by Bryan Tann
“Just get off of vacation, Agent?” Ruckus inquired.
“I did actually! Thank you for asking! I spent some time in Key West and was brought in to help out with an unfortunate incident in Oregon at the Fuji-O’Hara Industries main science branch.”
“That must piss you off, being dragged out of vacation for some fubar fuck up by egg heads huh?” Ruckus chuckled sipping his coffee cup gesturing toward the pot.
“None for me, thank you,” Elias replied. “Yes, I must say it was quite…irritating to say the least. However when one has a job to do, one must get it done!”
“I suppose,” Ruckus replied.
“Yes. Well Sergeant Brown do you remember seeing this woman, or this man?” Elias asked holding up pictures of both Karen Denton and John Baker for the older man to see.
“The guy…he came in two days ago. He bought a bike. You know how everyone wants the old classics from the twentieth. I figured he was just a car nut or something,” he replied.
“Yes it is quite popular these days isn’t it?” He chuckled lightly. “What did he get?”
“It could be an old Road Master. I can’t be for sure. I gave the guy his space, he didn’t seem to want to be bothered. You know what I mean?”
“And the girl?” Elias asked.
“She came in yesterday, found out that he had left, stayed for a few hours because she was beat, made some calls, and then she left. Said something about getting a bus or something. I don’t know,” Ruckus replied moving his chair to the coffee pot and filled the cup again putting sugar into the blackness and sipped it down.
“She gave no indication on where she was going?” Elias asked.
“No not a word. She made a few calls on a phone she had with her, like I said, and that was that,” he replied.
“Why did you let her stay for as long as you did?” Elias Colt asked curiously.
“Umm because I thought if I worked the sweet talk I could get some tail. Why do you think? It gets lonely out here.” Ruckus chuckled.
“She is quite, lovely, isn’t she?” Colt asked with a grin.
“You’re damn right. Girl has curves in all the right places and I’ve always had a weakness for blondes,” Ruckus replied.
“Yes. Well what about the man?” Colt inquired.
“Something about going to the desert I think,” Ruckus replied. You’re asking me to think back a ways.”
“I’m sorry to take up your time, Sarge, just a few more questions, if you don’t mind?” Colt requested.
“Just make it as quick as possible, son. I have work to do,” Ruckus said seriously.
“How long did the man stay here?” Colt asked.
“Probably a few hours. The bike needed some work, so he took care of it and then was on his way,” Ruckus replied.
“Thank you so much, Sarge. I appreciate all of your time,” Elias Colt replied standing up from his chair and extending his hand to Ruckus, who shook it firmly.
“No problem. You need anything else let me know,” Ruckus replied.
“Of course. We won’t try to bother you very much and we appreciate your service to this country.”
Elias Colt turned and exited the office. Ruckus followed, looking out to where the man had parked his unmarked black government sedan outside. When he climbed in and drove off, Ruckus pulled out his burner cell phone. When he got the voicemail, he shook his head.
“Alright, kid. They just sent some suit here looking for the two of you. Be careful.” Ruckus hit the end button on the phone and groaned lightly. “Wonder what fucking freak show that shit bag came out of.”
As day subsided to night, a black sedan pulled up to Ruckus’ Junkyard and Elias Colt stepped out with a cheery smile on his face.
“Well, well, well look at all of these gorgeous shadows out here tonight. Now which one of you saw where my query went?” he asked politely. He licked his finger and held it outward and smirked lightly. “Oh there you are.”
Elias Colt cracked out his neck, stepped toward the shadow, and disappeared.
27
“Umm, John?” Karen shouted over the loud, rumbling engine under her that had vibrated her body mostly numb.
“Yeah?” John called back to her as he navigated the road.
“It’s dark out,” Karen said simply.
“Yeah, I noticed,” John replied.
“Typically when one is driving at night, they put on headlights,” Karen said again, hoping that he would get the hint.
“She’s trying to tell you to put the headlights on.”
“I know. I just want to mess with her.”
“You’re bad, John.”
“Yup.”
“I don’t need the headlights. I can see just fine,” he replied in a robotic tone.
“John, I…” she went quiet trying to choose her words carefully before John broke into laughter turning on the headlight. “You were messing with me?”
“Yeah. I would have kept it going, but Queen thinks I’ve messed with you enough.” He laughed shaking his head.
“I’m glad to see that,” Karen said adjusting herself.
“See what?”
“You joking. You aren’t losing your humanity.”
“It is important to Queen that I do not,” John said keeping his eyes on the road.
“How do you mean?” Karen asked curiously.
“I don’t remember when they spoke the trigger, I’m glad I don’t. I do remember Queen’s feelings though. She was afraid, deathly afraid. She does not want that for us,” John replied.
“Well I do remember. And I will never speak that cursed word. Don’t you dare tell her John Baker! I will not utter that filth ever!” Queen chided in a protective rage that let John know that arguing was pointless.
“I’m going to keep trying to figure it out, John, but it isn’t easy to discover these things. You have to understand that those triggers can be anything and everything, John. It’s all literally whatever words in any language. How they were able to do it, I have no clue.”
“Goddamn,” John muttered.
“There is some good news though; I have to double check a few things, but there aren’t many triggers,” Karen offered.
“Well isn’t that ducky?” John muttered.
As he drove on, he put on the breaks, his eyes narrowed.
“What is it?” Karen asked nervously.
“We have company,” he replied.
John gestured to a figure standing in the middle of the road. Karen strained her eyes to see as best she could. It was then that she could see him at the end of the headlight’s range; the man in the road wore black, freshly shined shoes, black pressed slacks, a white dress shirt with a black tie and black suit coat.
“John Baker and Karen Denton. It is a pleasure to meet you up close, you can only get but so much from anyone reading military dossiers.” Elias Colt chuckled lightly.
“And you are?” John asked putting the kickstand down, standing up from the bike.
“Elias Colt. I had a small discussion with your friend Ruckus.” He chuckled lightly seeing the looks on their faces.
“Do not worry, folks; I was under firm orders not to do the man any harm at all. And while he did not give you up outright, I could smell his lies from a mile away. After all; I’ve been trained for subterfuge and espionage.” He chuckled lightly. “But I digress…”
“Before you bore me to death with all of this talk,” John growled rolling out his neck. “Tell me what you want before I lose my temper.”
“Now, Mr. Baker, there is no need to be rude and hostile. Just because I’m supposed to kill Dr. Denton and take you if I can or kill you if I have to, doesn’t mean we can’t be polite. After all this isn’t personal.”
“’Isn’t personal’?” Karen replied incredulously.
“You’re not going to do any of those things. You don’t lay a finger on her, you don’t take me in, and you damn sure do not kill me.” John took a step toward the man.
John’s eyes narrowed at the confident smile radiating from the man. He raised his right hand to massage his jawline gently, then winked.
A black tendril appeared from the shadows created by the motorcycle’s headlight, slithering like a snake to Colt, it coiled around his ankle and ascended his body, wrapping around his waist and resting its shadowed head on his shoulder.
“I have a very…unique talent that the President wanted to introduce to you.” Elias smiled warmly.
“And what is that? Being annoying?” Karen snapped.
“Annoying? Is having manners annoying? Well if that is the case, I am just very, very hurt,” Colt replied, putting his hands on his hips looking to them with sadness plastered on his face. “I am simply trying to be friendly. Oh well. If you two want to be rude, well then that is just fine by me.”
Eight tendrils swirled from the light of the motorcycle going in eight different directions in the air.
“What’s going on?” Karen shouted from the bike.
“Just stay back. I’ll handle this,” John said looking into the night sky.
The tendrils continued their nocturnal dance before halting in midair. The tendril still wrapped around Colt’s waist uncoiled itself in the blink of an eye into the air as a nexus for the other eight.
The tendrils, having a focus, charged into the center forcing themselves into the central tendril causing it to pulsate into a large, formless, ink blob.
The blob fell from the air, landing to the ground with a massive thud, cracking the pavement under its dense weight.
The blog throbbed and simmered as Colt simply tapped his temple gently looking to Karen and John with a small smile.
“Do not worry. I will try to make this…quick.” He chuckled.
The ink blob’s bubbling ceased. It then began to unfold, taking a humanoid form that stood over a head taller than John. Its body remained pitch black, as muscular definition and mass took form.
“So you’re going to hit me with a shadow puppet?” John challenged.
“Yes actually. That was the general idea.” Colt beamed.
The giant pulled its left hand back and slammed its fist into John’s chest sending him flying backward to the pavement. The sound resonating sounded sickeningly hollow, like an oversized melon.
“Still thinking my shadow puppet isn’t a threat?” Colt asked innocently.
After shaking the cobwebs free, John pulled his knees to his chest and nipped back to his feet rolling his neck and shoulders out then cracking out his knuckles.
“Oh that is just…charming.” Elias smiled as John began taking steps toward the beast he fashioned. “And you?” Colt smiled at Karen. “You are not being disrespected, ma’am. I will be dealing with you as soon as I’m finished with glory boy here.”
“For a shadow, that hit awful hard.”
“Yes, I am aware. I’m sending more nanobytes to your sternum.”
“I figured, which is why I’m taking it slow.”
“Do I need to tell you to fight smart?”
“Look who you’re asking, Queen.”
“Hence why I’m asking, John.”
The shadow giant stepped forward, blocking John’s path to Colt. The towering, faceless monster stood statuesque.
“Colt. You have one chance. Call off your toy, and disappear,” John called out. “You do not have to die tonight.” His eyes narrowed when he saw the black pit that was the creature’s face mold itself as a perfect replica of Elias Colt’s, complete with the same amused smile.
“Is that right? Well you certainly are high on yourself, aren’t you? You tear through some Norms like they’re tissue paper and I’m supposed to be impressed, or concerned? Or what, because you took out some mindless Nanos? You think you’re some what? Some Reaper?” The shadow monster threw its head back and bellowed laughter into the night sky the same as the flesh and blood Elias Colt did.
“John Baker! You are so entertaining! However you need to remember something; you are nothing but a science project gone horribly wrong. You had one job. One job! You couldn’t do that right because you have some defect. So I will simply clean up the lab boys’ mistakes for them, and then will go after Mila myself.”
“You won’t get within a crotch hair of her.” John charged at the shadow Golem, ducking another body shot, rolling between its legs and kicked hard where the thing’s knees would be.
“Fuck!” John roared as his leg rebounded from its target, knocking him off balance. He could feel the agony in his bones as it felt as though he had just kicked solid steel.
“Oh I’m sorry! Was that too hard for you?” the golem asked in stereo with its progenitor. The beast threw a kick hitting John square in the chest again sending him flying back to where Karen stood just a few feet away from Elias Colt. He groaned clutching himself, spitting blood to the ground again.
“Ooooh that can’t have felt good could it?” Colt asked.
“John!” Karen knelt down to check on John and then stood back up glaring at Colt. “You son-of-a-bitch!” she shrieked.
“Yes. She was.” Elias laughed. “Thank you.”
Karen went into the nearest saddle bag and began to rummage through it, pulling out John’s twin collapsible batons.
“Get up, John! Get up!” she shouted, tossing the batons toward him.
John pulled himself to his feet, quickly snatching the tossed metal weapons from the air and extended them. He held one out in front of him preparing himself for an attack from the golem. He looked over his shoulder glaring at Colt.
“You had your chance. You’re a dead man.”
“Truly I am terrified. The walking dead is going to hurt me!” Colt cackled.
The golem came baring down with another punch. John stopped the shot midair using one of the batons. He struggled against the force of the shadow. With the other baton he slammed the creature in the leg, at the same time forcing the blocked arm upward so that he could slip under the appendage and behind the creature.
He expertly picked his spots striking the creature over and over again where it would have ribs, knees, neck, head, everywhere vital that his training and experience taught him were debilitating and life threatening.
“Is that all?” Elias asked.
The golem suddenly turned in on itself and its front now faced its target that had been behind it and attacked. Punches and kicks came at John in a flurry. He blocked, parried, as quickly as he was able; thankful that he was at least faster than his nemesis.
“Hmmm impressive. Very impressive.” Colt smiled. “How can you do that if you’re unable to move, John?”
John could feel something wrapping around his ankle and saw another shadow tendril coiling around him. Pulling his left leg as hard as he could, he pulled free and smashed the blackness with his baton barely able to dodge the shadow fast aiming at his face.
“Well. That was good. Very good,” Colt mused. Before John’s eyes, what appeared to be dozens of shadow tendrils took shape in various sizes, all aiming for him. “Can you dodge them all though?”
The tendrils exploded at him. As they attacked, John dropped his batons and continued to jump and dodge doing all that he could not to be overtaken, or simply grabbed. His movements, like water, continued to protect him from the sentient shadows’ master’s designs.
As he flipped over another attack, he turned into a heavy stone impacting his face sending blood and the sound of his face shattering into the night.
“And down goes Baker! Down goes Baker!” Colt chanted with glee as John hit the ground. “How did that feel, John?”
“Not good. You cheery little fuck.” John grunted rolling out of the way of the golem slamming its foot to where he had lain just seconds before.
“If I could just get to him!”
“How, John? The shadows won’t let you.”
“I noticed tha
t.”
“He controls the shadows. What gets rid of shadows?”
“Light.”
“Use the headlights!”
“Karen! High beams!” John yelled as a tendril shot into his stomach, impaling him.
“High…oh!” Karen clued in. She jumped onto the bike quickly reaching for the headlight switch.
“What are you doing, Doctor? Why make your last few moments more pain…ful?”
“Fuck you,” Karen replied aiming the headlight direct into Colt’s face and flipped on the high beam.
Colt bellowed in agony covering his eyes frantically. The tendril through John’s stomach disappeared as did all of its lesser brethren. John picked up his batons, and smirked at the shrieking golem before him that was cover its eyes from unseen light.
He charged forward smashing his batons into the golem again. This time it reacted to the strikes staggering as each shot weakened it. Colt rebounded from the attacks crying out as the attack from both fronts began to take their toll.
Colt rolled from the light spitting an inky blackness to the ground. He held out his hand and the golem lost its physical form and turned to a shadowy cloud surrounding its master protectively.
“Very, very good. The both of you. I am glad to see that you will be able to at least make this interesting! I will make your ends as bloody as possible. Do you hear me? Do you hear me?” he roared angrily.
“You’re whining loud enough. We hear you,” Karen commented aiming the high beam at him again.
As the light came at him, Elias Colt disappeared into the shadow that enveloped him.
“Where did he go?” Karen asked nervously.
“I don’t know,” John replied. Karen could just barely make out gaped spaces in his mouth were being filled by new teeth and dents in his face were filling out.
“One thing I do know is that we need to get out of here and get to where there is plenty of bright light,” he said putting his batons back in the saddle bags.
“We need to be careful. Light creates shadow,” she replied.
“I’m aware,” John replied curtly.
Karen moved off of the bike so that John could take his place and reeve up the bike. She got on behind him and they were off again. “He stepped right out of the shadows,” Karen said after a few moments of silence.