Fantastic. “Maybe we should pop into this barracks and put together a real plan,” Gill suggested.
I liked that idea and the three of us took advantage of the momentary quiet to sneak in. It was clear that this building was one of the original buildings to the base, but had quickly outlived its purpose. Still, there was something about the interior that told me that it wasn’t as abandoned as we first thought. There was a clear feeling that someone had used this building in the not so distant past.
I grabbed my gun and turned to the hallway on the east side of the room. “Stop right there,” I announced.
“This certainly has a feeling of deja vu,” a voice I never expected to hear said casually.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Gill and Jordan each had their pistols out. “Give us the order,” Gill whispered.
Out of the shadows strolled a dangerous witch, one who could kill us all without hesitation. One who also saved my life, even if it wasn’t for good reasons. “Castor Brinza,” Cassie said. “What are you doing here?”
I cocked the gun – man, she was right. This felt all too familiar. “Taking up your sister’s spot with Koenig?”
“You think I’m here with that monster?” she responded.
“Just what the hell is going on here?” Jordan asked.
“This lady ain’t very innocent. Guns at the ready, gents,” I answered.
Cassie waved her hands, freezing the two men behind me. “We need to talk freely.”
“I know I can’t stop you, but I can’t believe what you did. I’ll never forgive you.”
She sighed, loudly. “Castor, you speak of things you don’t understand. Koenig had an oath with my sister and I. We were to deliver a Dracul and we did. Do you think I wanted it to end like it did?” she continued to press.
“Abigail’s dead, Radu’s probably dead, too. Do you know what you’ve done to my family?”
“Radu’s not dead,” she confirmed.
“Are you sure?”
She waved for me to follow her. Jordan and Gill were still stuck in time, no clue what was going on. As I followed Cassie around the corner, I gasped in horror. Radu was tied to a chair, beaten and bloodied. He looked quite drained, but yes, he was alive.
I placed my hand on his face. “Radu, are you awake?”
“Koenig is keeping him in some sort of half-death state. I tried using my magic to break it but science is the way of the future. We need to wait for whatever poison he’s using to wear off.”
Shit, we could’ve used him. “At least he’s alive. That still doesn’t solve the Koenig problem.”
“Leave the soldiers with Radu. I’ll come with you to capture Koenig,” she offered.
“No,” I answered.
“You can’t defeat him without me.”
Be that as it might have been, I wasn’t about to trust this witch ever again. If I thought I could get a shot off, I would’ve killed her where she stood. I knew the outcome wouldn’t have happened as I imagined. Instead, I just stood there in silence.
I began to walk back out to my group. “Do me a favor, protect Radu anyway you can and leave. I don’t need you, Cassie.”
By the time I got back to Jordan and Gill, they were no longer paralyzed. “Where did the target go?” Jordan asked as he saw me.
“It was a false alarm. We need to hurry, though. Koenig’s here and we only get one shot at this.”
Gill found a table and laid out some damp papers from his bag. “This is the best I could get with our limited intelligence about the Japanese and their bases. Based on what Jordan told us and the direction those Japs were running, I’m guessing they’ll be using the base’s grand hall for the meeting to take place.”
“Just what in the world does Koenig hope to accomplish with meeting with the Japanese? Aren’t they already on board with the destruction of the western world?”
What Jordan and Gill didn’t know was Koenig’s dabbling in the supernatural. If I had to make a guess, Koenig was either after more bodies to experiment nor he had knowledge that there was something here he could take advantage of. As a representative of the Nazi party, he was just going through the formalities of taking this meeting to keep the Japanese squarely in their corner. Julia had explained to me enough about Far Eastern traditions to give me enough to make that guess.
“Is there a direct route? If we could get in before the meeting and get out with our target, that’d make all our lives easier, wouldn’t it?”
“I can try. Remember, this is based on incomplete data and rumors. Everything from here on out will just be a guess,” Gill admitted.
I was good with his guesses. The man was a strategic genius. “Do what you do best; Jordan and I trust you.”
“We do?” Joe said, very seriously.
“Shut up, Jordan,” Gill remarked, his eyes never leaving the paper on the table.
We let Gill get to work. I knew there’d be no rushing him, but I couldn’t help but to get nervous as I watched the position of the sun in the sky. Our window of opportunity was closing on us. Then, “Okay, this has a chance to work.”
Just as Gill gave us his approval, a sound I’d begun to grow very familiar with began getting louder, closer. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I groaned.
Jordan confirmed it. "I don't think Koenig's here to play nice. I've got six Nazi birds flying over the base and they look to be in attack formation."
Chapter Eighteen
T he Japanese responded in kind. Overhead, an aerial dogfight was in full gear. Outside, the screams of anger were barely audible over the planes and the accompanying machine gun fire.
"We can use this."
Jordan and I reacted differently to Gill's thought. "I agree," I said.
"That's insane," Jordan added.
We had little time and the Germans unexpectedly attacked the base. Sane was no longer an option. If we wanted Koenig and to get out of here alive, we'd have to trust in Gill and our abilities in a fight. More gunfire echoed around us. The time for decisive action was upon us.
The three of us barreled through the barracks' door and out into the open. Planes above were dogfighting and Japanese and German soldiers were engaged.
So much for being allies.
Gill pointed the way. "Guns out, gents!"
We stormed forward, ignoring the small battles that raged around us. No one gave us much of a look, but we did fire off a few shots when enemies got too close. The long, perilous journey came to an end when we reached the command center. Jordan took out the sentry to the left while Gill hit the opposite side.
Like a well-oiled machine, we rushed in and began pinpointing Germans as we traveled deeper. When we entered the central control room, time froze yet again.
Cassie.
"You'll be needing my help."
"Your help was to keep Radu safe," I reminded her.
"He is," she rebutted. "I've placed him in a witch's lock; only I can retrieve him."
She wasn't lying to me, that much I could gather. "Why?"
She knew the exact meaning of my question. "Because the power he offered wasn't worth what I lost to get it."
"Your sister?" I asked.
"You."
I really wanted to believe her. "You're not going to let this go; what do you know?"
"Koenig is in league with a Russian, Grigori I think he called him. Koenig's after an artifact that the Russian said would solidify his grip over the world."
Great, the cliché world domination angle. Boring. I was hoping Koenig would be up to something different," I scoffed.
Cassie began to tremble. "We don't have time to argue, he's starting to fight back."
"Who?"
"That corpse Koenig dragged out of the ground. That's why he's here, working with Grigori. He wants the Ōnusa."
"Say what?"
The spell broke. Gill and Jordan both were mid-step when frozen and they continued moving as if nothing happened yet again.
<
br /> "Guys," I whispered. They both came to a quick stop. "I wouldn't go much further."
A monstrous figure blew out the wall beside us, sending debris and rubble towards our small group. The four of us fell to the ground, covering ourselves as wreckage scattered and kicked back. Cassie cast a quick spell that sent Gill and Jordan back about ten feet, out of harm's way. Both of their reactions were a mixture of shock and awe.
Once the initial stupor was gone, we saw the six-and-a-half-foot German titan looming over us. He was wearing the standard Nazi uniform complete with gas mask to completely cover his face. Strapped to his back was a very large war axe with a pistol bolstered on his hip.
This guy was built to bring pain.
Strolling into the room behind him came another man, this one slender yet tall, with blue eyes and a well-manicured mustache. He casually moved towards us, no fear in his features.
"I am most disappointed," he said directly to Cassie.
"Your opinion means nothing, Koenig."
I looked back to Jordan and Gill. This was our target. Both men grabbed their guns, ready to strike. The chill in the room became very noticeable.
"Teaming up with Americans? How far could one sink?" he asked in his heavy accent.
"My nationality is actually the least offensive part of me, Nazi," I retaliated.
Koenig regarded properly for the first time. "I know who you are," he responded in a delighted tone. "You are the current Bring and Dracul hybrid. Yes, you'd make a lovely addition to my collection."
Reaching into my coat, I curled the flail that I'd grown to love, even more than my gun. "If you think that's happening, you got a big old screw loose."
"Your ancestors gave me the knowledge to create soldiers like this one. With the Seventh Reich under the control of Hitler, the world will be brought into the Utopia whether it wants to or not."
"Cassie, you didn't tell me this guy was a loony tune."
Koenig's manner began to darken. "The Japanese admiral had the same feelings. Hitler will be most disappointed that I killed an ally, for the sake of power, of course."
He brandished an old, warped piece of wood and the giant German soldier reacted violently, swinging his arms around in a rage. He reached down and ripped up a chunk of floor and brought it over his head.
"Surrender peacefully and no one dies."
There was no way this guy was going to let us all live. "Sorry, bub, but in Texas we don't quit."
"So be it." Koenig switched back to his native language. "Töten," he commanded as he pointed to us.
Kill, Luka translated for me.
Guns began to fire as Koenig's henchman began attacking. He flung the concrete at Gill and Jordan; both fast enough to get to new positions and undo their rifles. Cassie began weaving spells as I moved in to engage. With everything happening so fast, there was no way to keep eyes on Koenig.
Whatever black magic made the man in the gas mask; it was good voodoo. Nothing we did even seemed to bother him. Bullets had no effect and he basically countered everything Cassie did with his own form of spellcasting. It became very clear that winning wasn't an option. With Koenig gone, it was time to take a very real tactical look. I knew what to do. "Disengage and fall back," I ordered.
No one complained. With the monster pushing us back, we broke off and began running. And oh man, ugly wasn't about to let us go. The moment we left the command center, he broke free behind us. Planes were still fighting and ground troops shooting at each other. Cassie and I needed to draw the monster away so Gill and Jordan could find an escape.
"Get us a way out," I hollered as I grabbed Cassie and tore off towards Radu.
I hoped they understood me.
With new players on the battlefield, the Germans began shooting at us while the Japanese began to take aim at the larger than life target, they’d been presented. Cassie used her gifts to keep the bullets away from us, but the Japanese were providing all the cover we needed to get back to the bunker safely. I knew it’d be a short-lived reprieve, but it was one I had no qualms in taking. As soon as the structure came into view, I hurtled towards it and rammed the door open with my shoulder.
Radu was still in the back.
“Break the spell so we can go,” I urged her.
She placed her hand on his head. “The damage Koenig did is worse than I thought. We have to carry him.”
Damnit.
With no more promoting necessary, I lifted the vampire over my shoulder and began to hoof it after Cassie. We made it two steps from the bunker when our friend had broken free from the Japanese assault and was back on us. When he saw Radu freed, he responded with a low, grunting noise - almost like he was a wounded animal.
Cassie jumped in front of me and Radu and put up a barrier. A force slammed into it, causing it to immediately disappear. “The beast has been trained in rudimentary arts but his strength is off the charts,” she gritted.
“What is that thing?” I asked, genuinely concerned for our well-being.
“A corpse from what I can tell, a rather old and a very powerful one; at least it was before it died.”
Sweet mother of Mary. “He brought back the dead?”
“Koenig can do a lot of things with Vlad’s journal and notes.”
Doctor Deadlove was tired of our bantering and lifted his leg high. He stomped it onto the ground, causing the earth between Cassie and I to split open. The movement was telegraphed enough that the two of us could stay on our feet as the ground quaked. Cassie pulled out a gun of all things and snapped off two quick shots.
Where had she learned that trick?
The bullets pierced the uniform and caused black blood to spill forward. The creature didn’t care. He kept moving forward. I couldn’t see its eyes from behind the mask, but I got the sense it was focused more on me than Cassie.
Luka confirmed this. A malevolent force knows what you are. Keep your guard high.
Thank God I paid attention. The corpse hunched over and then leapt. It came right at me! I was prepared and did a fireman’s roll with Radu still on my shoulders. The beast landed, shaking the ground, right where I’d been standing. Cassie made a rapid gesture with her hand and pushed the brute back about fifteen feet. It gave us enough distance to try and formulate a second plan.
“We ain’t killing this thing, not with all of this around us.”
A Japanese fighter flew over us, strafing the area with hot lead. If Koenig’s play thing didn’t get us, the planes probably would.
A second plane flew low, but this one looked a lot different than the other birds in the area. “Paddy?” Cassie asked.
“You got to be kidding me.”
Hanging out the back was Gill, holding the gun attached to the back of an old Japanese fighter that looked as if it had no reason being airborne. Gill aimed at the dead German and mashed down the trigger. The high caliber rounds that flew from that thing did damage to even the heartiest of enemies. I wanted to see this thing die a painful death, but none of the rounds even put him on the ground. He was hurt, sure, but far from down and out.
“Guys, over here!”
Joe Jordan’s voice bellowed from behind us. “Cassie, this way!”
The witch didn’t even flinch. She hightailed it right on my boot heels as I spotted Jordan and quickly followed him into the trees that lined the base. We kept going until we reached a small beach with a boat waiting. Jordan jumped on board and revved the engine. I tossed Radu over the rail and pushed Cassie up. Without any hesitation, I grabbed the railing as Jordan pulled us out into the deeper Pacific waters.
Back on the beach wasn’t the monster; it was Koenig.
And the bastard was smiling.
Chapter Nineteen
**Thailand; 1942 the year of our Lord**
“F rancisco…”
“And da man who knows heez truth.”
The little shanty we entered in the outskirts of a small fishing village in Thailand belonged to none other than that dark sham
an, Francisco. He greeted me as I walked up. I heard rumbles of unease and distrust from Gill and Jordan.
Those two poor boys would never view the world the same again.
On the trip back, I came clean to them with help from Cassie and Paddy. With Radu’s comatose body not helping matters, I figured the truth would set them free. At first, they laughed. Then they tried to shoot us. Finally, acceptance entered their eyes, but they were still highly skeptical. The one thing that seemed to calm them throughout was Max’s old Bible. Seeing that the Brinza clan was a God-fearing group, that did a world of good.
We even began to pray together.
Paddy strolled right by us and into the derelict abode. “Good thing I didn’t listen to ye, lass,” he said as he passed Cassie.
“You’re an idiot, Paddy.”
“An idiot that just saved yer life.”
“Can someone tell me what’s going on here?” I asked, exasperated.
“El tiempo para las explicaciones es pronto,” Francisco rattled off in his heavily accented Spanish.
“What’d he say?” Gill murmured in my ear.
“Rough translation - they’ll tell us soon.”
It was apparent that Francisco wanted the rest of us inside. After a few more uncertain minutes, Gill, Jordan, and I joined Paddy and Cassie, with the dark shaman closing the door after us. In the one bedroom, I could see Radu stretched out on the bed; he was breathing but that was about the extent of his movements. “He will survive, you know.”
Cassie was behind me, off to the right. Her head was very close to my shoulder. “You still have a lot of nerve,” I grumbled.
“I regret my allegiance on that day in West Texas, but not my actions. The sooner you get over that your family is nothing but victims, the better.”
Evil erupted from deep inside me. It was a power I’d been doing so much to push away, to not let out. I rounded on her with foul intentions, the lust to kill.
That moment only lasted a second before my training with Luke and my father took hold. “Vlad Dracul,” she hushed. She’d been there when the revelation was made public to me.
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