THE VROL TRILOGY

by SK Benton

  The ground bug, as Jessica called it, had large, compound eyes, was bipedal, and also sported clawed upper appendages that had what appeared to be prehensile hairs, the largest of these on the right claw holding a weapon of some sort. The grotesque creature pointed the weapon at Liliana who, instead of letting out a scream, snarled and raised her sword out in defiance.

  Three other similar creatures had surrounded the group, while Jennie, Bagatelle and Michael all drew their swords. Draagh lifted his staff and caused a large boulder to come crashing down onto one of the creatures, as Bagatelle savagely attacked another. Jennie attempted to get to Liliana, but a bug blocked her way, prohibiting further advancement. However, no one noticed Michael, as he deftly scooted around the perimeter, getting to Liliana's side.

  "Dieeeee. Foooood!" cackled the bug that was hovering over Liliana. It was about to fire its weapon at the small child when Michael dropped down in front of her, taking the charge blast into his back. Liliana partially crawled out from beneath her grandfather and, looking at the alien she screamed "Electrincantatio quassatio!" blasting the creature back into a sharp rock, which pierced its neck, effectively decapitating it. With a great leap, Jessica flew through the air and dropped down next to it. Surveying the damage, she looked at Liliana appraisingly.

  "Good job, little one! You fight like your dad!"

  Jennie and Bagatelle were fighting their own bugs as Draagh quickly moved over to Michael and Liliana's position. Pulling his son off his adopted great-granddaughter, he first checked the archangel - he was simply knocked unconscious. Then, placing his hands on his son's chest he performed a complex healing cantus.

  "My son, you have redeemed yourself. I restore you now," said Draagh, as Michael's body jerked with spasms. Liliana looked on in awe as Draagh maintained concentration. Michael's chest shot up and his head leaned back, suddenly opening his eyes and mouth, emitting not a scream, but brilliant, blue beams of light from his eyes, nose, mouth and ears.

  "Everyone, the base of their skull is where they are weakest!" yelled Jessica, as she had watched them fight a fruitless battle, their swords being stopped by the aliens' strong armor. It wasn't but a second later that the siblings had decapitated their opponents, resulting in both being covered in green ochre that served as the aliens' blood.

  Having finished the remaining two Vrol, the brother and sister high-fived each other and ran over to where Draagh, Liliana and Michael were crouched. The first thing Jennie did was envelope Liliana in her arms.

  "Lili, I told you to listen to me! When are you going to learn, child? I could have lost you. We have been together such a short time. Please, just listen to me," Jennie whispered to her daughter.

  "A short time? What do you mean?" asked Jessica, who had plopped down next to them.

  "I'm her adoptive mother. We met in the castle where we live, and she risked her life to save us. Everyone in the kingdom wanted to take her, but we were blessed with her decision to be part of our family," responded Jennie.

  "Max never, ever said anything about his adopted daughter. He only said that he had a daughter that he loved very much and missed, and that without his family his life was nothing."

  Liliana got a look of confusion on her face; not knowing how to take the revelation that Max apparently didn't consider her to be his adopted child, rather, his daughter, plain and simple. Then, she smiled and looked at her mother.

  "Jennie, I have come to a decision," said the little girl.

  "And what would that be, sweetie?" asked Jennie.

  "I shall inform everyone when we find Max."

  Michael sat up, albeit with a bit of help from Draagh, and let out a small cough. Then, looking down at his hands he began to grin. Looking over at Liliana, he reached over and touched her cheek while asking, "Are you ok, Lili?"

  "Yes, Abuelito. I am - thanks to you. Are you ok?"

  "I am fine. In fact, I have never been better."

  Standing up, he regained his footing on the uneven rocks and rubble and then shot his arms out to the side. With a loud sound that resembled a sail unfurling in a strong wind, 4 meters of obsidian-black, feathered wingspan shot out. Flapping them a couple of times, as if he were working the kinks out, he extended his hand out to Liliana.

  "Shall we trust each other now? We are family, after all," he said with a kind tone to his voice.

  The little lycan girl took his hand as he helped her to stand up.

  "Wow, Abuelito, you look so cool. La cagada! You really are an angel!"

  "Lili! No lisuras!" yelped Jennie, knowing that her daughter had a propensity for swearing in many languages, even though la cagada was a mildly profane way of saying awesome.

  Draagh snickered and watched the two as Bagatelle kept an eye out for further Vrol.

  Jessica watched Michael, stunned that she was not only around a being of immense power, but proud to be called a friend of the one they were seeking.

  "Guys, come on," she said, "let's get you to Max. We're almost there."

  Chapter 21 - Going Away

  Gabriel walked into Seven Sins after having landed a few hundred meters away and ensconcing his wings out of view. Seeing a number of people at the bar, he had to tune his hearing down a bit due to the band playing loudly. He surveyed the crowd and found it comically odd that vampires, lycans and normals were all frequenting the same location. Focusing in on the drummer, he noted that there was a mild mutation in his genetic structure (which he could easily see in a readout in his peripheral vision - something that all archangels possessed; similar in effect to the levels readouts that lycans possessed, only much more advanced, the archangel's readout was nearly like a computer display in its own right). The local vampires were not nearly the predatory parasites that existed on other planes.

  Hmm, this world is unusual - a great deal could be done here.

  Walking up to the bar, he asked for a draft beer, which was almost immediately placed before him.

  "Two teeth, mate," yelled the barkeep, surprising Gabriel, as he had no idea what currency was being used in his current location. Quickly looking around, he noticed that there were jars full of insectoid-looking teeth, so he silently performed a slip cantus and made a few appear in the palm of his hand, and then handed three to the club employee. Taking his beer, he turned around and scanned the crowd, noting a grouping in what appeared to be an exclusive area. He could also detect a mage nearby. Figuring it was Max, he walked up to the group, but was stopped by none other than Marko, who had become Feral's self-designated bodyguard.

  "Hey ass-hat, what's your business here?" growled the overbearing lycan as he used his barely adequate bulk to block Gabriel's path.

  "Forgive me, friend. I seek the one known as Max Gunnarsson," responded the archangel.

  "Push off, mate! Maxie's had quite enough fighting today - this is his going away party," yelled Dons, who was seated in his usual spot on his couch.

  "Oh please, I am not here for a fight. I have simply heard he was an amazing individual and wanted to meet him. In fact, I may even be able to help him find his way… home."

  "Wait! Who are you? How do you know I want to get home?" demanded Max, who popped up from his seat further back in the dark.

  "Greetings. My name is Gabe, and I am a mage, among other things," said Gabriel.

  "Yeah, right - a real mage. Good luck with that one, dude," responded Adam from a chair next to the couch.

  "No, wait. He smells different. Like something I've never smelled… before, yet oddly similar to something I have," Max said, his voice trailing off. "Have a seat, Gabe. Tell us about yourself."

  Gabriel sat down on the couch, while Max sat on the coffee table in front of him. Surveying each other carefully, Max asked the first question.

  "Who are you, and where are you from?"

  "Like I said, I'm Gabe, I'm a mage and I heard you need to find a way home. Where are you from, initially?"

  "Well, initially I'm not even from this planet, but I tried to 4D sli
p from 43rd century Europe to 29th century Peru and ended up here. If you understand that much then we can continue our little discussion, but first I'd like to know who you are and how you heard of me. That's fair, isn't it?"

  Gabriel looked at Max and then the rest of the group. Adam was eyeing him curiously, actually hoping that Gabe wasn't a real mage.

  "Well, to start off, I first heard about you in the Hub. You are familiar with the Hub, are you not, Max?"

  This immediately got the young man's attention, with him jumping up from his seat on the coffee table.

  "The Hub? You're not just a minor-mage, are you?"

  "No, I am the real deal. In fact, I am much more. You see, I recently joined up with a group of people who have been searching for you for over six months, and I wanted to make sure that they weren't disappointed when they arrived, which should be any minute."

  "Ok team, it is Max. I have found him," Gabriel called out via his comm device.

  "Group of… people? What do you mean six months? I've only been here a few days. Where were you looking for me from?" replied Max with a look of confusion on his face.

  "Father was right - you do have a lot to learn, but as I see you have fared well here, I am sure there is hope for you."

  "Ok, Gabe, enough is enough. Can you just come clear? Who are you?"

  "Your uncle,"

  "My uncle? Right. From where?"

  "Well, Heaven, for the lack of a better term,"

  "Heaven… Gabe… Gabriel? You're Gabriel? The archangel Gabriel?"

  Hearing that, Gabriel stood up and shot his arms out in a dramatic fashion, extending his wings at the same time. This caused the band to stop playing, and consequently for the entire bar to go silent.

  "The very one. And I believe there is someone else who wants to say hello."

  Jessica entered the bar and approached Dons' personal area with a sheepish grin on her face. Max thought it was odd that he hadn't detected her arrival. It was like there was a scent barrier that had been hiding something from him.

  "Hi Max, sorry I wasn't here for the party, but I met someone I think you'd like to see."

  Stepping to the side, a little blur shot out from behind her and flew through the air towards Max.

  "Papiiiiiiiiii! We found you!" yelled Liliana, as she jumped into Max's arms and started to kiss him all over his face. The crowd was obviously showing a mixed reaction. On one hand, Max was reunited with someone he knew, and on the other, there was a man with wings in the bar. That was weird.

  "Liliana! I can't believe it! You're here! So that must mean that everyone else is too!"

  Max look up to see his wife standing on the dance floor, tears streaming down her face. He gently set his daughter down, and looked at Gabriel, who was wearing a large grin and nodding his head in Jennie's direction. Max walked over and didn't say a word - he simply and smoothly put his arms around her and kissed her as if he hadn't seen her in years - as if she were lost to him forever and he had only one more chance to hold her. But this time he was going to hold her and never let go. His eyes also welled up a bit, but he used a cantus to dry them before any locals saw him cry. Then he pulled away, and looking at his gorgeous wife said, "You saved me - again."

  Marko sat back onto a chair, staring. Then, looking over at Dons, he said, "Wow, Max was right. His woman's hot."

  Dons stared with his one eye opened quite wide.

  "Ummmm, yeah, I reckon so, mate. Whoa."

  Most everyone in the room had heard of Max's story - how he was stranded and lost to his family. It seemed so fitting that they be reunited, especially after Max had done so many good deeds for the community. But before anyone could break out into applause they heard a small voice yell, "Kitty!" followed by the sounds of electrical shocks and feline growls.

  "Lili! No! They aren't cats! Lili! Stop!" yelled Jennie, watching with dismay as her daughter chased nekos around the bar, shocking them as she characteristically did in the castle, finding these cats to be much more formidable opponents. Cassandra and Minnie were practically crawling over the walls, screaming while trying to get away from the little lycan-mage terror.

  Dons started to laugh hysterically as Max shot over and scooped up his daughter, tickling her and nuzzling her small face, overjoyed that the tiny package of chaos known as Liliana Gunnarsson was once again part of his life. Scanning the bar he saw Draagh and another man whom he didn't recognize. Looking around further he saw a vaguely familiar face, but bearded and much younger than he remembered.

  "Admiral? Is that you? How did you? What are you doing here? And may I say sir, you look great!" stammered Max.

  "Hello Commander. It is indeed a pleasure to see you again. Oh, and I am no longer a rear admiral. I believe my rank would be closer to ensign in Krynos' forces, making me your subordinate."

  "Papi! Papi! You need to meet your father!" squealed Liliana, as Max turned to his grandfather and spied the man next to him. Setting the girl down and taking her by the hand, he walked over to the duo.

  "Hullo, Draagh, and… you must be… Michael," said Max as he extended his hand to his father.

  "My dear boy, you have no idea how we have searched for you! I see you already met Gabriel, who is your uncle, and yes, this is Michael, also known as Mija-El, Taxiarch of Jah's celestial forces," said Draagh, with an unusual amount of glee in his voice.

  "Ok, this is kinda weird," muttered Max, moving over to put his arm around his wife. Looking around he saw the Seven Sins crew - all of the friends he had made - Dons, Jessica, Pandy, Lennie. Even Adam, and now Marko - they had practically become family to him (except for Marko, but Max was the forgiving type), but now he was with his real family and they had rescued him. He felt it only fitting spend a final evening with the people who had been so kind to him, share stories and introduce his wife and daughter to these people.

  "So, Michael, I'm not going to get all emo on you, ok, but… where were you all my life?"

  "I can answer that, young man," interrupted Gabriel.

  "Gabriel, please do not," pleaded Michael, putting up a hand.

  "No, it is ok, Brother - Max, your father and I had issues - very serious issues, many years ago, back when you were an infant, and for centuries prior. We had an argument, which I won, so I banished him powerless - stranded on a world where he could go nowhere. It was only through our father's pleadings that I released him from his obligation. It was necessary in order to find you."

  "But why did he need to be released in order to find me?"

  "Max, don't you remember how you got here?" asked Jennie.

  "Sure. I took Draagh's staff and tried to go to my ship, but I ended up here. Oh my god, did I lose your staff?" Max looked pleadingly at his grandfather, who grinned as he slid it out from behind himself.

  "No, my son. It is fine. It is mine and shall always be. The ghanlo that resides in it is eternally bound to my immortal soul. The only thing that could separate it from me would by my banishment from the universe, like what happened to my brother, Marnn. But to continue on, we searched for you for many months, when I finally figured out that someone of similar genetics would possibly be sent to this same location in space/time if they attempted to do the same thing that you did. Fortunately, Gabriel had the prescience to attach an inter-dimensional tracker on Michael, enabling us to find his exact location before he had experienced a negative time shift."

  "Um, negative time shift? What does that mean, and how have you been searching for me for months?"

  "Something that we can explain in further lessons, my son, but in a nutshell, between the moment you slipped out of the castle and the second you ended up here, six months had already passed in the Rhönen Dominion. We have been searching desperately, and young Jennie has put quite a few million miles and a few thousand years under her belt while traveling back and forth," he finished jokingly.

  Not wanting to delve further into divergent timelines and negative time shifts, Max grinned at his relatives and walked his wife a
nd daughter over to Dons, and with a great smile said, "Dons, please meet my lovely wife, Jennie, and our daughter Liliana. Girls, this is Dons, proprietor of this establishment, and the man who was kind enough to give me a place to stay while I tried to figure out a way home."

  "Mr. Dons, it is my most sincere pleasure to meet you," said Liliana, as she curtseyed in her typical fashion. "Might I thank you for keeping my father safe during his absence?"

  Dons looked at the little girl with an almost shocked, one-eyed expression.

  "Liliana is it? The pleasure is mine, really. Actually, it was your father who saved us. He helped us to forge alliances with former enemies, and even surgically removed alien trackers that were placed in us by the demons - the Vrol."

  "Oh my god! How adorable! I loooove your bag! Where did you get it?" Pandy screeched upon eyeing Liliana's backpack, or mochila, as the little girl called it.

  "Oh hello, I made this myself," she said with a beaming grin, happy that someone finally recognized her somewhat macabre artistic skills. "And who might you be? I can smell you are a lycan."

  "I'm Pandy, part of the clan here. So, your Max's kid, huh? Wow, you're really lucky to have a dad like him."

  Liliana looked over at Max and smiled.

  "Yes, I am the luckiest girl in the galaxy."

  Liliana took Jennie's hand and looked up at her adoringly while saying, "Hey… Mami? Are you happy now?"

  Jennie looked down at Liliana and dropped to her knees, hugging the girl so tightly she almost cut off her air.

  It was the first time Liliana had called her mami.

  "Baby doll, I have never, ever been happier in my entire life."

  "Bring up some more chairs and that new couch Max and I just put together - we need room. And beers! Oy, you fellas like beer, dontcha? We also have whisky and ‘bout everything else."

  Dons was stoked that he had a new group of special people in his establishment. To top it off, it was the first time he had knowingly hosted real archangels in his bar.

  Sitting around in a large group, Max started telling everyone everything about that world, and even brought Lennie and Jelly over to meet his family. Jennie, Bagatelle and Liliana thought it was weird that Max had a vampire as a friend, and dared not tell them about the little girl's shark feeding experiments, even though the pale couple were aware that outside their world they would all be mortal enemies.