by L R Deney
“How did they know we were here?”
Staci shook her head. “I’m not sure. They seem to have gotten better at detecting magic use since they last reared their heads in the nineteen-forties.”
One of the demons was struck by a staff and rapidly dematerialized in a blinding white light. Staci stared at the sight in shock. What had just happened? What was that? How had it happened? Did that destroy the demon or…? She shook her head; this was better training and equipment that she had come to expect from the Dark Inquisition. It was virtually unheard of.
“What the fuck is going on here?” a familiar baritone said from behind the trio. “Fucking papists?”
Staci turned her head to Mr. DeVos. “Yeah, and they’re a lot better trained than history remembers them.”
“Fuck. I need to inform Kadmon of this.”
The four stared in horror as three inquisitors tore through the demons. The Nazis were expectedly fleeing from the battle, recognizing that the fight had just turned for the worse. The seven left disappeared in a portal, one firing a bolt of red and black electricity before the doorway slammed shut. The bolt deflected off of one of the staves and struck one of the werewolf twins, causing him to blow up into fur, bone, and gore.
“What? JIM!” cried the werewolf, his lupine rage filling him with terrible strength and he let loose a deafening howl.
He began with tackling and mauling one of the inquisitors, the cleric non-expectant of being the target of the attack. He was finished when the beast bit his head off and tossed it off into the dark. Then the massive werewolf charged toward the others, still occupied with the demons to see him coming. The man on the balcony looked surprised.
Staci was about to advise getting out of the historical district when she noticed the forth inquisitor approaching them. Her eyes glowing green, she called forth the power of her Hellfire whip and cracked it into the path of the oncoming cleric. He stopped, and hesitated, his staff spinning in his hands as he appeared to contemplate what his next move was.
“Ah, so you’re the diabolist,” he said with some vindictive venom in his tone. “I think the Inquisition shall enjoy tearing you apart piece by piece by….”
“Shut up and stay away,” Staci ordered, her eyes glowing furiously. “Come another step and you’re dead.”
“Staci, this is a distraction,” Mr. DeVos said over her shoulder. “Your Nazis got away. These papists can be dealt with by Kadmon in the future. Let’s get out of here.”
She turned her head briefly to him and nodded. Cracking her whip again, she turned and joined Theo and Melanie in a portal that Mr. DeVos had already created. Once DeVos was through himself, it slammed shut behind him. Thus the inquisitors turned to focus their efforts on the remaining demons and the werewolf.
Jack did not survive the night, joining his brother.
Chapter 28
Each of them took a few deep breaths after they stepped from the portal, shocked and bewildered by the experience they just had. Jokes aside, no one had really expected that, it wasn’t in the plans at all. The Dark Inquisition had revealed itself for the first time in seventy years. They only hoped that would be the last time they ever saw them, but Staci personally doubted it.
“What was that?” Theo asked in disbelief. “I mean, I know it was the Inquisition, but still….”
“They have new equipment,” Staci remarked. “Fortunately I don’t think they’ll be coming after us. They seemed to be more focused on the demons.”
“On that, what was happening to them?”
“Banishment,” said Mr. DeVos. “They were all being sent back to Hell.”
“Well, at least they’re okay?” Melanie asked, surprised she was hoping such for demons of all things.
“Not necessarily, it all depends on where they were being banished to. Hell is divided into different nations, most of them hostile to my master.”
“Unsurprising there,” Staci muttered.
“Indeed, not many demons realize the glory that Kadmon will bring to Hell. They’re afraid of losing their own influence and power, foolishly.”
“That’s not exactly what I—”
“Oh look, the camp!” exclaimed Melanie, pointing.
Staci turned her head to look. Indeed, Mr. DeVos had brought them out just a block away from the camp. It was approaching the middle of the night so there were only a few people standing outside, smoking cigarettes. Or possibly joints, judging by some of the odor. They approached their own tent and unzipped the flap, all four effortlessly filing in. One of the onlooker’s jaw dropped, as three people he could believe but four fitting in that tent he had trouble swallowing.
But such a person wasn’t a concern, now they just had to wait for the final stage of the plan which they collectively turned their attention to. It was a door on one of the living room walls, but unlike any of the other doors in the sanctum, this one led nowhere. It was just a door, made in preparation for what was about to happen next.
After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, the entire apartment-sized sanctum began to shake and rumble. Following several minutes of this, the rumbling finally stopped. The door finally opened and an exhausted-looking Aku no Shi stepped through it, nearly stumbling. Behind her was the familiar foyer of Staci’s original sanctum.
Staci walked over to her and caught her in her arms before she could fall over. “Are you all right?”
“Hai, that just feels more exhausting than anchoring the usual way,” the other witch replied, letting out a deep breath.
“I don’t doubt, they are both technically connected now, essentially fused.”
“I know.”
Staci looked around. “I suggest we each get some sleep, it’s been a tiring night.”
Everyone silently agreed and split up to find a bedroom. Specifically, Staci helped Aku no Shi to one of her guestrooms before joining Melanie in her own bedroom. Both women collapsed on the large bed and they were both out like lights in short order. Tomorrow was guaranteed to be another busy day.
◆◆◆
The following day saw a lot of work. Staci and Aku no Shi pored through numerous books about the nature of sanctums, of how they were constructed, how they were anchored, what kinds could be made, as well as a plethora of charms and wards that could be used to keep your sanctum safe. What was hard to find was how to detect one if one was near.
But eventually they did find away. Once a statue of a long forgotten goddess, it was a rare artifact that could pinpoint where the nearest sanctum was anchored. It apparently vibrated when it was near an anchor and Aku no Shi had to quash a lewd idea from Staci before they both continued their hunt for information on it. The task of finding this thing was taking up the entire day.
“Whew… I think I need something to eat,” muttered Staci, going through another book page by page.
“Sustenance would not be a bad idea,” agreed Aku no Shi.
As if on cue, Melanie appeared with a couple of ham sandwiches and salads. “Thought you two could use some food, considering how long you’ve been in here. Have you found anything?”
“Yeah, we know what we’re looking for, but the problem is figuring out its actual location,” answered Staci, standing up briefly to kiss her girlfriend.
“Oh, well at least you know what it is.”
“And knowing is half the battle,” said Aku no Shi, grabbing another book.
“You did not just say that,” remarked Theo as they just walked in, trying not to laugh.
“Say what?”
Theo shook their head. “Nothing, never mind.”
“Theo, what brings you here?” asked Staci.
“You two have been up here for a while, so I thought you might be able to use some help.”
“The more the merrier.”
Theo nodded and scanned the massive collection of books, then at the stacks surrounding Staci at the table. “Umm… so what have you found out?”
“We found an artifact that can find
it for us, but that artifact’s probable location still eludes us,” chimed in Aku no Shi, placing three more leather-bound tomes beside Staci.
“Hm… I have an idea!” Theo said, stroking their chin. Before any of them knew it, Theo was racing out of the room.
“Huh…” said Staci.
They had been spending another half hour at it when Theo came hurrying back in and stood by Aku no Shi, scanning the books. Eventually they grabbed a small one, brought it over to Staci, and flipped through the pages in front of her. Sitting right in front of Staci was an image of the statue and a small blurb about it in an encyclopedic entry. Her eyes grew to the size of dinner plates when she saw where it said it was.
“The Azramoas City Watch Headquaters?” she exclaimed in mixed excitement and horror. “Theo, how on Earth did you find this?”
“Oh, I just searched your library’s database.”
“My… what? Database? What do you mean?”
“Oh, just technomancy stuff. I made one.”
Staci was frankly astonished but didn’t say anything further. She didn’t understand the technomantic craft, but realized it was capable of things that most magic wasn’t. She supposed that now having a database to search would make hunting for specific books a lot easier. She placed the other books to the side and peered at the title of the book that Theo had given her. It was titled An Encyclopedia of Arcane Homes and Domains.
“Impressive,” remarked Staci, nodding to herself.
Interrupting their brief celebration was a loud thump from a closet door across the room. Everyone looked toward it when there was another that followed, and then a third. Everyone exchanged glances, visibly confused. All except Aku no Shi who looked rather amused at the sounds.
“Oh, I nearly forgot,” she said. “Russell is in there. He followed me in last night and I had to subdue him.”
“The cowboy?” asked Staci.
“Yes, the cowboy. I have him tied up in there.”
“Well, I guess he still needs to accept himself.”
“Excuse me?”
“Ha, sorry, LGBT joke.”
“Ah yes, okay.”
The group wandered over to the closet door. Staci was the one who opened it and an angry, bruised Russell the Dark glared up at them. If the man was able to kill people with looks alone, this one would have been most certainly fatal. The Gothic witch simply stuck her tongue out, mocking his glare.
“Well, well, well, what have we here?” asked Staci, feeling every bit more amused. “Where’s the rest of the Village People?”
“You’re having too much fun with this,” remarked Aku no Shi.
“Oh dear, I’m not started yet.” She turned her attention back to Russell. “So, is it true that there’s just steers and queers in—”
“Oh please just stop!” growled the gunslinging wizard.
“Oh my, looks like we have a diva.”
“I suppose you think everything is a joke?”
“Not everything, just most things. Nazis abducting marginalized people certainly isn’t a joke.”
“Am I supposed to know anything about that?”
“No, just letting you know what you’re interfering in. I’ve been trying to hunt down and stop these fuckers, but you’re just persistently getting in the way.”
“There’s a bounty on your head, I aim to collect. Nothing personal, I’m just doing business.”
“A bounty placed there by a Nazi!”
Russell arched a brow at her.
“Yes, that’s right; Speaker Fromm is a Nazi infiltrator from the Order of the Black Sun. He set all of these events concerning Azramoas into motion. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was the one who killed Speaker Ravenford so he could have the position himself.”
“Look lady, I don’t care whatever conspiracies you fancy, but I took this bounty, so I aim to see it through.”
“Staci speaks the truth,” Aku no Shi interjected. “I have looked into the matter myself and talked to Councilor Julia Frandsen. Not all is well on the Council. They are consistently giving him more and more power, enough to become a dictator.”
“I don’t care. All I want is my money and she and her little girlfriend there are the tickets.”
“You honorless dog!” Aku no Shi kicked him.
“Ow! Watch it….”
Staci placed her hand in front of Aku no Shi before she could kick him again. “Hold on a moment, there’s still something that I’m curious about. How did you find and get into Paul’s sanctum?”
“What’s it to you?”
Aku no Shi kicked him again.
“Ow! Okay, okay… I followed the Lupus Brother and then shot my way in. You gotta hit the door with a firm blast of magic to access the lock on the astral. Otherwise you’re shit out of luck.”
“Thought so,” remarked Staci. “It’s crude, but it’ll work to our purposes.”
“Need to break in somewhere?”
“What do you care? You said you didn’t.” Then Staci shut the closet door on him, ignoring his protests. “Okay, we have a vault in the City Watch Headquarters to hit.”
◆◆◆
The five of them—Mr. DeVos came along—were standing outside an isolated power station in the middle of the woods at late evening. The doorway into Azramoas was literally just the power station itself, maintained by the arcane city’s agents to make it look like a normal station receiving regular maintenance. It would almost been amusing if it wasn’t for the task that was at hand.
“Okay, I need all of you to stand really close to me,” Staci was explaining. “If you don’t, you’ll be left behind on this plane.”
“Ahh… I finally get to experience your legendary shroud spell,” said Mr. DeVos. “Kadmon spoke so highly of it.”
“Yes, well, I suppose Kadmon says a lot about me.”
“Indeed she does, indeed she does.”
Everyone crowded close around her and she began her focus on the barriers between worlds. She eventually felt the familiar tug on their essences and controlled it to take them in-between that barrier, the line where life and death met. Melanie moved closer to Staci, startled by the shift through the planes. Staci placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
“Okay, everyone here?” she asked and looked around to make sure. “Good. That was the hard part, fortunately. Follow me.”
She led the way through the door which led into one of the tunnel entrances into Azramoas. The group wandered through it in dark silence until the familiar silhouettes of guards came into view. While she had explained this part to them, no one would ever truly be prepared for the grotesquery of seeing the circulatory systems among the dark shapes.
“Oh my God,” whispered Melanie.
“Yeah, it’s a little freaky,” agreed Theo.
Single file, they wandered past the guards, careful not to bump into any of them and expose their presence. Of course Mr. DeVos seemed absolutely fascinated by the entire situation. Once they were past the guards, Staci led the way through the dark streets toward an isolated alley. What shocked her on the way were the numerous banners of Friedrich Fromm’s arcane tradition hanging along the streets. It certainly brought thoughts of blatant fascism in mind.
Once they were in the alley, she focused back on the world of the living and pulled them toward it again. The shroud was eventually dropped and everyone made it back safely, the world darkening slightly as it dissipated. Staci took a few short breaths and looked out along the alley at one of the banners.
“Well, this place is definitely going to shit,” she said.
“Yes, it was certainly unexpected when I was here last,” Aku no Shi agreed, a deep frown on her face.
Theo lowered a duffel bag that they were carrying to the ground and unzipped it. Inside were five long cloaks with hoods, each black or dark gray in color. Such cloaks were a common fashion statement in Azramoas, so the five of them wouldn’t stand out too much. Problem was, there was most likely a curfew in effect. Fasci
st regimes pretty much always had them, so avoiding patrols was integral to their success.
Fortunately dark cloaks also had the benefit of blending in with the artificial night. Pulling up their hoods, they ventured into the dark streets, finding them utterly devoid of people aside from the occasional patrol. It was uncanny how much Azramoas had changed in just over a week. The slide into despotism had to’ve been rapid with a bill passed every day just to give Fromm more and more power over the city. And the banners were definitely everywhere, a constant reminder of who the new ruler was.
Fromm’s definitely the Black Sun agent, she thought grimly.
The man was a dictator now, every little part of the city brought under his heel like perfect clockwork save for the rioting in the slums, which they briefly passed and was still cordoned off. It was sheer madness with what became of everything. The very perverse nature of fascism lingering everywhere they looked. But there was an unexpected wrinkle when they approached the headquarters.
Out in the park between the capitol and the City Watch Headquarters was a massive group of people with watchmen lining the outside of the crowd. Standing at the podium, illuminated by stage lights, was Friedrich Fromm. He was delivering a speech to the people and it caused Staci’s blood to boil when she heard it.
“…this change of course was necessary because of the significantly reduced size of the Council. The murders of Johnathan Ravenford and Julia Frandsen as well as the kidnapping of Drake Okar were perpetrated by the terrorist Staci Drenvauder and caused us to reach this hard decision.
“I know some of you will ask about the necessary values of democracy, but I remind you that now that I am a proper head of state, that democracies across the world also have such figures. Presidents, Prime Ministers, they remain democratic offices and always work to serve the people, and I work to serve you.
“So while no longer a mere Speaker, but Lord Chancellor, I promise you that I will serve you as head of state. This has been a difficult transitional period, with so much of the Council killed off in needless acts of violence, we were forced to compensate. I promise you I will bring the villains responsible to justice. I will see both Kadmon and her puppet Staci Drenvauder brought here in chains and sentences for their crimes. I promise you that.”