The Blood Eagle In The Big Easy Part 12

"As you say the truth of something can't be undone, no matter how much you wish it to be." Mir's voice bespoke of regret and pain for having to burden me with this particular memory. "I am truly sorry my liege, I wish there was another way to convey this information to you."

Pus.h.i.+ng the whiskey bottle to the side I stretched. It was my turn to pace around the fire. "Thank you for understanding." Trying to wrap my mind around the situation I needed to understand what was happening. "Let's start at the beginning shall we?" Mir leaned back as he nodded for me to continue. "You mentioned something about catching up on the last few millennia, how does that work?"

Mir looked away quickly as if he were slightly ashamed before looking back in my general direction even if it were at my feet. "All those crystals throughout your body are not only hubs for the nanites but they are also more akin to what you call a black box." Holding up a hand as he stood to keep me silent for a moment longer. "Within each of them are millions of terabits of information about everything you have ever encountered throughout your life."

"Everything?" I felt both terrified and excited by the prospect, not to mention highly embarra.s.sed. "Feel free to skip over some of the more seedy parts if you wouldn't mind."

Mir's face turned several shades of crimson as he paced opposite of me. "While some have been self repairing, many more were damaged or have been dormant since your accident." Turning his head away from me he wrung his hands, trying to choose his words carefully. "It is good to know that the Starborn has such a healthy labido but would it kill you to tone it down a bit?"

It was my turn for my face to burn as blood flooded my cheeks. "Wasn't exactly planning on having anyone sifting through my memories."

"Point taken." He stopped suddenly as if something weighed on his shoulders. "It will take time my lord but I will have the answers you seek." He kneeled down and casually stuck his hand in the fire as if he were desperate for some type of sensation, even if it were pain. "We will find out who you are, how far you've come, and where and whence you came!"

I felt homesick for the first time in my life as something called out to me, pulling me back to the place of my birth. "I miss them and I don't even know who they are!" A wide array of emotions washed over me, confusing me as they mixed together, leaving me stunned and hurt with their arrival. "It's stupid, I know! How can you miss people or places you don't even remember?"

"Not to worry sire all will be revealed in time." He intoned trying to inspire my confidence. It worked believer it or not. I needed to believe in something and right now a promise, even one as vague as Mir's, was all I had. The world serpent would have to be dealt with sometime later for now Gullveig was my main concern. Short of having her head on a stick I would have to settle for Creepy George. Mir and I sat silent long into the evening, broken only occasionally to remind ourselves that we still had the power of speech.

Chapter 16.

December 1st Mir stood and gave me a slight bowas I got to my feet. "Thank you for sitting with me tonight." His voice was hollow as the loneliness stirred deep within him. "Be well sire."

It was a feeling I knew all too well. The world around me had changed and only I remained the same. Mortals had such a limited amount of time allotted to them yet they were able to make such an impact upon the world. Over the centuries I'd fallen in love only to have them taken away by the relentless march of time which had never shown me the slightest of mercies. People I'd called friends fell victim to the same fate as my lovers and yet only I remained. It was my own personal h.e.l.l in which I had no possible hope of escape.

For the first time since I woke up on that mountainside I felt as if I finally had a friend or at the very least a cellmate. "Not to worry, I'll return shortly."

Mir bowed once more as I headed to the bedroom for a fresh set of clothes before leaving for the office. Trying to find anything resembling sleep at this hour would be more harmful than helpful. Freshly showered and wearing crisp clean clothes I was out the door and heading to the office by three thirty a.m.

Walking through the bra.s.s doors I took notice of Justine who simply nodded and smiled at me as I pa.s.sed. Rounding the desk and up the stairs I could see that the office door was standing open. Scanning the area the two guards I had a.s.signed to keep watch over Katharine were nowhere to be seen. Which could only mean that she had sent them on there way. Before I got halfway to my office I could hear Kira and her mother speaking in hurried whispered tones. Entering I found them sitting there smiling and having much too good of a time about something to do with me. From their devious expressions I was sure to be in for a very long day or perhaps year depending upon how long they decided to punish me for.

Both women gave me sly looks as they greeted me. "Good morning, Mr. Warden." Katharine looked tired yet in good spirits as she gave me a wry smile.

Something about that smile made me highly self conscious. You know the dream you have where you show up somewhere and you're half naked... yeah that feeling. Part of me wanted to run. It was probably the wiser course of action just to take my medicine and be done with it. "I can come back." That's right, I still tried to chicken out!

Kira smiled as she stood to give me a kiss on the cheek as I walked around to my chair. "Don't be silly." She said as she gave her mother a knowing wink. "It would appear that we have much to talk about." She curtsied. "My lord."

c.r.a.p! I really should've ran when I had the chance. Part of me wished that Katherine had waited for me to at least be present before breaking the news about my alter ego to our daughter. Cla.s.sic move on her behalf. She was always looking for an advantage even if it was at someone else's expense and especially when it was at mine. "I see you've been brought up to speed."

Katharine gave me one of those that's right I did it what the h.e.l.l are you going to do about it looks. "I couldn't help myself."

She really couldn't! Katharine chewed her lip in her excitement. Kira however, was thoroughly curious, and h.e.l.l I couldn't blame her. There was a lot to know and unfortunately I wasn't sure I had all of the answers.

"I have so many questions!" Her voice was high pitched with excitement as she squirmed in her seat. "I can't believe you're Comus! Is there anything else I should know?"

I took a deep breath as I focused my thoughts and closed the office door. "There is much to discuss." Kira and Katharine jumped as the door closed much harder than I'd intended. "First things first however. Were you able to find Creepy George's villainous lair?" Even to me I sounded more annoyed than usual. I did my best to try and hide it but it still bled through.

Katharine leaned forward giving me a nasty little wink as she slid a piece of paper across the desk. "I believe you can find your creepy little friend at that address."

She could have waited for me but as usual she went that extra mile to try and embarra.s.s me with our daughter. After everything is said and done and all the cards on the table, I had to wonder just how smug she'll feel. It was a very s.h.i.+tty thing we'd done to our daughter by hiding all of our secrets for so long but I suppose every parent makes mistakes along the way. Ours were just a little more monumental than most.

"Would you mind if we picked up this discussion after I wrap up this mess?" Eyeing Katharine I noticed that she lost a little of her smugness as she thought through the ramifications of such a conversation. "I just don't think we could do it justice in the next few minutes, or even hours." Unfortunately Katharine and I were nearly out of time and all of our secrets would soon be laid bare. I honestly didn't know who I felt worse for us or our daughter. "We will need some time to go over everything. In the meantime however I'd really like to keep the entire Comus incident under wraps."

Kira smirked as she spread her arms wide. "You do realize that New Orleans is the biggest small town to ever exist." She straightened up in her chair as she tried to keep a her excitement at bay. "No one has secrets in this city for very long. Someone always makes it their business to b.u.t.t in."

"Be that as it may, I would still prefer if we at least pretended like we were going to keep a lid on it."

"Good luck with that." Katherine snipped as she was going to try and press the issue for as long as she thought she had the upperhand. "While I am sure that most of the shock will wear thin soon enough, I doubt people will simply forget who you are."

Unfolding the piece of paper with the address and trying to ignore her comment, I found that I still had a few hours drive ahead of me before I could get to Creepy George in Folsom. "You're probably right but who knows maybe over time it will become one of those urban myths."

Katharine slowly got to her feet as she resigned herself to the fact Kira wasn't going to hold the whole Comus debacle against me just yet. She gave Kira a nudge encouraging her to follow. Reluctantly she too got to her feet even though I could tell that she had a thousand questions begging to be asked. "We will leave you to your errand." They walked to the edge of the office before Katharine turned back and smiled. "We'll be around when things settle down."

"Thank you both."

Katharine nearly had to pull Kira along forcefully as she was positively br.i.m.m.i.n.g with curiosity. Pulling my cell out I hesitated a moment before dialing Gregory's number for fear of waking him at such an early hour, but then I remembered that turnabout is fair play and sort of fun some days. Luckily for both of us he was already awake and after he heard what I had to say quickly agreed to meet me here at the office shortly. The plan was simple really. Terminate Creepy George and have the SOG team waiting nearby for cleanup.

We were about halfway across the Causeway as the sun slowly rose out on the horizon in the east, as if it were birthed from the primal waters of the lake. The purpling sky gave way to several shades of fire reds and oranges until crystal blue blazed across the horizon dotted with cotton ball clouds that were gently pushed through the crisp morning air by zephyrs whipping across the calm surface of the lake. Little would anyone suspect we were about to face down a serial killer only a few miles away.

Pa.s.sing through the furthest edge of Folsom we made a right at the one and only light in the small village. Our destination lay a mere five miles away. As we made our way down the rural road we got our first glimpse of the old horse farm. It had been a beautiful place not so long ago, where champions.h.i.+p thoroughbreds were bred and trained by masters of the trade. The once lush green immaculately kept pastures were now choked with weeds that had grown unchallenged over the last several years. An uprooted ancient oak tree lay sprawled across the fence line and the old fence timbers had shattered under the weight of the tree leaving a gaping hole in its wake. It was one of many breaks in the fence either due to disrepair or neglect. It was hard to believe that this farm had once been home to a loving couple with three children who had cared deeply about this place.

Few understand the symbiotic relations.h.i.+p man has with the land, especially land he owns. What was once a vibrant farm full of life was now a distant echo of what it once was. Darkness enveloped the grounds as it tried to fight off the light of the sun. No supernatural boogie man claimed this land as their own, but instead it was man's neglect and negativity that tainted the place with a wrongness that pervaded the area. The earth itself is a living organism which can become ill, and like anything else this place was definitely feeling the cancerous effects.

Turning onto a side road we were finally able to get a view of the rotting main house along with its two dilapidated barns. The nearest of the two barns had collapsed in on itself while the other looked to be barely standing. The main quarters was a two story farm house. Whatever paint that had once graced the aged wooden walls had long since been stripped away by wind and rain. Several windows on both floors were broken giving the place a wounded animal vibe. We continued down the road another half mile before finding a safe place to pull off.

"I take it that is the place?" Gregory s.h.i.+vered as he spoke. "There's something wrong about the it."

"Tell me about it." The whole place made me feel uneasy. Something more than sickness infected the land and we were about to march headlong into it. "The SOG is standing by?"

"Yeah. They can be here in thirty minutes or less." His voice grew strength from the thought of the calvary right around the corner. "Are you sure we shouldn't have them closer, maybe with us?" His voice faltered as a sense of foreboding overtook us.

"If Creepy George is here I don't want to worry about others getting hurt or killed while I'm subduing him." The very air around us seemed tainted as something noxious hung in it. I was starting to think that a few extra hands could come in handy but it was far too dangerous even for the SOG. "Besides we'll be fine."

"That almost sounds convincing." He said as he nervously checked his weapons. "So you still want me to scout around the outer edge of the property while you..."

"Walk right up to the front door and knock."

He made a face that clearly told me he clearly thought that I was crazy. "That just sounds like a bad plan." He placed his pistols back in their respective holsters. "But I suppose it's all we got."

"Remember I will need at least thirty minutes to secure the area." My definition of securing the area meant either disabling Creepy George or preferably killing him.

"Your definition of the word *securing' and mine I think are very different."

Gregory was a perceptive guy after all, so I wasn't exactly surprised by the comment. We parted ways as he headed for the treeline and I approached the house via the driveway. Before my foot ever hit the gravel driveway I focused my will, allowing my s.h.i.+elds to wrap themselves around me tightly. Keeping an eye on the windows as I approached the house I couldn't discern any movement. Something nagged at the back of my mind that I was being watched, but no matter which direction I looked I saw nothing out of the ordinary. Reaching the front door I checked my watch. I had twenty minutes left to clear the area.

The front door stood slightly ajar and swung open at my slightest touch. Pulling my pistol I proceeded to clear the overly large room which I could only a.s.sume was a den of some sort. Making my way through the cluttered kitchen to the far end of the house I opened the last door. Heaped in the center of the room was a broken bed along with several other pieces of bedroom furniture piled high. Satisfied the room and the bathroom beyond were clear I proceeded up the stairs.

Taking the first stair carefully to ensure it would hold my weight I caught the heavy scent of blood in the air. Reaching out with my senses I couldn't detect anyone laying in wait for me. At the furthest end of the house I sensed a p.r.o.ne form of what I hoped was Creepy George. Perhaps today was my lucky day after all and he would be unconscious and easily detained but something felt off about the entire situation. My heart started to race yet I couldn't determine what had me spooked. I didn't need a repeat of what happened during our last meeting. Keeping a sharp eye out for any sort of trap I proceeded through the hallway with trepidation clearing each room as I pa.s.sed to ensure I didn't miss anything.

Opening the door to the room where I had sensed the p.r.o.ne body, I was nauseated by the condition that Creepy George was in. His left arm had been ripped off at the shoulder and thrown across the room where it lay motionless. He lay there nude with a crudely ripped Y incision starting at his navel, up through his sternum and across to his right and left shoulders. Several of his organs were strewn about having been roughly ripped from his body. I hoped that George was a corpse when this had happened. If Gullveig had kept him alive while she ripped his chest open I could only pray that he had bleed out before she ripped out his organs. I had a sense though that the whole scene was somehow unfinished. The heart and lungs still lay in place.

No matter how much death you see I'd like to believe no one ever gets used to it. Desensitized yes, but comfortable? G.o.d I hope not. Still feeling slightly queasy I opened the window overlooking the back half of the property to allow some fresh air entrance.

I called Gregory from my cell, who hurriedly answered. "Did you forget about the whole stealthy bit of this operation?"

"Creepy George is already dead." I wasn't exactly disappointed by the idea but I missed an opportunity to gain some valuable information. Something still felt off about this whole thing, and that nagging feeling that I was being watched hadn't left me. "Be careful out there. I have a bad feeling about this place."

"Calling Jones now!" His voice was tense as he seemed to feel that something was amiss as well.

"Probably not a bad idea." Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I thought I felt something behind me but when I turned nothing was there. "You might want to double time it to the house."

Suddenly the screeching of some otherworldly creature filled the air causing me to drop the phone and bring my weapon to the ready. Something powerful lurked on the floor below and it was playing cat and mouse with me. At the moment I wasn't so sure I was the cat in this particular equation.

Chapter 17.

It'd been a couple of hundred years since I heard such a scream but once you hear such a thing it can't be forgotten. The unholy sound slicing through the air was the howling screech of a wraith. A vile creature, wraiths were created at the dawn of time by primordial forces which somehow had gone awry. Cloaked in living shadows, its true form was obscured from view. What they looked like beyond those swirling black shadows was a mystery no one in their right mind would try to solve. The shadows would mold and pull tight around its vaguely humanoid form like saran wrap whenever it attacked, casting it in sharp relief with fangs and long razor like talons at the end of its long wiry arms. They were able to slice through steel as if it were wet tissue paper and have the strength of an elephant. The wraith existed in both the spirit and physical world simultaneously making it nearly impervious to most forms of attack. These creatures can only be killed while corporeal, simply pausing long enough to allow physical attacks to pa.s.s through it unharmed.

My pistol could only act as a delaying agent instead of its intended use as a weapon of death. I really didn't have a lot of choices in the matter so I brought the weapon to bear at the open door as the wraith flew through it, its lower extremities never seeming to touch the floorboards. Pressing its hideous form against the darkness of it's shadows it howled again as it darted towards me. Pulling the trigger four times as I stepped back against the open window it paused for a fraction of a second to allow the hot lead to pa.s.s through it unimpeded. That was long enough. I threw myself through the window frame, taking more than a few pieces of gla.s.s with me as I fell onto the hard ground below.

Landing hard I felt my spine pop, but quickly realized I cracked by back and was unharmed. This was probably the only bit of good news I was going to get for the rest of the day. Rolling to one side I avoided the creature as it dived through the gaping opening above, its talons chewed through the earth missing me by mere inches. The creature howled with rage. I guess it wasn't used to prey trying to fight back or run away as the case may happen to be. Scrambling to my feet it struck my s.h.i.+eld near my shoulder with a wicked backhand, spinning me through the air only to be stopped suddenly, if not a bit painfully, against the rotting wall of the house. No matter how much I wanted to believe that I looked graceful in flight I had to believe I looked more akin to one of those flailing, less than graceful idiots in a John Woo spoof. What can I say? Everyone wants to look cool, especially me since I just gotten thrown around the day before. The wraith dove at me again as I rolled to the side barely avoiding the creatures talons. As it pulled itself free of the wall large chunks of the rotting siding splintered as it fell to the ground.

Hearing several shots ring out, the beast halted its advance as it turned its attention to its new adversary. Looking in the same direction as the wraith I watched as Gregory advanced slowly as he emptied the clip before ejecting the spent cartridge to be quickly replaced by another. Gregory didn't have a chance of surviving the beasts initial onslaught so in a desperate move I tackled it. That's right, when in doubt try something utterly stupid. It just might work. It swatted me away as if I were no more of a concern than an insect. Rolling to my feet and forcing my will into my s.h.i.+elds I stood my ground as the vile creature advanced upon me once more. As it swung its razor sharp talons at my face I felt a surge of power course through me as I lifted my arm to block the attack.

My forearm erupted in flames as it connected with the wraith's talons, turning them to white ash and fall harmlessly to the ground. Coming up with a left hook I caught the creature in what should have been it's chin, it screamed in agony sending s.h.i.+vers up my spine. The wraith tried to retreat as confusion seemed to set. I don't think that it had ever known fear until this moment. Something deep within the creature knew it couldn't escape and chose to stand its ground. Bravery was not something I thought the creature was capable of. Perhaps it was just desperation.

Quickly closing the gap between us, I felt sluggish as the new abilities were rapidly draining me. Suddenly the wraith stopped and turned back towards me, striking at me again, catching me in the chest. I took a step back from the force of the blow while the creature pulled back a nub as more ash fell to the ground. Throwing a quick jab to the creatures midsection, to my surprise I punched a hole through the it as more white ash fell. The creature's howls were a combination of rage and agony as it slashed out again catching me in my stomach. I felt my s.h.i.+elds quiver slightly but they held which thankfully kept me from being eviscerated.

As I drew in more power the fire wrapped itself around my entire body. Advancing quickly upon the wounded wraith, it retreated in slow motion as black liquid oozed from the creatures wounds and fell to the ground like acrid tar. With a running leap I brought my knee up catching the creature in the chest, causing it to stagger back as more of its form fell away. As it doubled over in pain as I slammed my fists down into the creatures back, then I brought my right knee up catching the wraith in the face. The flames took hold of the creature in a blue haze, producing acrid fumes that caused me to fall back, coughing as I covered my face to s.h.i.+eld myself from the heat of the wraiths burning remains. In a matter of seconds the poor creature was nothing more than a pile of white ash a few feet away. The fire rapidly faded from my s.h.i.+elds as a weariness deep into my soul as I staggered backwards.

Turning at the sound of footsteps quickly approaching I could see Gregory running towards me with fear etched deep across his face. Falling to my knees I swayed weakly in the wind as Gregory reached out and steadied me, keeping me from falling over face first. "Thanks..." I rasped.

Gregory pushed me into a sitting position while he pulled his pistol and scanned the broken house for any other enemies. "What the h.e.l.l was that?" Fear, confusion and excitement mixed in his voice in equal amounts as his eyes continued to search the land.

"Wraith..." I panted.

"Are you going to be alright?" He looked me over carefully a.s.sessing my injuries carefully. "You have definitely looked better."

"I think so." To be clear I wasn't really sure that was the case. I had never had powers like that before. All I could a.s.sume was that the upgrades were taking hold, allowing me to kill something so ancient that even I thought to be immortal. "At least I hope so."

"Glad to see you're so confident about such things." Gregory smiled as he eyed me curiously. "Care to tell me about all the pyrotechnics?"

"You've got me." Hanging my head as I tried to draw what little strength I had left to stand. "That was new."

Gregory's voice shook slightly causing me to look up as his face fell flat. "Do you think you can handle another one or perhaps five of those things?"

Following his gaze I was filled with horror as five of the unholy beasts floated out of the woods. In all my years I had never known the wraith to hunt in packs and today was a really bad day to find out differently. "Oh d.a.m.n." Struggling to my feet with more than a little help from Gregory I pulled the Staff of Gungnir from its sheath on my leg, which instantly sprang to life. "Gregory, it might be time for you to run and never look back."

"Like h.e.l.l." Gregory pulled his weapon and took aim.

"You understand that doesn't do any good right?" Leaning heavily on Gungnir I felt the spear hum to life as it yearned to be unleashed in battle. "If you stay both of us will probably die."

"That's a h.e.l.l of an att.i.tude." Gregory tried to put on a brave face but like anyone facing their imminent death he and I were both scared as h.e.l.l.

The wraiths howled back to one another coordinating their attack. Stepping forward I slashed Gungnir through the air, watching as a wide flaming arc sped toward our attackers causing them to flee. The two in the center of the arc were caught in the fire's wake and howled in agony as white ash fell while the others fled in either direction. The wraiths were far from finished but they were slowed and weary of what might come next.

A bright light appeared, followed by a song so ancient and holy that words in any form would utterly fail to describe its wonders emanated some twenty feet off the ground midway between the wraith and where we stood. As we basked in the glow I felt a surge of power pulse through my body, rejuvenating my entire being. s.h.i.+elding my eyes as the light reached its pinnacle then faded from view revealing Hustahli, the *Great One'. With his arrival the fight was taken completely out of the wraith as they took flight back from whence they came.

The powerful avatar of Hustahli stepped into the mortal world. Like Mir, Hustahli was a mountain of a man, towering several feet above us as he stood proud. The red s.h.i.+rt he wore fit a little too tight across the chest and through the arms as his muscular form shown through, though for all I knew the s.h.i.+rt had been dyed in the blood of his enemies.The black leather pants and combat boots set off the look. His angular jaw and straight nose were both pleasing to the eye and exuded strength and power. His long black hair was pulled back allowing for a perfectly un.o.bstructed view of a vibrant yellow and green tattoo of a mythological bird covering the left side of his face.

Hustahli looked at me with kindness in his deep blue eyes as he smiled. I quickly took a knee, pulling Gregory down as I bowed my head. Hustahli was a being to be revered and as such deserved a show of respect that was due him.

"You have grown my child!" Hustahli sounded pleased and I couldn't help but swell with pride at such a compliment.

His voice boomed across the land causing the dormant flowers in the nearby fields to suddenly bloom. "It pleases me that you have done so well in my absence." He looked to my left as he strolled toward us. "And who is your friend here? He looks to be an exceptional example of the mortal form."

Slowly raising my head so I could see Hustahli, I couldn't help but smile as a sense of joy flowed through the air. "It has been a long time, I'm glad to see you again." Looking back at Gregory I was filled with pride once more that Hustahli found his presence pleasing. "My friend's name is Gregory and he is exceptional by any standard of measurement."

Hustahli smiled at us. "Please stand. We are old friends, are we not?"

Grabbing Gregory under the arm, I hefted him to his feet as I stood, hoping he'd soon snap out of his daze. "I would like to think so."

Hustahli smiled as he turned and walked to an old table and lawn chairs. He somehow squeezed his bulk into one of the chairs before gesturing for us to take a seat opposite him. "It would seem that you needed rescuing once again and as you have fulfilled our previous bargain twofold I felt it was my duty to intervene."

"Thank you for that. I wasn't sure we would make it through the day." That was an outright lie because I was fairly sure that we were about to die. I hadn't really held out any hope we would have survived without his intervention.

"You handled yourself well against the shadow beasts. I'm truly impressed that you were able to stand your ground for so long." Hustahli waved one of his ma.s.sive hands in my direction sending yet another jolt of power through me. "It won't be long before you will be whole again."

Forgetting myself for a moment and the fact that Gregory was right next to me I couldn't stop myself from blurting out. "You know of my condition? My memory loss?"

"I know many things Starborn."

"Do you know who I am?"

"All will be revealed to you in time but for now you must focus upon the task at hand."