“How much?” I asked bluntly.
Amber named a figure. I gave her a look that told her in no uncertain terms what I thought of that figure.
“I told you it's not much, but it's really the best we can do,” the Swordlady hedged. “We aren't operating with the same kind of massive corporate fronts that the other houses use.”
Suppressing a grimace was difficult. This was just great. I'd be making even worse money than I made at the Records & Licensing Agency. As if the demons appearing and trying to eat me weren't bad enough.
“Guess you spend all the big bucks on acquiring those musty old tomes,” I quipped, trying to sound casual and nonchalant. I don't think it worked. “Just how deep are Luna's pockets, anyway?”
Amber shrugged, deflecting my attempt to negotiate higher pay before I could even begin. “That's not my department, so I'm not entirely sure. I can assure you, though, that we don't use certain types of coercion that the other houses are infamous for. Set your mind at ease on that one.”
“I was more wondering about all the fantastic toys you had to play with during the shitstorm we just left behind,” I grumbled. A slender elbow jabbed me in the side and I let out a yelp in protest. “Hey!”
Misaki glared at me. “You still haven't even thanked her!”
“No need,” Amber said with a slight smile. “The information we were able to get from that base was more than worth the losses. In time, Luna should be able to develop our own version of AEGIS's Spell Engine technology.”
I blinked. “But you lost your entire headquarters.”
“We knew we'd be abandoning that place soon enough. The demons just wouldn't leave us alone.” Amber sipped at her glass of water and we all fell silent as the waiter returned bearing a tray with our late-night meals. I stared at my plate of country-fried steak and eggs with an eager gleam in my eyes.
After the waiter departed, I swallowed a bite of breaded and deep-fried beef coated in runny egg yolk and took a drink from my glass of orange juice. I was pretty pleased that my first meal since waking up would be something so delicious—it surprised me a bit that this seemingly-ordinary little motel diner had such a skilled cook on the overnight shift.
“What happened to the library?” Misaki inquired.
“We loaded it out on the tram, too. It was actually lucky that the disaster happened when it did—many of our people were off-site at the time, so the trams had plenty of room for the archives.”
“You got all of that out? That quickly?”
The Luna swordswoman shook her head. “No, Elias ordered the archive broken down and prepped for transport the day before. He can, well… he has some knowledge in how to determine what might happen beforehand.”
I frowned at that. Misaki once told me that even with magic, literally seeing the future was impossible. Predictions could be made with reasonable accuracy by using statistics, probability and invocations that vastly increased the diviner's mental acuity and computational ability, but that wasn't clairvoyance by any means.
Probably in the past diviners would shroud the whole thing in mysticism and make it seem like they were communing with higher beings to see the future. It definitely sounded more impressive than temporarily upgrading your brain into a mana-powered supercomputer.
“Any opinions about what Blondie and the creepy lady said?” I asked the two of them, trying to figure out what our next move would be.
“The approaching dawn and darkness stuff?” Amber's expression became pensive. “I really don't know—again, that sort of thing isn't my job. I usually just break the things that try to break our things.”
“Elias said that more and more specters are rebuffing their bindings,” Misaki murmured, keeping her voice low. There wasn't much chance of us being overheard in here, though. At this hour we were practically the only people in the diner and I'd picked a booth as far away from the counter and kitchen as possible.
“The mage… Eirene… made it seem like the demons are actually specters who forcibly bound the bodies of living creatures to them.”
“Only animals, though.” Misaki popped a bite of sausage in her mouth and chewed before continuing. “That makes sense if you think about it—notice it was all predatory animals, nothing considered all that close to sapience.”
“It's not like they're being possessed,” I agreed. “There's no sentient mind to get in the way, so they just… hop on in and hijack the body? Since none of them had a distinct miasmic core, I think it's reasonable to assume the merging is permanent.”
Neither Amber nor Misaki had anything to add to that. I sat there for a moment in silence, focusing on my food and my stomach still demanding further sustenance. I cleaned the last bit of pepper gravy and egg yolk with a piece of toast and set back in the booth, feeling delightfully full and happy.
“We'll end up seeing enough of them to verify that soon enough.” Amber sighed, but I wasn't fooled. Misaki and I were worried, but she looked as if she were eagerly anticipating the coming whatever. Regardless of whatever vague shit Eirene or Nergal may have said, we all knew we'd be seeing lots more demons.
“Yeah, and now we don't even know what their goal is. At least with summoners, the specters were just tools of human masters—with ordinary and predictable human desires for wealth, power, control, vengeance… the usual.”
I felt a coldness start to blossom within my gut, but I focused on the Relic shard embedded in my chest. The warmth that radiated outward from the mana-infused metal seemed to envelop my spirit in a soothing embrace.
Amber's phone chirped. She glanced at the screen and smiled. “Looks like my ride's here. It's been fun, but now it's back to work for me. Take care of yourselves—relax, get laid, get some sleep. Tomorrow's a new day.”
Misaki blushed faintly, eliciting a chuckle from me and Amber both. I took out my phone and tapped out the passcode to unlock the trunk of my car.
“Take all the stuff out of the trunk when you go. It belongs to your group, anyway.”
“Of course. Think about what I said. You can get in touch with us through Meilin. The day-to-day probably won't be that much different for the three of you—except you'll be working with me.”
“Sounds like a great team in the making,” I commented. “You've got the brawn, Misaki's got the utility, Meilin's got the brains. I'm just not too sure what I'm going to bring to the table.”
“The sexiness, of course,” Misaki put in, giggling.
“Come on, I'm being serious here. I never learned how to use the Relic properly before it blew up. I'm going to make a major effort to learn how to use my new abilities as soon as possible, preferably before we really need them again.”
“Then consider that your first assignment with our organization,” Amber said. Misaki nodded in agreement, her invisible tail swatting against my leg.
“I haven't actually agreed to join you yet,” I corrected, scowling.
“Misaki wants to join.” The Swordlady crossed her arms over her chest. “That's enough to tell me that you're going to join, no matter what indignant noises of protest you might make.”
I sighed and collapsed to the table. “Yeah. It's not like we have much choice, really. Got to pay the bills and all.”
“You could just get a normal job.”
“After all this? No thanks. I'd be bored out of my mind.”
Amber grinned as she slid out from the booth. “See you two down the line. Check your trunk before you two head off to bed or go screw or whatever.”
Misaki and I watched the Swordlady stop by the counter to settle our check before she walked out the diner door and headed for the waiting car that would take her back to her people.
“Do you think we're going to have a problem with…?”
I turned to Misaki and shook my head. “I think Blondie was telling the truth. I don't think he's going to fuck with us for now. Whatever his plan is now, we probably benefit it simply by killing those demon things.”
“I don't
like being used,” Misaki growled. “The agency sure did a lot of using us without our knowledge.”
“No kidding. I hope Amber's people are better about that.” I stretched my arms high above my head and yawned. “In a situation like this, how are we supposed to tell who is on what side? Blondie thinks something really bad is coming and that the agency is the only thing that can stop it. The creepy lady thinks something really great is about to happen and wants to make sure nobody gets in the way.”
“Elias mentioned something significant is changing in the world, too.”
“Three important people all referencing a major shift in the world—and if Eirene is to be believed, it's my fault.” I closed my eyes and sighed. “I mean, I absolutely don't regret killing Isao Tsukimura, but… it's just one of those things. Butterfly effect or whatever.”
Misaki shook her head. “There was no possible way you could have known. Whatever happens, this isn't your fault.”
“Yeah, I guess you're right,” I conceded. “Blondie mentioned 'darkness.' Eirene mentioned 'dawn.' Both seem to be projecting their own beliefs about the future, but Elias was neutral.”
Misaki's ears twitched. “The Archivist did strike me as the cautious type.”
“A major change generally benefits some and hurts others,” I surmised. “It's possible that Eirene and Blondie are both wrong and both right.”
“I guess.” Misaki yawned and gave me a very specific sort of look. “Ready to head up to our room yet?”
“Amber said we should check the trunk first. I'm hoping it's a change of clothes.”
“I'll go find our room.”
I stood up and walked toward the door. My left leg wasn't hurting nearly as bad as I would have expected after the bullshit I just went through. The car was parked near the motel's dumpster corral, hidden away from casual observance. Probably was a wise decision since Amber had to move all the weapons out of the trunk, which was closed, but still unlocked.
I popped the latch—Amber took the Shattered Sword and all the other weapons, but in their place was a large black duffel. I unzipped the bag and checked inside.
“The universe grants my wishes; two full changes of clothes for each of us, underwear, shoes and jackets included. Looks like something else, too…” I shifted the clothing aside and was somewhat more surprised and impressed to find a pistol nearly identical to the one I'd lost to AEGIS after our encounter with Eirene.
Amber sure wasn't subtle about anything. I was still muttering to myself about how fucking pushy she was when I met up with Misaki at the door to our motel room. We somehow lucked out and got one on the ground floor.
Misaki opened the door and gestured grandly. “After you, love.”
I walked inside and turned the lights on. I shrugged. I'd seen much worse. At least it was clean and didn't smell bad. The door shut behind me and I could feel Misaki's fingers going somewhere sensitive. I turned my head toward her and found her lips with mine.
She broke the kiss gently and favored me with that faint and dangerous smile of hers. I held up a hand to stop her before she could tackle me to the bed.
“Shower first, then sex.”
homecoming
It felt more than a little strange to be cast adrift yet again. Despite working with AEGIS for close to a year, I wasn't all that surprised at how little I cared that our association had been severed. I suppose it wasn't that unusual—I mean, the agency itself was always sort of murky and sinister and in the background. The woman I met as Star, Meilin, was the one we actually worked with/for day in and day out.
And now Meilin was working with Luna, a group with their own agenda and desires that probably contained a good deal of personal gain for those who operated it. That wasn't too different than working for a private company, I guess, or even government in most cases. I didn't think it was completely fair to immediately write them off like that.
My mind kept returning to the “night-bringers,” as Eirene called them. AEGIS, the agency that allegedly existed to destroy specters and keep the influences of evil power and corrupting miasma in check. Now, though… what did they really want? Was their goal now different, or was it still the same, but their methods simply becoming more brutal and extreme as the situation worsened? It was impossible to tell and sitting here playing guessing games in my head wasn't going to help.
I gripped the steering wheel and swerved gently toward the off-ramp, trying to clear the dark thoughts from my mind. Misaki was watching me with concern in her eyes.
“Does it hurt?”
“You mean the thing stuck in my chest?” I shook my head. “No. It feels like it's grown into me, anchored itself to my flesh and bone and spirit. It got a little hot when I used magic back there, but it doesn't hurt.”
Misaki didn't respond.
“Do you really believe that Eirene person was intentionally trying to cause the Relic to fuse with you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
I took a sip from my coffee to-go in the cupholder and eased on the brakes as we came to a red-light intersection. “The simplest reason: I'm still alive. She stabbed the blade right through me. By all rights, a thrust like that should have killed me pretty much on the spot, but not only did I live, but there's almost no damage at all.”
“The Relic attempted to protect you,” Misaki argued. “Maybe she's just trying to get on your good side now that you've fused with the Relic instead of dying.”
“I doubt that. Attacking me out of nowhere and then shoving a sword through my body isn't exactly the best way to get on my good side.” I sipped at my coffee as the light changed to green. “'But I do believe her. The evidence supports her claim, anyway.”
Misaki's expression became pensive. “I… suppose that makes sense. Why would she use something like an invocation of dimensional fracturing? Such spells were used to sunder extremely hardened targets… to throw down magically-protected keeps and citadels. If she really wanted to kill you—”
“She'd just have used something a lot more easily accessible. The way she was ripping those chunks of pavement out to create cover? She could have just crushed me under one of those and I'd be squashed like a bug. If she just wanted to take me out for good, there were easier ways to go about it than filling the Relic to the bursting point with magic and shoving it through my chest.”
“I don't know.” Misaki looked a little unhappy, but in her eyes I could see the implicit trust that we'd built up through the course of our relationship.
“Look, I'm not saying we should invite her over for pizza and beer or anything. I'm just saying that while Eirene obviously does have her own agenda, it seems to be the least harmful of the agendas of all the people who are pulling us in all fucking directions.”
Misaki glared at me peevishly. “You don't trust Luna, either.”
“No, I don't, and no, I'm not being a hypocrite. Another powerful organization shrouded in secrecy that really wants us? It'd be idiotic not to be wary. Sure, I can trust Amber—she saved my life, after all. And I definitely trust Meilin; how many times has she saved our lives, not to mention Mama's life?”
“Then what's the problem?” Misaki demanded.
“The problem, love, is that we should just be careful about trusting. We trusted AEGIS, and the agency turned on us. If Meilin hadn't gone against her superiors and rebelled against the agency, you would have been unmade and I would still be a science project.”
“But you're still undecided about joining Luna?”
“I'm not unsure.” I hit the brakes and took the curve that would bring us into the quiet, peaceful suburb where my sister lived. “You're half-right, love—we should work with them, but we should not necessarily join them. Not after what happened with AEGIS, and more than anything because it'll let us keep an eye on them.”
“I can't really argue with your caution,” she murmured, grimacing. “Will you contact Meilin tonight to accept Amber's offer?”
I pulled the car alongs
ide So-yi's driveway, currently filled with her small sedan and Nicole's kid-and-grocery-toting minivan. Mama's car was absent, but I knew she'd been trying to sell it. If anyone was home it'd most likely be Mama and Nicole.
“I'd prefer to discuss things with Amber directly,” I said at length. I popped the door handle and stepped out onto the road next to the house, the new boots Amber supplied feeling more than a little stiff. “I want Luna to understand our position perfectly. Let's not keep any more secrets than we have to.”
“They may not be willing to pay us for a simple alliance.”
“Oh, I think we can convince Amber to play along.” I smiled and took Misaki's hand gently in my own to help her out of the car and onto the sidewalk. It was a completely unnecessary gesture, of course, but the implicitly romantic gesture brought a faint blush to her cheeks.
We walked up to the front door and knocked. After a few moments of waiting and movement that we could hear from inside, Nicole answered the door.
“Karin! You're back!” My sister's wife blanched as she met my eyes, her own widening in astonishment. “W-what the hell happened to your eyes?!”
“Yes, I'm back, I'll explain the eye thing later and other things, besides.” I felt my own cheeks start to warm a little. “Can we come in? I've had a really rough week and I'd like nothing more than to just spend some time with my family.”
“Of course. So-yi is still at work, but Yoshiko's here.”
Nicole led us inside, still able to get around decently, even with the considerable added bulk of a late-term pregnancy. The interior of the home was quiet and a little dark, considering the overcast sky this didn't surprise me much at all. It wasn't raining yet, but I knew it wouldn't be long before the skies opened up.
“Where's Mama?”
Nicole gestured toward the sliding glass door. “Outside, with Kaede. The rain's coming, so she wanted to get some playtime in before we had to bring her inside. Can't have her chasing Salt and Pepper around the house, knocking everything over.”
I expected that much; Salt and Pepper were my sister's cats, brother and sister from the same litter. Kaede loved the cats and always wanted to play with or lick them. The cats, however, only grudgingly tolerated Kaede and that tolerance didn't extend very far.
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