked dubiously. The last thing she wanted to see was her own kind going on a rampage.
“We’re sure,” Reece said firmly. He and Lexi were bonded so closely that he sensed her momentary doubt.
Taking a deep breath, Lexi nodded. “I’ll order the vamps to avoid Loki. If he gets a hold of one of them, he might be able to link himself to me again like he did with Kendricks.”
“So, you can link yourselves to all vampires,” Nat said, bringing them back to Violet’s original question. “Can you send out a mental call like Loki did to the shifters and tell them to come here?”
“Theoretically, I could,” Lexi said. “But there’s a much faster way I can bring them to me.” Her team had gathered around by now and shared knowing looks.
“How?” Violet asked.
“I’m going to raise a lot more zombies and send them out to retrieve them.”
Nat shook her head in admiration. The girl had unbelievable skills. Maybe this fight wouldn’t be quite as hopeless as she’d feared after all.
~~~
Chapter Twenty-Three
~~~ Alpha World ~~~
Reaching the heart of Dallas, Loki chose an expensive looking apartment building to make his temporary quarters. With Bianca beside him, he stepped into an elegant foyer with cream and green accents. This time, it was devoid of a cringing doorman.
Using the elevator to travel up to the penthouse, they crossed to the ornately carved door. Loki could sense someone inside. Instead of bursting through the door, he put Bianca’s suitcase down and knocked. It was opened a few moments later by a man in his late fifties. His large belly strained against his sheer black silk robe. “Good lord, man,” Loki said with a wince of distaste at the unsightly image. “Have you no dignity?”