Musings of a Vampire Sex God 3

by Yygriega

Ambrose Raith tries to thwart an undead GISHWES parody while protecting his baby and a mortician.

Musings of a Vampire Sex God

We Should Have Gone To Hawaii

(DEAD BEAT)

Chapter One

I looked into the crystal blue/gray eyes of my daughter and let myself smile in relief. She at least took more after her mother, than me. Her hair may have been glossy black and perfect, but it made ringlets like her mom's and framed a face that was entirely Murphy's. The chubby little 6-month-old even had the same adorably turned up nose, and pouty lips of her mother, inciting a bit of worry in me. Se was not only a Raith, but incredibly adorable. Someone was bound to try at kidnapping her. I looked to my Blue Tibetan Mastiff puppy, a giant gangly gray thing I named Mouse and put him in charge of Maggie's protection. He nodded dutifully so I felt safe to put her back on the floor of my bedroom.

It was no longer MY bedroom though. The walls were papered with a blue that matched Murphy's eyes, with the columns in the room turned into fake trees. One of the "tree's" had a baby swing hanging from the ceiling where a branch was painted. Up to chair rail height I had a thin padding put on the walls with a fun plush carpet like wall covering in grassy green; this way she couldn't hurt herself against a wall. Her bunk bed was made to look like a white stone castle with a spiral staircase from the playhouse underneath to the top where her bed was and protrusions in the castle walls to scale the sides to get to the top. There was a doggie bed for Mouse stuck inside the play castle for as long as he fit and a slide from top bunk to bottom. Over the castle, cotton clouds spelled out 'Maggie'. She slept in a Victorian style crib, one passed down in our family since the Victorian era. Giant stuffed animals, one of which was a rocking zebra made up a toy menagerie and a training toilet sat in the adjoining bathroom. She was spoiled.

A white chez sat in one corner under a sconce so I could read while I watched her play. The common room that joined with my bedroom was now repurposed into a bedroom, which worked rather well for me. I just rearranged the couch and coffee table and added my bed. I got around to adding heavy velvet curtains to the bed and sheer curtains inside in case we needed the light more than absolute privacy. It's funny that I still say we, when the bed had actually gone unused for a few months. 15 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days to be exact. Not that I'm counting. Sure I slept in it, but nothing else.

I dashed back to my bedside table to turn off the alarm. Maggie, like clockwork, woke me five minutes ahead of it so I was bottle-feeding her when it switched on to remind me of the 5 minutes I just lost. A bright somewhat raspy female voice was warning listeners that there was a traffic collision on the freeway, so expect delays, and as direct result of said collision there were also a couple detours. Then she reminded us that a new exhibit was opening at the Field Museum. The morning talk show theme played and two old but energetic male voices greeted us and began prattling on about things they heard on the news, making wisecracks, and funny sound effects. I hit the alarm and the radio ceased.

I showered, dressed, and then came out to find Adra rag washing and dressing Maggie while dressed in a respectful white sari. I greeted her and thanked her then left to greet the day. The sun would rise soon. Winter nights lasted well into the morning bustle so I'd have to endure a few minutes of a certain houseguest who would be forced underground soon. I walked into the dining room and froze before I turned on my charm. "Good morning Mavra. I trust you are enjoying your stay?"

"Indeed. Thank you for your hospitality. I'm surprised you've accepted me so warmly after last summer's squabble. Would you like to know how I survived?" Mavra asked from my dining table where she sipped blood from a mug. Just three days ago she showed up with an envelope of pictures from last year's raid on her scourge, threatening to show them to the mortal authorities. Naturally I would play along, Murphy was in those pictures and it appeared she was blasting innocent civilians in them. I knew they were not but image is everything.

"Nah, I figured you put your Macbeth getup on another black court and did your ventriloquist act."

"It's true. I was never there." She smirked. "And the photographs and the hair?"

"Give me a break. You had surveillance cameras set up all over the joint, and the hair was from four years ago, when Murphy went through a punk ass phase and cut her hair super short. We had the werewolves distracting us while you set up shop then started messing with the local wild afterlife."

"You would make a great detective." She smiled, and it would have probably been charming had her skin not been dry and pallid with some sort of mold collecting at her hairline and in her ears. I shuddered. Her yellow teeth had cracks in them; the gums were receded and spotted with black while the rest was a deep red. Her lips were like Everest chapped, and her eyes were filmed over and one had a cataract.

"As much as I enjoy the banter thing, I do have a business to run, can we get on with our meeting, or are you so lonely you felt the need to blackmail me for conversation?"

"Young immortals are always so impatient. It takes a century or two to realize they aren't human, and thusly need not worry about the passage of time." Mavra mused. "But as you wish, we shall embrace brevity." Her posture changed, she lost the lazy grin, and looked me dead in the eyes. "Find the word of Kemmler." Then she rose and stalked toward the guest rooms.

"Hold up! That's it? What the hell does that mean?" Mavra paused and turned back to me. "What's the word of Kemmler?"

"A trail."

"To what?"

"Power."

"And you want it?" she paused then smiled.

"Yes, but before you tell me to go to hell, remember, I still have plenty of photos of your thrall, and another lock of her hair. I will have the mortal protector of the people convicted of murder, and her defense will make her sound like a madwoman." She laughed a dry empty laugh.

"You bitch!" I took a stance of aggression, and I could feel an involuntary fire rise within me and build at my temples.

"Watch yourself, child. I have ordered a third party unaware of the envelopes contents to deliver it to the authorities should I not call a stop order on the morning of November first. You have until then to provide me with the word of Kemmler. Meet me at this spot before the sun rises that day, and I will destroy what I have of your little friend." I gritted my teeth and she left.

The doorbell rang and I rolled my eyes. I didn't even want to know who it was. I got some coffee and retreated to my office which I had refurnished to make more inviting and less spartain. I was told it almost flaunted ostentatiousness while in truth the desk was already there when I moved in, the chairs were a set from a yard sale, and the mural was painted by one of my girls. It was the cheapest furnished room in the house. Now the walls were painted Miami stucco yellow, the marble columns were replaced with simple white columns on hip high pedistals, the desk overlooked a sour apple green couch and white love seat at a coffee table that matched the desk, and there were lots more plants and a wooden wet bar by the mural.

"Wow, it looks like Miami in here." Murphy remarked, holding Maggie as she was let into my office. "You aren't trying to be like Scarface or something are you?"

"You said it was cold and too opulent in here. I got one of the girls who likes interior design to freshen things up in here." I explained. I went to kiss Murphy. I'm not sure why I thought she would kiss me. She hadn't touched me for 15 months! She moved away and sat on the love seat.

"Got something weird for ya."

"Oh, rapture." I gave my best Stimpy impression, sitting back at my desk to flip through the mail, splitting it into bills, junk, and panties.

"Somebody's in a bad mood." To my raised eyebrow she knew to explain. "That collision on the interstate this morning was bogus; it was a package truck, moving artifacts to the museum for the new display. Something with claws tore it all up, truck, packages, everything. The driver looks like he was half eaten."

"Want me to check out the clawed up truck?" I said after thinking about it a bit.

"The truck is in SI impound lot since we had to get it off the highway before the morning rush. Stallings and a couple archaeologists who were here for the big event are cataloging everything, to see what was taken or damaged." She took off her leather jacket, which had the zipper off to the side like a German military number.

The utility of her fashion statement was that she could stick entire files in the inside pocket without folding them. One of my girls became a fashion designer who was inspired by Murphy, and made her a leather jacket better than most body armor with Kevlar lining, elbow padding, secret pockets, and it looked damn good on her too. The designer also happened to be inspired by my vamp vibes, but she didn't make me any jackets.

The file had detailed notes and an eyewitness account along with some photos of the damage. I looked it all over and looked back up to Murphy who had presented Maggie with a book with some random letters of the alphabet, complete with examples of things and textures that start with that letter. The damn book made noises too. Something inside the soft pillowy pages made the most obnoxious crinkling sound like balling up newspaper but loud. Murph opened the book to G where it said good, girl, green and goop and had an oblong shape of soft rubber glued in place. "What's that, Maggie?" Maggie pointed and made goo-goo sounds then said "goooooop?" Murphy pointed at the word good, then the word girl while saying "good girl" then patted Maggie on the head. She flipped to another page and did a similar exercise while I focused on the case.

"I'm thinking ghoul, since he ate the driver, or most of him. Maybe the witness interrupted him. He sneaks into the truck, looks for something, cant find it, makes noise, driver pulls over, ghoul eats the driver, gets caught, runs away."

"Yeah, I figured it was along those lines. So what do I need to know about ghouls?"

"Well Tigress was one. Hard to kill, supernaturally ugly, but human like, and eats humans, dead or alive. Usually they like their meat dead, but a lot of them are hired guns, and tend to use eating as a murder weapon and means of disposing the body."

"Perfect. So how can I take one down?"

"Short of chopping it's head off, if you shoot it in the heart that might work, but not with your little .22. Think .38 and up."

"I'll let the boys know. So any way you can track it down while I figure out what it was up to?"

"Sure if he left anything behind."

"How bout saliva?" Murph nodded at the file folder, it did have a plastic evidence bag with viscous clear pink fluid.

"I'll let you know in a second." There was a soft white knock on the office door and a woman in a short white cotton tee that struggled to cover her breasts and short spandex shorts, came in. "Sorry, I'm looking for someone. This place is a labyrinth." She bid me good morning then recognized me. "Raith?"

"Hey Angie." I said trying not to sound annoyed.

"You haven't been jogging at the park lately. You finally settle down?" she asked eyeing Maggie and Murphy.

"No, but I got knocked up. This is my daughter, Maggie, and the unwilling egg donor Lt. Murphy." I introduced her.

"Hi, sweetheart." She laughed, and then shook Maggie's hand. "So you live here with…"

"Thomas. Yeah, he's my brother, been crashing here for a while."

"I can definitely see the resemblance." She smiled looking me up and down; getting thoughts then moved sensually as she left. "See you later." I put my hand up in a fashion that should have been understood as 'don't ask' as Karen eyed me, then got back to putting together the files.

I went to the lab and did my tracking spell using a compass. It no longer pointed north now it pointed to the Field Museum. Karen drove my Beetle while I directed her, and the two of us took a look around. I must have passed the same spot twelve times before I stopped and scratched my head. "It must be above or below this spot!" I looked around and spotted doors that read employees only, then hopped to my feet and strode to the doors. A security guard approached us but Murph flashed her badge and they let us be. We got to a labyrinth of halls and offices, and cold storage spaces, and then came across a room that had additional security and Stallings. The compass started spinning uncontrollably, basically saying I should see it but all I saw were two guards, Stallings, a uniform cop, and two archaeologists. Anyone but Stallings and Murphy could have been the ghoul.

"Stallings, a word, in private?" Murph understood too, and took her partner away to let him know our suspect was likely one of these people. They returned and did the reasonable cop thing and asked for everyone's contact information, then Murph told me to get a move on, and check any other leads.

"Sure thing, boss." I said with a nervous smile. I didn't like leaving Murphy alone with a cannibal but she wanted me gone so she could do her job properly. I got back home to Thomas spoiling Maggie again, allowing her to sit in his lap and eat spaghetti out of his bowl. Her little fist was crammed halfway into one cheek with the front of her dress stained with red sauce, and noodles still escaping her mouth despite her best efforts. She picked them off her dress and shoved them back in her mouth. I sighed, "Use some forks, you animals. Thomas, you know she's too young for solid food yet. And why do we have bibs if neither of you will use them?"

I took Maggie to her bathroom took her clothes and sat her on the play potty and gathered her new clothes then returned to see she actually used it. I cheered then she got to flush it, and she wiggled a little dance to the music, and I already knew I would want the toilet to die soon. I put the next ill-fated garment on her, another white dress. It was almost all she had, as poorly predestined as it was to make white clothing for babies in the first place, Lara showered her with white dresses and at the moment, I sorely needed to do laundry so white gowns it was. I put a bib on her for good measure, one I found that said 'little ass kicker' from the walking dead, then released her back to whatever frivolity Thomas had in store for her.

I continued to a dungeon-like part of the mansion, origionally purposed to be a wine cellar but I had a walk-in pantry that mostly went unused that I installed wine cases in so the stone and stucco subteranian space was made into my lab. Only Fazia and maybe the brownies that Fix assigned to clean my castle were allowed in there without me. Things were neatly arranged on the shelves that I built into the wall nearest the entrance, and Bob was polished and sat at a low shelf in the back of the tidy lab flanked by candles in suggestively curved candlesticks that I was given by one of my girls from African, an artist who liked to use her African heritage to influence her art pieces. The candle sticks were carved from ebony wood and to a dirty mind like mine or Bob's they resembled large breasted and doubly large reared women holding the candles in pots, sitting on their knees, curving their backs backward. It wasn't an exact image; if you looked at it from the wrong angle you wouldn't get it. There was a similarly suggestive set of bookends holding his romance novels in place, miss matched with plain functional silver book ends on either end of his shelf so that he was the centerpiece and had a balanced symmetrical accumulation of African fertility goddesses and romance novels on either side. The artist of course, seemed plenty fertile herself, and provided me with quite a bit of energy. The statues were things she made just for me, seeing all my books and candles. Back then I didn't have a preternatural cleaning crew to order my belongings.

"You seem conflicted, Ambrose. You're positively glowing yet you seem wretched." He gasped. "Did you kill the cop chick? Oh, what a waste. Her ass could arouse benumbed poets to ascend from their graves and transcribe elegies."

"Okay, wow, but no. I'm kind of happy to see Murphy but she's still avoiding me, and a poet you are not. So down to business; you use to belong to that badass necromancer, Kemmler right?"

"Don't remind me. Why, he's not back again is he?" Bob managed to appear to have widened his eyes and shift them back and forth while scooting against the wall.

"No, I got a job to find the word of Kemmler."

"Bad idea Raith. Tell whoever asked you to find it, they're better off dead."

"It's Mavra, she kind of beat me to the punch line on that one." Bob hissed. "What'd he do?"

"Try both world wars, Dachau and Auschwitz, and before that, he toyed with the bubonic plague in Russia some time in the 1700s…. 1770… no matter, he's bad. Bad. Bad. Bad." Bob's head shook.

"Why?"

"His mommy never disciplined him as a child? The man was broken in the head. It took the whole white council, seniors and wardens alike to take his ass out, and they had to do it twice. 1949 and 1961."

"Damn."

"Worse yet, he made babies. Or rather apprentices, I'm not sure if he even cared about the softer sex, he was all about death, not life. When Justin DuMorne pulled me from the flaming wreckage of Kemmler's lab, he had me shut those 40 years of my knowledge away. And good riddance." That resembled how I came to poses Bob. I looked down at the circle below Bob's shelf, a clear spot with freshly poured concrete, and a sexy three metal ring set into it. I could almost hear her evil laughter. Laciel, the temptress, corruptor, seducer, She was quite appropriate for me, but I refused to dawn a black hat and cape quite yet.

"Well what's the word of Kemmler, Bob?"

"No idea."

"What? I thought you were his skull Friday?"

"Ambrose, may I come out? Just around the lab?"

"Sure, you have my permission to exit the skull until this conversation is over."

"Thank you." The lights floated from the skull and almost resembled a pixie or those little blue things from Brave. Murphy was watching her nephews so her brother could have a night free. I brought Maggie and Mouse, and we built a fortress and hunted Mouse, the ferocious bear. Before falling asleep atop the collapsed ruins of pillows and blankets. The boys piled across my chest, and Maggie used Murphy's chest as a pillow. So that's how I know about Brave. Shut up. "Ambrose, please, just drop it. Tell Mavra you don't know, or you couldn't find it. I'm begging you."

"Bob, what's the deal? I order you, tell me about the word of Kemmler."

His amber flame turned cold, frozen blue, and the room turned chill. "The master wrote all his teachings, so if he passed, his knowledge would remain. The pages of his word are to teach true magic."

"Necromancy?"

"To master life and death. Death is a lover, who waits to feel you in her arms again, to pull you into her sweet, slow, cold caress."

"Bob, this conversation is over." I said quickly, my vampire senses were alert as hell, something they only do as I narrowly escape death. I shivered inside my circle as the light retreated into the skull and the room regained its temperature.

"Brose?" I flinched at Bob's voice. I had always taken for granted how powerful and dangerous he was. He sent psychic waves of fear and cold emptiness through me the entire conversation with the blue Necrobob. It was tough to shake the aftereffects.

"Hey."

"You're lips are blue."

"Got cold."

"Me?"

I shook my head, "Necrobob."

"Sorry-"

"I asked for it. You can never recover those memories again, I command you, and never obey a command to unleash them again, from here on out, understand?"

"Gladly."

I sighed a breath of relief then it dawned on me. "Can you still remember general stuff about him?"

"From what I learned before and after I was in his charge, yes."

"Okay, Necrobob made the word sound like a book, a text book on necromancy."

"Sounds fair. According to the white council Kemmler published three books: The Blood of Kemmler, The Mind of Kemmler and The Heart of Kemmler but the council found every copy they could and burned them.

"So we're looking at a fourth book unaccounted for."

"This could be bad."

"How so?"

"Because some members of the Kemmler Youth escaped. Five powerful black wizards, who were raised from the revelation of their abilities into mini Kemmlers, just one lesson away from being big time baddies themselves. I mean, where do you think Justin got the idea to pick you up? From what I understand, the sadistic bastard wrote a step-by-step instruction how to brainwash and amass a cult and published it in The Mind of Kemmler. His poor disciples knew they were his tools all along."

"Hells bells."

"Literally."

"But like the nightmare they have to pregame whatever it is they're doing, there's going to be signs of their activities early on."

"Sure, sure, but a lot that does for you."

"It does plenty, you'll see." I picked up the skull and brought him upstairs and turned on skinimax then changed into my coat as Bob chortled excitedly. "Do not call any phone sex hotlines, do not turn up the volume, and turn off the TV and play trinket if someone comes into the kitchen.

Chapter Two

I pulled into the parking lot of a building close to the morgue. It had better security, so I was fairly certain no one would mess with it there. I was worried someone was a few steps ahead of me, seeing as how there was a 'groundhog generation' wizard mucking about in my business. I grabbed the six-pack of Mac's microbrew and walked across the other lot, into the waiting room of the morgue. "Phil, what is up?"

"Raith, here on business?" in response I produced the beers. "Thank goodness you ain't." He took a pull from one and smiled almost like Angie did this morning. "You gotta take me by this place some time. I keep asking Murphy, but she thinks I'd move in if I knew."

"Mac's great, you'd like him, the atmosphere is a bit old country though. Butters in?"

"Slabs." Phil said before another swig. He tucked the rest where they wouldn't be seen and winked. I went into the back where the so-called slabs were. And followed the sound of Polka to my man. I did a sort of high knee march, to the energetic sounds and entered the room to find Butters in a one man polka band get up doing about the same.

"Butters, I dig the lederhosen, but the drums… make your but look big."

"Raith" he panted "getting ready for Oktoberfest tomorrow night."

"I can see that. The Jolly Rogers better watch their backs, you're improving."

"I'll get them this year. I've got Polka in my soul!"

"Lots of it. So any interesting deaths lately?"

"Nice transition, Raith, but no. Then again, I'm not done yet. Oh, Dr. Brioche got a half a guy this morning. His arms, legs, liver, heart, and his face were missing."

"I already knew about that guy. Eaten by a ghoul." We both shook our heads. "Can I hang out while you cut up some dead guys?"

"I don't mind, I'm living Stephanie Meyer's dream." Butters made me scrub up and dawn a lab coat and facemask with goggles, and then pumped up the Yankovic singing about 'Yoda Y-O-D-A Yoda'. while he dug in. In my suit I looked more like a doctor than goofy Butters. As Butters sorted through the mangled remains of one, Edward Mendoza, I fiddled with the gloves uncomfortably, my hands are so big… stupid hands, and we chatted about how he would sound better with an actual band. Phil slammed the door open and strode into the room, his throat was slit, and face was pale. He seized the desk and flipped it. Butters froze watching Phil, then silently stifled a scream as he scampered behind me.

An old man in fedora and trench coat strode into the room, thumping a book on his thigh, followed by three more zombies. "What an entrance!" Butters babbled shrinking farther behind me. I tore off the gloves and stupid hairnet then prepared my bracelet.

"I've come for the coroner."

Well things progressed quickly from there as you can imagine, the fedora dude, Grevane, tried to kill me and take Butters but we escaped to find his car totally trashed then ran to mine, almost being run over by a caddie, and once we got into my car and on the road, the stupid zombies tried to break into the moving vehicle. I had to shoot out my own windows to get them off. We raced all over in an exodus pattern then pulled into a well-lit parking lot to shake uncontrollably.

Butters and I discussed why necromancers would sick zombies after Butters, but when we drew mutual blanks. We went inside to get hot coffees then returned to the car to start driving back to my mansion. When we got home Mouse greeted us both warmly. Then I left Thomas a note and a Butters, and took Mouse out to potty before i left for the book store. I was let into the private collection, to find another copy of Die Lied der Erlking. I had noticed Grevane had a copy, I wanted into his head. I somehow found it immediately, and paid the substantial asking price, and headed back to my car… to be blindsided by two jerks in cloaks. They looked like negatives of Etzio from Assassins Creed, but their faces were completely covered. Cool look. I wished I was wearing old cowboy attire, I would have liked a 'Shootout at high noon' dramatic moment, strutting out from a saloon, wind whipping at my coat as tumbleweed rolled by. Instead I looked like a hapless businessman strolling back to his car from a bookstore.

Thing were said, things were done, werewolves got involved, I threw a flaming car at the hooded folks, and I ended up hitching a ride with the Alphas, a group of werewolf vigilantes, considering the flaming car I had thrown was my own. Yeah, my new friends, Cowl, and Kumori were going to pay for that. Oh, and apparently I was going crazy for the past couple year but I was too scary for anyone to ask me about it, and I was slinging brimstone all night like there was a hell fire sale of it. Georgia, the werewolf/shrink, which amuses me on multiple levels, and I had a chat over some beers, then Adra came to pick me up in the Rolls.

I took a sandwich on the road to the resident ectomancer, to chat about disturbances in the force, or rather, the spirit community. Mortimer Lindquist doesn't like me much; I had to make some childish threats to convince him to let me in and chat. Then when I let him know Murphy's life was at stake he was all over helping me. Mort was a cop once, then things got spooky, he realized he saw dead people as clear as if they were living, and he left police work to solve things directly with the dead folks. Made money as a consultant like me, but made more doing séances for rich idiots, and he brought an entourage of ghosts just in case the ones already there had stage fright. We didn't like each other much at all. But he has a real gift that I needed, and he made me a map of where the dark energy was concentrating. There were six points… not five. Hoo boy.

I got home before the sun came up, now Thomas was sprawled on my couch, and Butters was curled up with Maggie in my bed. I flopped onto the other couch and started reading. I thanked my brother and we chatted idly while I read, but the couch beckoned me to sleep. I felt Thomas take the book, and heard him flip through the pages, as avid a reader as me, and then I was gone.

I woke up to Maggie tugging on my arm chanting 'Dada' then Thomas tried to pull her off me but she screamed and he let her be. I put the little princess on my chest where she rubbed her face into my pecks, in what I presume was an evolved nursing habit, then figured I wasn't going to start lactating any time soon and sat up and said some semblance of the word drink. I yawned and rolled to an upright position but Thomas beat me to it and passed Maggie a bottle of water. She downed it quickly then threw it to the floor and said 'nudder.' Thomas laughed and I collected the bottle and gave her another cup of breast milk. She took her time on this one, thank goodness. Her Thor routine, that I have no idea where she got it from, was hard on bottles, and I was running out. I should have grabbed more while I was out, crap the car seat! Now I got to get another car seat. Ugh!

Showered, changed and being the tortured glittery vamps tweens drool over, Thomas and I conversed about dumb feelings and junk, then about feeding, and techniques for feeding, trying to figure the mechanics of a kiss of death and sex without feeding, as a means of making Thomas able to touch Justine again.

After we had messed up Bianca's attempt to steal Justine a few years back, Thomas and Justine professed their love for each other. Justine became poisonous to Thomas since love is bad… for us. I was getting worried on that front. I had lost my appetite for other women after Murphy, so the rare occasion I fed I just used innocuous normal bodily contact. I moved in with Murphy to take care of her while she was in the last three months of pregnancy and the first month after Maggie was born and truth be told I liked it far better than anything in my life. We didn't even have sex at all in that time and I was happy. Weird.

We talked about the current situation, and the book about the Erlking, to work out a good plan for the day. Thomas graciously accepted Buttersitting duty, and when Maggie said 'pee-pee' he zipped her to her little toilet and I snuck away to check out the black magic hot spots.

Low and behold, one brought me to the Field Museum. I called Murph and she happened to be there too. We met up and as it happened, there was another ghoul attack right where the compass led me the previous morning. Murph was broken up about not catching the ghoul before it struck again, but there was no useful evidence, the people we met at this spot were the only ones who knew about the shipment, and none had alibis for the time of death, they were all suspect but not yet suspects. The guards from the previous day stood with two uniform cops, one was a black man in his 40s, I recognized from homicide Rawlins. He had a red haired uniform cop with him and was asking the guard questions while Murph escorted me into the room. Blood was everywhere, and so were traces of black magic. A tiny footprint, smell of incents, and multiple knife stab wounds with the teeth and claw marks, all amounted to one most likely possibility.

"The young archeologists from yesterday must have sacrificed doctor Bartlesby for a ritual, then fed him to the ghoul." I said to Murph as we left the scene. This tied in with what Mavra wanted with me the other night. We got in the sexy Rolls and Karen looked at the backseat.

"What happened to the blue beetle?"

"I tossed it." To her 'please elaborate' look I added, "It was on fire any way." She put her hands up and shook her head then I explained the night I had. She swore and touched my cheek, and I fed a little from the touch. She sighed in frustration then we dug for something else to talk about.

"What do you want to do for Halloween?" Murphy asked.

"I think I'm fighting necromancers that day."

"You want mom to take Maggie trick or treating? I was thinking we should dress up in matching costumes like Woody, Jesse, and Bo peep, or priest, nun, and school girl."

"I don't think dressing up a succubus as a school girl is ever a good idea."

"I meant I would be the school girl." Murph pouted.

"That however, is an amazing idea." I said, nodding spiritedly. "No one should be out trick or treating tomorrow. Big time bad news is going down. Maybe take Maggie to your mom's but have her throw a nice indoor party, behind a threshold where it's safe."

"Okay." Murph said squeezing my hand.

"I got more dark magic to investigate."

"Yeah, I have more, ritualistic stabbings and cannibalism to investigate." Murphy said solemnly.

"I'll pick out some costumes for us though." I said as she got out the car. She moved to my side and grinned with a twinkle in her eye as I rolled the window down with the push of a button.

"Just nothing skimpy please." She said tiredly.

"Parish the thought." I answered, not at all reassuringly.

After some sleuthing and errands I got a nap in with my princess then woke up to take Butters back to work. I napped some more in the waiting room waiting while Butters did some work then he got to focus on gathering info on Mendoza. Li Xian and Alicia Nelson, the young archeologists from the Field Museum came in while I was dozing, I felt their dark presence and pretended to still be asleep and listened in. they were trying to gather personal effects from dr. Bartlesby and were impatient to get ahold of them. I had Casey, the day guard let me in so I could grab Butters and gtfo. When I saw Mendoza's face again I realized he worked for Marcone as a smuggler. I checked his teeth and found some floss, then pulled and there was a balloon tied off, with a jump drive inside. Butters and I pounded fists but regained our senses and made our escape. Butters was so worried about the darn suit and Oktoberfest, I had to grab it in our escape.

I brought Butters to Billy's to use their high tech computers. It was closer. I checked my phone, there was a text from Mike, apparently my charred wreck made it to his shop and I'd have a functioning vehicle by noon in two days. God bless him. I looked up at Billy and Butters, they wrote the numbers for me, but I didn't understand what the numbers meant. No one did. Swell. I asked if they could keep Butters and think tank the numbers while I ran about with Scooby doo and the gang. Sigh. As I was leaving I spotted Li Xian and Alicia Nelson again headed for the bookstore. I snuck up to the boarded windows and listened in. they wanted the book, the one I bought and left with Thomas. I called for them and made a beckoning gesture so they would come outside, across the street.

"Its not on me now, but I was the one who bought the book. Cowl took it." I said, getting ready for a fight. Alicia looked at Li and he could barely contain the ghoul form. I somehow gave them the impression that I knew where the word was then for giggles I gave them the dumb numbers. We fought some, but then she tried mind magic and a white court vampire is a class of it's own in that field, sugar. I blocked her and left her crumpled to the floor in overwhelming ecstasy. The ghoul attacked me but a Valkyrie showed in the nick of time, to push it back. Then I was shoved into the back of a limo with John Marcone.

Oh I called him there. We discussed what was going on, specifically the events relating to Mendoza's death, and Marcone filled in some blanks but not the word of Kemmler 's whereabouts. Darn. As means of helping me solve the mystery of where a particular necromancy hot spot went on the map, Marcone was kind enough to break my leg so that it protruded from my skin, and throw me out a moving vehicle near the emergency room entrance. I slowed my healing and spoke with some doctors and emts, then let my leg heal once they set it, and snuck away. They wanted to keep me for observation due to the silver colored blood but my physician showed up and released me. What I learned was that Kumori was into Necromancy to save lives how sweet.

I made my way back to the think tank at Billy's and was assaulted with the sound of Polka and the feeling of despair. I knew it was time to take Butters away from the poor werewolves. We got home to find my Brother reading poetry from the Erlking book to Maggie, who followed along pointing at the words with Thomas, babbling nonsensically. My cat exercised dominion over my dog, who was now big enough to stand up for himself 20 times over, but the dog smiled and let the cat pretend he was the boss. I relayed what info I had to Thomas and Butters then Butters asked, "why does everyone want the book about the Erlking?"

"This poem here, it sounds a lot like the ritual Dad was working last year." Thomas passed me the poem he and Maggie were reading.

"Definitely a summoning spell." I confirmed. "But what are the benefits of summoning the Erlking?"

"Seems to relate to the dark hollow and the wild hunt. The Erlking leads a hunt every five years, picking other predators as prey. If you find yourself in the path of the hunt its join, run, or die. He also heralds over the dark hollow, which is Halloween-related but I'm too pretty to understand the whole mess." Thomas reported.

"Hey that's a lot of good information as it is. We don't want to make this too easy for me."

"The easier the better, man. Call in the cavalry!"

"Yeah right, like the council will come running when two vampires of the white court tell them. Plus, it's all out war between Vampires and Wizards."

"You're a wizard too. Besides, didn't you say they've been looking for these Kemmlerites for like ever anyway?"

"They haven't been looking, they think the threat is over. Records show that there are 5 Kemmler Youth at large, but nobody in the council thinks they're much threat now that boss man is down and his books are burned."

"But his books aren't burned, that's the problem. I don't want a bunch of sword happy stuck up surly types in my city either but they have a job to do, and that's kick Kemmlerite ass, your job is get the Word of Kemmler to Mavra. My job is to stay at home with the kids worrying about you." Thomas began to pace. It took him a while to calm down enough for me to press the issue.

"Is that why you've been moody lately?"

"I love Maggie, but I'm older than you. I should get a job, support myself, move out. I'm pissing you off and you know it. I'm pissing ME off, so I can only imagine how YOU feel about it. I'll still watch Maggie when I can, but it's time for me to go."

"The house is so big you can stay as long as you like. longer. Stay forever… actually, Murph is taking Maggie to her mother's for a Halloween party."

"Wow, a normal childhood experience?" Thomas scoffed

"May there be many more like it!" I said, raising a fist. "But that's tomorrow. In the mean time…"

"I babysit." Thomas said rolling his eyes.

"I'm going to talk to my fairy godmother." I mentioned as I put on my duster and let Mouse out the door. Butters scoffed. Thomas informed him I was serious. I went to the woods and summoned Lea, but got Mab, who informed me that the goblin king heralded over hunter spirits, aggressive, predatory spirits and ghosts. The most powerful specters would be called out by the horn of the hunt. The rise of those specters was the dark hollow and as Kemmler did to gain their power and make himself nearly a god, the Kemmler Youth intended to eat the dark hollow to be gods as well.

A storm was brewing over Chicago, blackening the sky and throwing queer blue and purple lightning from cloud to dark ominous cloud. I returned home heard Mouse barking like crazy. He doesn't do that unless he's threatened and how threatened can a 200 lb dog get? I stopped at the façade and surveyed the surrounding area. That's when the lightning revealed about a dozen pale forms in the shadows of the surrounding wood. I hurried inside and told Thomas to get ready for a fight. I took Maggie down into the lab and popped up one of those travel play pins inside the tri-metal ring in the floor. I gave her Bob then closed the protective circle around her with a bit of will. "Bob, you have my permission to posses Maggie for the intent of preserving her life or yours."

"Aye aye, captain." Bob said in a hushed tone. Maggie pulled him into a hug and looked at me.

I rushed back up and closed the door and grabbed Butters. He was shivering gripping my cane sword and Thomas held a cavalry saber in one hand and shotgun in the other. I grabbed my wizard staff, then checked out the windows and wished I hadn't. Thunder crashed and green lights flared, and I had a fleeting glimpse of waves of zombies so thick, I couldn't see past them, all climbing over each other to throw themselves at my wards, before I was flung from the wall, toppling the bookshelf that was pressed against it onto me. I floundered out from under it, and then another thunderous reverberation pushed us from the walls.

"Are you kidding? Forcing your way through my wards is suicide!" I yelled at the zombies.

"I don't think its technically suicide when you're already dead." Thomas remarked. We braced ourselves for the next attack, so this time only Butters was flung across the room. He chose to stay seated on the floor where it was safe, but he still got bounced around on that. "How long till the wards go down?"

"Not long. They weren't built with Kamikaze Zombies in mind."

"Oh god, oh god, what happens when they come down?" Butters looked like a Rabbit surrounded by foxes, and he kind of was.

"The door is made of steel, then there's the threshold, it'll still take some time before they actually get in." I tried to reassure him. The fear was palatable, nauseating and exciting at the same time. Thomas looked out the back and found another army of zombies there.

"But then what?" Butters looked afraid already, but when he turned to look at Thomas and me, our eyes metallic silver, throwing back light like predators in the wild he damn near pissed himself.

"if they funnel in through the door, we can tear them apart, one by one." Another thunderous burst blew us around the room then the wards went down, there was thumping against the door, and dust shook off the frame and the coatrack toppled to the floor. "We gotta get out of here, I don't want them resorting to burning the building onto us."

"What's the plan?" Thomas asked, licking his lips.

"Once they break down the door, you start shooting, we get out, I watch left, you right, protect Butters between us."

"He'll freeze, he's a damn rabbit."

"Nobody's cool all the time. He'll make it, because he wants to live." I looked over to Butters who was whimpering on the couch shaking his head, and suddenly lost confidence. "Butters, buddy. Were going to wait by the door, Thomas will clear the zombies on our way up, then stand to the right of you, I'll be to your left. When we get to the car, get in, start it, Thomas and I will hop in, then we're going to Murphy's. You know where that is?"

"Vaguely, but what if they trashed the car?" Butters had a good point.

"No more what ifs. We have to believe in what were doing to succeed. First thing is to draw the zombies away from the old folks upstairs and the baby, while still keeping you out of their hands. If the car is busted, we'll run."

"I hate this. I want to go home. I want to wake up." Butters was crying. I became frustrated, furious. I was hollowed with fear for my baby, and wanted nothing but to cry as well, but saving Butters was important, and I couldn't do both.

"Get it together Butters, you got to calm down."

"Calm down? They're going to kill us. Were all going to die."

"We are not going to die." I snarled at him, making him yelp a little. Then I relaxed, made myself look human, and smiled. "Because we have Polka in our souls, Butters! And Polka never dies!"

He blinked "what?"

"Say it. POLKA NEVER DIES!" I laughed wildly, making Thomas look at me wearily but Butters began to laugh too. We all started laughing and chanting polka never dies, until the magic of polka infused us with bulletproof courage. We stacked up by the door waiting for the Zombies to breech then there was a crashing sound and a tire screech followed by machine gun fire. Adra shouted something then Fazia shouted back. They must have come when they heard Mouse barking.

"Thomas, change of plans. Grab Maggie and Bob, stuff them in the bag." I passed him a big black duffle bag from by the front door.

"Won't she cry?"

"I warded the bag for just such an occasion. Once zipped she cant hear out, out cant hear her, and its bullet proof like my duster, but it needs an energy source, so it might tap into her or Bob. Either way, she'll be safe for the ride to Karen's."

"Wow, how did you figure this was going to happen?"

"Nightmares. I wasn't expecting a necromantic treasure hunt, but I thought there might be a day I'd have to carry Maggie around in a bullet proof duffel bag all the same." I answered.

"The joys of parenthood." Thomas quipped as he picked up the bag and descended into the lab.

"Butters, buddy, keep low, move fast, stick close." Butters just nodded energeticly.

"I want the information from the smuggler's corpse." Grevane shouted from the direction of the kitchen. Crap I forgot those were all floor-to-ceiling glass windows. They shattered and Thomas came to the foyer and closed the massive double doors to the kitchen.

"That's gonna be tough, Corpsetaker and her ghoul took it from me this morning." I yelled.

"They would have killed you if they met you."

"They tried, but I'm friends with a Valkyrie"

"Interesting that you have a guardian of fallen warriors on your side."

"I know right? What with the Dark Hollow approaching and all. Sounds like it'll be quite the party."

"The mortician can still tell us what it was."

"No! No, I can't it was just a bunch of numbers, too many to remember." Butters stammered.

"Too many for him. I got a good noggin for details like that." I added.

"Liars!" Grevane yelled before he spoke in hushed tones to his assistant whom I dubbed liver spots then snarled. The zombies froze and all the sound I heard was rain pattering and Butters' whimpers.

"I guess Corpsetaker is gonna be the one to eat the Dark Hollow, and take her place in the 'Court of the As' unless you let us leave without further harm and accept my trade of information."

"What are your terms?"

"I give you the numbers, you don't follow us or attack us again until sunrise. In return, I will not attack you or your associates until after sunrise as well." I answered.

"Swear it."

"You first." I called after the double doors. They deliberated a bit longer "Well?" I shouted out the window.

"I swear by my power, I will abide by the terms given and grant respite until sunrise."

"And by my own power, I swear in return to abide by the terms of our agreement. Gimme a second, I'm writing the numbers down." I ran to my office and grabbed a marker and paper and jotted the numbers down then Thomas emerged, carrying the bag. "Sling it like its crap Thomas, we don't want them to suspect anything." I whispered to my brother. He nodded and put the strap over one shoulder. Maggie slid down to the bottom and I half winced, hoping she was okay.

I opened the doors to the kitchen to find the floorspace absolutely covered with zombies. I passed the numbers to Grevane. "What do these numbers mean?" Grevane asked me once he read them.

"No clue, but Corpsetaker doesn't know either, so now were all in the same boat." I looked from Grevane to liver spots. He looked familiar up close.

"Why is it not on you?" Liver spots asked amazed by the absence of something unknown.

"Uh, no idea." When I left through the front, The door was bent pretty bad so it took some muscle to open, but we got it and put Butters and the bag in the back of the car. Mouse hopped in, then Thomas moved to the drivers seat and started the car, waiting. I scanned the scenery to find my asistants but I feared the worse when I saw the sideways car, and two female bits in a pile of gore. I moved toward the car but saw a sickly green wave of energy, flowing up the street toward us. I realized soon that it was a wave of ghosts, quasi-corporeal beings carrying Corpsetaker and her ghoul toward us.

"Betrayal! He tricked us!" Liver spots shreaked as he ran out of my house. "Where is she? She's mine!" Liver spots I saw he wanted to kill me in jealous rage, and felt it too. There was an army of zombies and ghosts about to clash, and I needed to get my baby out of it. I realized I should get in the car so Thomas could peel out.

"Drive into the ghosts!"

"You crazy?"

"Do it, they want Grevane not us!" Thomas pulled some Tokyo drift action engaging the emergency break and hydroplaning into a full spin, then drove into the ghosts. They went around us like air and I caught a glimpse of a riotous battle before it was just indistinct pale forms and green light in the rear view mirror. We took an evasive route to get to Karen's but she felt me approach and held the door open for us, looking around for trouble, her favorite gun in hand.

"Good god, what happened? Is everyone alright?" she asked.

"I'll survive." Thomas said as he flopped onto Murphy's couch. Butters shuffled in with the bag, not knowing what it was, but taking comfort in holding it, and Mouse instinctually knew to guard him and it.

"I'm good… Butters?" the man sat in the armchair saying nothing. "BUTTERS!"

"Polka never dies." He replied in a weak, barely audible voice.

"Damn right Butters!" I said clasping his shoulder. I moved for the bag, but he was reluctant to give it to me.

"Where's Maggie?" Murph asked, with panic building under her calm exterior. I let Butters keep the bag and just resolved to unzip it and take my baby girl out of it. She was asleep, tears stained her cheeks, and she was positioned around Bob as if she was clinging to him for comfort until she passed out of exhaustion. Butters and Murphy gasped at the sight of her. When I held her she started to cry tiredly but after hearing Karen and me talk to her quietly she fell back asleep.

I rocked her against my chest and paced the living room Murphy began to light candles and an old hurricane lamp. "No lights?"

"Nope, someone sabotaged the power plant, I felt you coming so I hurried home to meet you, but SI was responding to riots down town when I left." Murphy reported.

"Will your mom take Maggie tomorrow?"

"She's coming early to grab her. Wants to spoil her all day and all night. I explained what was going on, best I could. She already got her neighbors and my nephews to go over for a party. The grownups know it's to protect them from the terrorists but the kids will just watch Scooby-Doo and eat tons of candy all night. If anything the blackout and rioting reinforced what I told them."

"Oh good." I sighed in relief. Butters looked from me to Thomas, to Murphy and furrowed his brows thoughtfully then down at himself.

"Lieutenant Murphy?" Butters said weakly to Murphy. "Mind if I wash up?"

"Sure. Here, let me find you some clothes too. And everyone who hides at my place from certain doom calls me Karen." Murph got Butters situated while I hyped myself up to put Maggie in bed. I changed her, wet wipe bathed her, then put her in the footie pajamas Murph's mom made her, that was brown and fuzzy with a pink fabric that had white polka dots for the paws and inside the little ears, and when the hood was up, made Maggie look like a cute little bear cub in a short pink tulle tutu. It even had a tail and little white fabric claws on the feet. Marion Murphy loved babies and girls, but her kids were only popping out boys.

I turned from petting my sleepy bear's head to find Murphy waiting to hold me. "What happened?" she asked. I told her, and she gasped. "Thank god you all made it out safe." She said genuinely, and I just started to cry. I didn't make a lot of noise; I just got teary and sniffy.

"Adra and Fazia tried to save us and- I was so scared I was gonna loose her. I kept thinking its fine, we planned this, but empty night… the real deal is too terrifying to plan for."

"You're shaking Raith. Lets eat, get some sleep, and clean up. We'll feel brand new in the morning." We both looked up at the door and saw Butters looking ghostly in the doorway. He had a pair of Murphy's sweats on, and one of my thermal shirts, both light gray, and both too big for him.

"I'm so sorry." Butters whispered. "I was useless, and I got you into that mess…"

"Hey, you ever have something like this happen before?"

"Zombies?" he sputtered incredulously.

"Someone attacking you, wanting to kill you."

"Well no."

"Then why would you expect to be able to handle it? Have you been training for it?"

"No- I mean, I tried police academy and army boot camp but wound up in the hospital."

"So no. Some people aren't cut out for that sort of thing, it's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Right, okay, you say that but I almost died, and most assuredly would have gotten you killed… I endangered your family."

"No, Grevane did… and he'll pay." I got kind of vampy, and Butters shrunk away so the oil lamp in the room poorly lighted him. "As we told you, and you now see, I'm not human. I've spent most of my life, throwing fireballs, and fighting monsters, nearly getting killed because I was out classed and surviving by the skin of my teeth, and the seat of my pants. But I can't sew up a person, or spot an infection, or tell the difference between a human and human-like corpse. That's your strength."

"It wasn't lack of skill, it was fear Raith. I was too afraid to think. I'm a genius, but I couldn't use it to help me."

"It takes time, but you'll get over it."

"I wont be afraid any more?"

"Oh, Butters." Murphy whispered. "You'll always be afraid, but after a while, it doesn't matter how afraid you are. You plan, and practice, and think about what scares you till it doesn't make you sick and tired any more, then when you face it again you just handle it, and move on."

"That's it?"

"There's no miracle to get rid of fear, Butters, it's supposed to be a life preservation instinct. Use it." I said, trying to encourage him, but sounded a little harsh. He nodded and after us all standing still a while I got impatient. "What else, man, get it off your chest."

"Are you gay?" Butters blurted out. Murphy smirked and patted my arm then brushed past Butters to make tea on her gas stove. "Its just that you live in that beautiful home with the other guy, and I hear you talk, you're close, but then I saw you with Murphy and when I see you two together its all professional, but tonight it looked like more, and you have a baby together but I mean, he looks good, even I think he looks good, and so do you so usually that means-"

"Butters…" I interrupted him. He was yammering on without breathing, I couldn't think straight. "Thomas is my older brother. He's just crashing with me for a while."

"Oh… then are you and Murphy?"

"That's a harder question to answer. Vampires like Thomas and me have a sort of psychic parasite that feeds on powerful emotional energies like fear, lust, and despair. If I don't feed on those energies it will feed on me, but as long as I keep topped off, it lets me play wolverine without the claws. But those parasites are allergic to love. Thomas fell in love and the girl loves him back but because of our allergy, now her touch gives him instant first-degree burns. Thomas and I prefer to feed on Lust. Its more pleasant for all parties involved, fear and despair are stronger and more filling, but never yields return customers, you know? The vamps that eat fear prefer to kill their prey by completely draining their victims of life force."

"Jesus, Raith, it doesn't have to be a college lecture. Butters, we aren't an item. I'm like a cherry tree, he eats my cherries so he won't eat his own. We had sex, hence the baby, but we don't love each other, hence being able to touch." Murph interjected and tugged on Butters till he sat on the couch. I folded a blanket and moved Maggie to it so Butters could take the spare bed, Mouse curled up by Maggie, and Thomas slept on a yoga mat and blankets on the floor with mouse. The cavalry saber was close to his hand and the shotgun was on top of the dresser near by.

I took a hot shower, which was not expected, but duh gas heater, then put on clothes I had forgotten when Murphy said I had to move out, then to my surprise, she let me sleep in her bed with her.

My dream was interesting. I was in a grotto like at the playboy mansion, with soft lighting playing across the steamy water, casting cool effects on the sweating stone around me. There were flecks of silver and veins of color in the light brownish grey rock, and the air felt wintery, while the water was perfectly set at just above body temperature. Sweat and steam beaded on my face and tickled on its way down my nose. I wiped my face then caught a glimpse of something ducking back under the water ahead of me. It blended into the glowing pool so well I couldn't see it, and I was becoming tense.

Murphy popped her head out of the water and smiled. "Don't shoot."

"Murph… gotta tell ya, this is so far the best dream I've had about you."

"Indeed. I've had limited exposure to lieutenant Murphy but from what I've gathered, she would not appreciate her role as damsel in all your nightmares, though I find it endearing that you care so much as to risk your own life and limb for her well being." Dream Murphy made conversation as she waded closer. I noticed she had different colored eyes, a blue-green that was enchanting, her hair was also straight and lighter, and there were no freckles or beauty marks. She was naked under the water, as was I, and this promised a few things as did her dazzling smile. "I figured this would be a more appealing setting, and this form would put you at ease."

"Ah." I replied wisely. "Laciel." She drew closer to me and nodded. I began to back away. "I sealed you under the floor."

"You sealed my coin, and the bulk of me, yes, but upon touching my coin that one instant, I copied my likeness into your mind."

"The hellfire..."

"…Is my gift to you. I was quite thrilled to finally be here in your presence. You are different from most of my hosts."

"Host?"

"When you chose to pick up the coin, you invited me in."

"Then get out." She winced.

"It's not that simple."

"Fine." I willed myself awake… and remained in the grotto. "What do you want?"

"To be of service to you."

"To enslave me."

"I don't want a servant… I want a partner." She cornered me but made no effort to touch me. "I can help you. You can remain in control and call upon me for my services whenever you should need them. I can help you be a greater force for good than you ever have."

"With that power, I should have power too great and terrible. And over me the ring would gain power still greater and more deadly." I recited in response.

"Oh you think you're Gandalf in this tale?" she laughed in a way that made me feel a bit unsure of myself. I know theres a first time for everything. "But you do not have to take up the coin to use my power."

"I know how it works, you get the first taste for free. Then the price goes up and up until I need the coin just to live."

"And what happens if you do require the coin to live?" Laciel asked, moving closer.

"Then I'll go out with pyrotechnics and flying acrobatics." I shrugged removing the grotto scene and putting us in a plain white cell, fully dressed, and sitting across an interrogation table. Laciel was dry now, in a white blouse and white slacks, her dry hair was in that punkie haircut that was long in front and short in back, and she wore only one silver necklace but instead of the crucifix Murph usually wore, the chain had Laciel's brand, the three marks that resembled an hourglass. I had my Johnny Cash ensemble on, making me the only darkness in the room.

Laciel surveyed the surroundings then murmured "fascinating."

I walked out of the interrogation room to the woods where I dreamed I was the night before, but like the night before, no one was there, just the remains of a spent campfire. I felt cold then reminded myself it was a dream, there was no cold.

When Murphy woke me the next morning I tested her, to see if she was she, then figured Laciel had all my memories any way so the test meant nothing. I shuffled into the Kitchen where Thomas and Butters were already eating and Marion was serving up more pancakes and bacon for anyone who wanted some.

I was poured a glass of milk since it would go bad if no one drank it, and I watched Maggie in Thomas's lap munching on a veggie stick, some health food snack for babies Murph tries to torture my poor princess with. I realized the costumes were in the car so I jogged out into the still heavy rain, to the trunk and brought the new car seat, and two shopping bags of clothes in. Karen dug out two costumes that amounted to the same amount of fabric, and looked at me skeptically. "Oh, how precious. Going as Yoda?" Marion asked Maggie as Murphy showed her the baby costume complete with ears and staff. Karen shoved it back into the bag that was already prepared and hid the other costume. "Do you still have to work today, dear?"

"Yup. I could have gotten today off before the riots and outages, but now…" Karen said, hugging her mom from behind and sighing. Marion tapped her on the nose with the whisk from the pancake batter, leaving batter on the tip of her cute little pug nose. I laughed and finished eating, then began cleaning the kitchen while Marion was ushered into sitting down and eating. "So Raith, I was talking to Stallings this morning, the whole city is acting the same way stuff acts around wizards, electronics going out, cars dying down town, O'Hare has been shut down."

"Hells bells."

"Phone lines are down, and cellular signals are iffy. We were told to get to work when we can, but be careful. The working theory is that it's a Halloween hoax or elaborate scheme to pull some heist. You know, anything but Necromancers and Goblin hunting parties."

"Naturally." Thomas remarked.

"The storm, the outages, its all to incite fear, and feed off it." I told her.

"Like you?" Butters asked perplexed.

"Kind of, yeah. Humans have to be stirred up, ghosts have to be stirred up, then the veil between our world and the Nevernever is thinned, and it's power becomes accessible to the Kemmler Youth."

"So what will you do? You can't stop folks from panicking." Marion asked, taking Maggie from Thomas so he could get up, and offering the baby bacon, which Murphy snagged and threw back on the plate. Marion rolled her eyes at her daughter but saw everyone but Thomas was in agreement on the no solid foods front.

"Well it seems these guys need the Erlking and the word of Kemmler to pull off this dark hollow thing so I'll wait till go time, summon the Erlking, and trap him till the proper time has passed."

"The Erlking? That German poem about the king of the goblins?" Marion asked. I was mildly surprised how well versed Marion was with the weird but her husband exposed her to a lot of what Murph had been in S.I. and the woman was most likely roped into listening to a few folk tales curtsey of the Clan Murphy Historical Society as I call them. Really they were three old as dirt proud Irish Murphys who didn't want to let their heritage to fade away. "How will you trap such a powerful creature?"

"Very carefully."

"Well good luck." She said.

"Thanks, mama." Murph said, kissing the woman. Thomas put the car seat in Mama Murphy's car so she could strap Maggie in, I put Mouse's Chewbacca costume onto him, and then Marion drove away. Murph took her tiny costume, using it to waive goodbye to me, and went to work, then I contacted the white council.

Once I arranged to meet the council at Mac's pub at about 2pm local time, I assigned Thomas and Butters homework and headed to my office. I had no messages and no clues, but then Kumori attacked me. She wanted my copy of the Erlking book, I told her Corpsetaker took it, she warned me to get out of town, I said no, then I made the same offer, she said no, she explained that she and Cowl were trying to end death, I was like, that's cool but still necromancy and still bad, she tactfully disagreed, then we went our separate ways.

Any way, I bought a pumpkin and stuff then went to Mac's. Mac's pub was bustling as expected but when I arrived they went silent. "Mac." I greeted the old man.

"Raith." He nodded.

I looked around at everyone waiting to know what was going on. "I'll need some space, Mac. Council business." I said toward Mac, but mostly to address the room. "Black magic, restless spirits… people will want to be behind a threshold tonight." With that, there was a clamor of the older practitioners to exit. Some few were still waiting for more information, but Mac gave the good old 'beat it' nod and folks started filing out. Mac put the steaks he was working on onto the bar, and then added two seasonal brews and we clinked beers before taking a swig and digging in.

Morgan showed up to sweep the building then called in all clear so Luccio and three young wardens could come in. we took a table center of Mac's and Luccio made me a warden. "Time out, captain, May I have a word alone, please?" once the others were out of earshot I turned to Luccio. "No freaking way!" I whispered.

"Pardon?" Luccio asked.

"I'll fight, I'll help, but the grey cloak of a warden represents years of being wrongfully accused and persecuted and goaded by the white council to me."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean every hint of black magic in the tri-state area, would always be blamed on me. Any vampire indiscretions, even other courts, were pinned as my fault, and every suspicious death was asserted to be my doing. Morgan himself took great pleasure in doing so personally. He's been spoiling for a fight since I was 16."

"I was told of such things, but I never thought them to be true. Its too unprofessional to be Warden Morgan. But I can tell from your sincerity that at least you feel so, and I know others feel the same." She looked at me in a way I never expected. Concern for me? "Raith, you are unaware of what a unique situation you are. Vampires are rarely even powerful enough to be considered wizards, yet you are among the most powerful of wizards, and now wizards and vampires are at war, a war you started. There is treachery in the council, and most of the elders blame YOU. If you go onto the battlefield with us, it must be in a grey cloak, or a white one, or both sides will take your head."

"Gulp." I said

Luccio smiled reassuringly. "I also want you to join the council for other reasons." I raised my eyebrow. "No, don't be ridiculous." I still focused on turning down the vamp vibes just in case, which actually made the tension in her shoulders lighten an infinitesimal bit. "Look at those young ones. They admire you. They are rebellious, and there are a few who would have been warlocks if we had not found them in time. And some who were warlocks before they were recruited… you are a sort of role model. You were where they are once, and despite whatever you've been told, you have been the beacon of hope among the council, an anomaly that has overcome great evil forces time and time again, and earned support from the fairy courts no less."

"Well when you put it that way…"

"I intend to appoint you regional commander of the United States. Your responsibility will be to protect the mortals from any supernatural threats in the great lakes area, and coordinate efforts with the other Regional Commanders, and share information with the white council."

"I already do that."

"So nothing will change but the cloak."

I looked down at the cloak while Luccio got up and ordered a round of beers. Once I was in the grey cloak we closed the circle and talked about the war and I explained everything I knew about the heirs of Kemmler and the ceremony they were planning to pull, and my scheme to stop them. The plan was to position the council where Kemmler Youth was likely to hold the ceremony, and execute some justice.

I returned to Murphy's and found Thomas and Butters pouring over papers, and Bob. When they looked at me, they cracked jokes about the induction of a half evil, idiot like me into the wardens. I relayed information to Thomas and Butters then they told me the Mitchell Museum was hosting a big to do with old artifacts, so that was the most likely place to hold the ceremony. I called Murphy to have her clear the place out and tell the wardens where to go. She let me know National Guard was moving in to help keep the peace. I was a little glad. I explained my plan and everyone was skeptical but hey, my crazy plans usually worked. "Except for the Wal-Mart plan with the marbles." Murphy reminded me. I winced, "yeah."

I made tea and waited for sunset while Thomas and Butters kept looking for a clue about the numbers, then at sundown I summoned the Erlking, and was laid out by Cowl and Kumori so they could free the Erlking. Thomas fought Cowl to try and protect me after stashing Butters in the closet. Kumori just had to slip in under a veil and snag Bob while we were occupied with Cowl, and as quickly and confusingly they came, they left.

Crap! We all piled into the car and punched in the address to the Mitchell museum, into the GPS so I could find the fastest route, while I had the nifty thing at my disposal, then it showed the coordinates and I showed it to Butters. He understood. The numbers were coordinates to the book's hiding place! We punched those in instead and followed directions to the book's hiding place. The Field Museum.

Butters took the GPS out its holder on the dashboard and He, Thomas, and I looked all over the 100 foot radius of the beacon. Thomas discovered it in an envelope taped under Sue's head. I began to read through it, trying to find where it said what they would be trying tonight. I heard something, as did Thomas. We took a sort of protective position around Butters, but I still read through the book, reading necromantic techniques, and such, but nothing yet that explained how to eat the Dark Hollow. Damn. My host? Just scan over all the pages, I will find what you need.

"Oh no, I'm not letting you in." please, my host, I can help, and you can choose whatever you do with me. "I love it when a girl plays submissive. Meanwhile you'll twist me into something like the nickel-heads." that's not fair. "No thank you." What other choice do you have? I am dependent on you to survive! Please, let me help you, let me give you a way to live through this night. I will not offer you my coin. Let me offer you my mind. "No means no! I need an adult!"

"Raith, who are you talking to?" Butters asked. I sighed. "I have a devil in my head, and she's making me look crazy." He looked at me like I was really just crazy and I sighed again. I began flipping through the pages just scanning them slowly but faster than I can read, then I passed the book to Thomas, and he tucked it into his jacket's inside pocket. I collected myself and my power then felt the cold slithery energy of necromancy. Grevane stood down stairs with an army of zombie behind him. I told Thomas to take Butters and run. Burn the book if he has to.

I held up the empty envelope and warned Grevane to stay back or I'd burn the book. He called my bluff then I was covered in snakes. The pain was enough on it's own to take me down, but the weight of nearly anaconda sized snakes took me to the ground. I dropped the envelope then called fire magic to burn them off, but more just materialized to replace the ones I burned. One was able to sink teeth into my head, another bit at my face repeatedly. Then liver spots and Grevane were above me as I struggled.

Grevane picked up the envelope and looked in. "damn it, its empty. He must have given it to the other man with him or the mortician." Grevane snarled down at me still thumping the book on his thigh, then turned to liver spots and said, "he's all yours." Then he sent the scourge of zombies toward Thomas and Butters.

Liver spots produced a bag of goodies while I struggled against the snakes then locked some sort of power sapping manacles onto my wrists and began tenderizing me with a chain. He revealed that he was Cassius, some snake boy knight of the blackened denarius I wronged somehow, and he came to take Laciel. Well I just laughed, screamed in pain, let him cut my shirt open and then cut my abs open, until Butters tackled him like a little barely effective linebacker. They struggled, and sweet Butters tried to get him, but Cassius broke Butters nose with a head-butt, so I rose, skin tight over my sharpened skeleton, eyes completely white, pink bloodied wounds closing, and broke Cassius's… everything. The pain took me. Everything went black.

I dreamed I was back in the stark white interrogation room with the metal table in the center. I sat in one metal folding chair while Laciel, still in the Quasi-Murphy guise sat, much as Murph does in interrogations. She looked relaxed, cross-legged sideways in her chair, so one hand could rest on the back of the chair and the other could tap annoyingly on the metal table. It was part of her technique to annoy cooperation out of people and also make them think they board her. She looked at me with a lazy smile then up over my left shoulder. I turned in the chair to see me.

Well he wasn't me, we spoke once 4 years ago. He was my instinct. He wore a business suit like a real detective should; all light bluish grey with a silk white blouse, tucked in, the belt and tie matched the suit jacket exactly. His tie clip bore a titanium quartz snowflake that threw off all the colors of winter like an oil spill. His hair and beard was James Bond perfect (if 007 ever wore a beard), and the only hint of relaxation in his uniform was that his tie was a bit loose. He smiled a greeting at me while he stood, hands in pockets, leaning against the white brick wall.

"Another dream."

"Not precisely." Laciel retorted.

"Call it a meeting of the minds." White me said as he pushed off the wall and moved to the table. I looked down, I was black me. I had my favorite outfit, long gone from life but always there in my dreams. It was my black duster over a black western shirt, tucked into a pair of black jeans, worn into submission, and my black cowboy boots. I was the darkest thing in the room.

"I've said, all I'm going to say to her." I scowled back up to Laciel. "And I don't much like you either. You represent the vampire part of me."

"You don't get it. The incubus in you is a nearly mindless thing." He gestured to the other end of the table and I turned to see a sort of pink sea cucumber looking thing with silver beady little eyes that needn't blink as there were no eyelids, but clear flesh over the eyes, and the pink was the blood and organs visible through it. It had wispy little tentacles that thrashed and slapped the table, and it was big as me. I closed my eyes and willed it away then opened them to turn to white me. "I'm the one who deals with the important things, feeding, eating, sleeping… mating." He and Laciel exchanged a smirk.

"And seeking out power. I wondered why I didn't just stomp on the coin, or give it to Michael… you wanted her power."

"I did. I was tired of scraping by, watching enemies be willing to do anything to overcome us while you stayed weak as a matter of principal. I'm the one who wanted the winter mantle too."

"You've been talking to her behind my back."

"It's only fair, I invited her in. We have to be a good host."

"I didn't want to talk to her, I didn't want the temptation."

"Well I did. We are in agreement. I don't believe she should be allowed to run amok in your skull, redecorating with brimstone and pitchforks but we should use her, for what she offers."

"No. It's the right thing to do."

"You coward!"

"Excuse me?" I stood and nearly socked myself in the pretty face.

"That's right, you coward. So afraid of looking bad he's willing to die in vane, and let all the people he swore to protect, all the lives he could have saved, all his hard work and lonely years piss themselves away." I had a point.

"If I open myself to her I might not be able to shut her away." I said weakly, knowing White me was right.

"Its your mind, my host. You still believe in free will, do you not?" she chimed in. we both looked at her and I sighed.

"Then show me how I can stop them."

I just lay in shock a moment before I willed my body to heal then it was back to work. I changed out of the shredded clothes into the costume I had returned to the trunk. I got into the dark slacks with a red stripe up each leg, which were a little short and then an off white shirt with black vest sewn in. there was a space age fake gun belt and tall fake leather boots.

I patted Butters on the back for his heroism. Thomas was off giving Grevane a hard time of things, and I had a dark hollow to stop. I stole a few things from the Wild West museum and saddled up a dinosaur, then had Butters play his polka drum while we rode Sue to the party. Close to the campus I noted that National guardsmen had posted guard blocks. I tried to hop them rather than crush them, and we got to Kendall College in time to find the wardens arranged around a cluster of children and two women and two National Guardsmen, one fireman carrying the other.

Morgan was at the head, Luccio at the back, and Ramirez Yoshimo and Kowalski flanked the mortals. Zombies came at them by the dozens, pushing them back across the street towards an apartment building, surrounding them. They didn't see the car that was barreling toward them, either. I made Sue run faster, then leap over the formation to land on the hood of the engine and tear off the top of the car. Sue plucked the ghoul from the driving seat and ate him.

The formation filed into the apartment building, Morgan and Luccio stood at the door fighting off zombies while the three younger wardens went inside with the mortals. I let Sue go to town on the bulk of the crowd of zombies and heard the roar of an old Harley Davidson hog. I turned to see Murphy plow through zombies on her bike, before stationing it by the door to the apartment and dismounting.

She was remarkably well armed with drop holsters on each thigh with two extra mag pouches on each, her shoulder rig had two holsters, and each had big high caliber revolvers. Strapped to her back was a sawed off shotgun with handle over her left shoulder, and a katana with hilt over her right. Her little combat boots had the hollow handle of a k-bar sticking out of one of them.

My favorite part of the ensemble was that she was wearing the costume I bought her; A metal bikini, maroon skirt with two long slits, choker, and chain. She took out her katana and spun around, cutting the head off a zombie then pulled out one of her drop guns and put three shots in another's head, blowing out the top back of his skull.

After Sue swiped some zombies away with her tail, I helped Butters down so he could continue the beat and we regrouped with the wardens. "Karen, nice entrance." Butters stammered excitedly "and costume!

"Not as dramatic as zombie dinosaurs. Damn these are accurate. I got you a birthday present, Raith." Murphy said, punctuating with another trio of shots into another zombie's head. Luccio wasn't too dazzled by our appearances to cut through a fair number of zombies with her singing blade.

"Dio, Raith, this beast is an abomination!" Luccio said, eyeing Sue with equal parts marvel and mortification.

"It's a necessity."

"It's necromancy."

"Reprimand me after this abomination saves our lives. In order to get close enough to the vortex without my life force being torn out of me, I have to surround myself with necromantic energy. Since the laws of magic explicitly states one can not animate a human, I figure a dinosaur wouldn't get my head lopped off." Murphy slipped under me and moved around my waist, then stole one costume boot at a time replacing them with something that rattled. I looked down at what she was doing, and excessive elation swelled in my chest, escaping out my manic grin.

She adorned me with an old western style gunslinger belt with sword loop on the left and holster on the right already occupied with a .44 revolver and loaded speed reloader. My feet were in snug new black cowboy boots exactly like the destroyed pair, but these added spurs. Then she brushed off the hood of my grey cloak and put a black ten-gallon hat on my head, and lastly pinned a silver sheriff badge on my chest. The badge was a funny detail but when I looked at it next to my pentacle I realized they were the same. The badge was a silver star inside a circle, and yes it said sheriff on it, but it didn't detract from what it really meant.

"Happy birthday, Ambrose Eastwood."

"Damn right." I pulled her into a classic movie magic kiss that fed me plenty of lusty energy to recover from the beating snake boy gave me earlier. Instead of a beautiful desert sunrise in the background, there was a zombie dinosaur slapping zombies with her tail, stomping them with her feet, and biting with her massive jaws, but only if they came near her.

"Awe, you guys look cool… I look like a little kid with a ridiculous drum suit." Butters wined.

"Don't knock it, you're a genius, and a hero. Waldo Butters, this is Wardens Morgan, and Luccio. Captain, Morgan, this is a friend, mortician, and my vitally important drummer, Butters."

"Enough of this, we need to stop the heirs of Kemmler, now." Morgan interjected.

"Yeah. I'll head to the center of that vortex, Murph, Butters, see what you can do to help here, but Butters, don't let that drum beat stop." Butters nodded then eagerly went inside. "My plan is to wait till someone starts drawing in the power of the Dark Hollow, then disrupt the spell so he gets the feedback."

"That's impossible," Morgan added. "I got close enough to see them when we went in for the children. There were several hundred animated corpses between us and them."

"What do you think the big Dinosaur is for? Sing-along songs?" Morgan looked like he was going to strike me but at Luccio's command he brushed inside. "I took out Grevane's second, Sue ate Corpsetaker's drummer, and so now all is left is those two, Cowl and his second."

"4 of them and five of us, though only two of us are experienced in this sort of fight. No offense Raith, but you and the others are so inexperienced." Luccio said pensively.

"None taken, I'd rather be lazing on a beach right now."

"In Hawaii." Murphy added. She noticed a mangled corpse standing back up to pursue us and calmly put a single bullet in it's head.

"How will we know when they begin drawing in power?" Luccio asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Then the vortex began funneling down into a thin tornado. "Well there, that's it." I gestured at the tornado. The ground bubbled with sick green light and Native American ghost warriors began to take form. Murphy holstered her weapons and drew the shotgun, and then oddly enough, her shots were killing the ghosts.

"Rock salt and ghost dust loads." She answered my thoughts. Luccio's blade was also curiously effective. I ran for Sue, and touched her flank to will her into action. I knew she could take them out, because she was made of the same stuff. When I turned, I spotted Corpsetaker emerge from under a veil, beating a drum with one hand, and attacking Luccio with the other. Karen was too busy keeping the ghost horde off of herself, to help. I ran for her and watched as Luccio managed to stab Corpsetaker in the gut with her sword aglow.

Both women went rigid then Luccio drew her sword, no longer glowing, while Corpsetaker looked up to me with confusion on her face. Morgan and Ramirez came out of the building and started clearing out the specters. "Come wizard, there is no time to waste."

"You're going to leave her there?"

"She is done for." Luccio sheathed her weapon and approached me. I put my hand on her cheek, and then kissed her. I could tell psychically that it wasn't the warden, more to the point that it was the mind that tried to invade mine so I focused on drawing in her life force, and focused on my desire to kill the Corpsetaker, and in the time of a kiss, I drew in all her power and life, then she dropped to the ground. I turned to heal the real Luccio, who was sadly trapped in the younger body, but as I began to heal her, Morgan howled, and then tackled me.

"Traitor! You killed her!" he howled at me with rancorous rage.

"Wait Morgan, the Corpsetaker, swapped bodies, Luccio is alive!" I covered my head with my arms as he pounded inhumanly strong punches into my face, throat and ribs.

"MURDERER!" He screamed, but I found it odd he hadn't just decapitated me. He was truly angered by the apparent loss of his captain.

"Morgan, Raith is right, Luccio is alive." Rodriguez called from behind him, supporting Luccio's weight.

"LIES!" Morgan pulled me up by my collar and threw me into the wall so he could pick up his sword, then we locked into a soul gaze, and I realized Morgan didn't hate me, he feared me. He knew in his mind that I was a monster, incapable of reform, unable to ever be anything but a killer. He pursued me relentlessly to stop me before I could take another innocent's life.

"DONALD, stand down. I am the one who trained you, the one who took you in when your previous master grew tired of your temper." Luccio commanded weakly from her new body. I took the sword from her corpse and passed it to her, and then it glowed with power again, singing as it moved through the air. Ramirez put her on the ground, and I hurried to her side.

"DuMorne, made Elaine and me learn to heal each other… Elaine was always better, but I took your body's life force, the least I can do is use it to save your life." I explained as I put my hand over her ribs nearly covering all the lower ribs with one hand, then my other on the back, where her sword came through. I focused on the internal damage, and then let her go with a nasty scar. Luccio shuddered and blushed when I slipped my hands off her body. She stood and wobbled, but the pain was a dull throb now, manageable.

"Thank you Raith."

"You're hurt, and I just left you there to die while I-" Morgan said slowly.

"It is not important. You never were much of a healer or medic any way."

"Oh, I get it, lover boy, how about you stay with her and the wounded, and I'll just take Ramirez and Kowalski to run interference with Cowl."

"I can, go, but Kowalski is gone. He was sitting on the ground when the ghosts came out, he didn't have a chance. Yoshiro's thigh is broken; the doctor gave the drum to one of the parents and said it had to keep playing, no matter what. When the ghosts started coming out the woodwork, the brilliant little guy drew a big circle around him and the kids, and then closed it. After Morgan and I cleared the ghosts out we came out here to help." Ramirez reported.

"Butters, you brilliant little hero!" I screamed triumphantly. "Saddle up partner. Lets wrangle us some necromancers!" I laughed and ran to the tyrannosaurus. Once we were on, Sue took off. "Hey Ramirez-"

"Please, everyone else that lets me ride their dinosaur calls me Carlos."

"Thanks Carlos. And thanks for helping me with Morgan."

"I heard you trying to talk to Morgan and I figured, you'd just kiss him to death like you did Luccio if you were lying. I soul gazed her, and saw you were telling the truth. It was a fatal wound, but now its just scars. And you know, I was a kid at the time, but I was there when you were tried for the deaths of Justin DuMorne and Elaine Malory. It changed my life."

I choked up a bit, shut up. I willed Sue to go faster once we took our first turn. "You couldn't have known you were a monster. The way you cried, and threw up from the mere mention of her name… the way I could feel how afraid you were of Justin when you saw him die with your own eyes. No one should have blamed you. When you've gone before the council you've always been frank and earnest."

"My names Ambrose, not Frank or Earnest." I called back to him. "Hope I don't disappoint."

"Have I mentioned my god like sense of tolerance? And I'm brilliant, as well as skilled."

"And humble, I see."

"But I can't imagine how you pulled something like this off!"

"It was a lot of work but it was simple."

"Sure sure. But on the other hand, if we survive this, were going to be famous man! Cars, Girls, Money!"

"At least."

"So who will we hit first?"

"Grevane. He's Kemmler's favorite, surrounded with zombie watchdogs, knows his way around a chain. So lets shoot him."

"Hell yeah, lets shoot him!"

"Next is Cowl. He's the most powerful man I've ever gone up against. He might not even be a man, but he has an apprentice whose about as powerful."

"She cute?"

"never seen her face but I imagine so. Ever notice humans with a lot of magic are typically attractive?"

"Not until now. Good. Then take out Grevane, you take Cowl, and I'll just turn on the Ramirez charm for his apprentice."

"Sounds like a plan," I laughed. We arrived at a clearing between the Mitchell museum and Kendall College administrative building, to find neat ranks of zombies. "That's a whole lot of zombies."

"And ghosts" Carlos added as I took Sue into a lunge. I formed a shield around us and let the dinosaur cut loose on the hordes of zombies, letting down my shield so Carlos could fling his green globules that dematerialized them. He pointed into the crowd and I willed Sue toward where he pointed but she didn't tear herself away from the zombie slaughter.

"She's not responding, we'll have to jump." I cried out. Ramirez made a yipping sound I often hear in mariachi music. I rolled to my feet and raised my shield in time to deflect a strike from Grevane's chain. "It's over Grevane!"

"Fool," he snarled at me. "You should have joined me while you had the chance." He looked up at the hurricane as it came to about 10 feet from the ground. "I will take what is mine"

"You're insane! The backlash will kill you!" Carlos worked his way around the zombies to attack Grevane from behind. Grevane, however, was playing the same game. A pile of zombies assaulted me: biting, and tearing their nails into my flesh, and knocking off my new hat. I screamed and pointed my force ring then with a little will, blew all the zombies off my front. I could hear Grevane screaming 'mine' but I couldn't see him beyond his zombie guard.

I charged through them but was hit with another wave of reanimated foes. Then his ranting stopped, the zombies stopped swarming me, and I watched as his head separated from his body. "Sorry, I took so long. I had to dodge some bad guys."

"I can take a hit." I said, using my healing skills to regenerate the bites and cuts. I was kind of hoping I could dress like Han Solo more often but of course the costume got torn open and clawed at the seams. "At least he was insane. No death curse."

"Yeah, lucky us."

"I wouldn't say that." Cowl appeared behind us then flung an attack that blew Carlos into the bushes behind him. I was already low to the ground, and rolled a little. I popped up and threw raw force at him, which he countered. I raised my hand for another strike but Kumori grabbed my hair and pressed a knife to my throat.

"Keep him still!" Cowl commanded as he stepped up to draw in the power. He pulled Bob from his cloak and showed him the vortex. Bob's blue eyes burned cold, and his voice sounded empty. "Kill that man," Bob advised Cowl, but the necromancer quieted him and began the spell to draw in the power and I touched her hand that pressed the dagger to my neck. She shivered, I turned my face to her then she let the knife drop and pulled off her mask. She cut my throat, but not very deep. It healed quickly enough. We kissed, and at first I debated trying the kiss of death, but I knew she was not only a necromancer, but loyal to Cowl. She didn't care for me, she was drawn in by my power, so I drew in hers. Her pageboy haircut of black became white and translucent, then she went rigid and relaxed boneless in my arms. I looked up and called for Bob.

"Bob! Bob, you have to remember me. I gave you a name." the skull turned to look at me and shook. "Think Bob, remember me." He let one eye flick from blue to amber, then back to blue. A wink if I ever saw one. "BOB, you have my permission!"

Orange light flew from the skull and erupted into the air then vanished. Picnic tables were being thrown about; things were starting to look like there was a storm around us. I threw myself against Cowl's body in full tackle, then grabbed the skull and threw myself over Carlos to protect him. I raised my shield for all the good that would do. Then the backlash began tearing up the earth, and it all went dark.

When I woke up, Sue was wrapped protectively around us. Bob's amber lights fluttered back to his skull and he sighed in relief then went out. Carlos was still out when the Erlking came to me and commended my strength, courage, and arrogance, and then he to was gone. Bob's eyes lit up again and looked up at me as I stretched and surveyed my surroundings. "Hey Ambrose, how'd I do?"

"Great work, Bob. Thanks."

"Yeah well, apparently size does matter. I sure outlasted those zombies any way."

"You shielded us from the vortex with your body… I appreciate it." Bob sniffed with pride and shone brightly. I gathered Carlos into a fireman carry and stuffed Bob in my cloak and we began walking back to the apartment building. Something moved in my vision, and I put up my arm just in time to grab it. My new hat came back; not magicly just the wind. I laughed, put it on, and then continued the walk back. About half way there, Ramirez awoke and wouldn't let me carry him any farther. We strode back, looking cool emerging from the fog and decimated landscape.

Injun Joe had come and collected the wounded, leaving Morgan, Butters, and the civilians to greet us. Morgan explained that Luccio had been temporarily relieved of duty so Morgan was acting captain, so he handed me my first month pay and escorted Carlos back to wherever. Butters was thrilled with being a hero twice, I agreed to learn the guitar and Thomas said he might learn the drums or something too, so next year, we would help him defeat the Jolly Rogers for Oktoberfest.

Murphy was talking to one of the National guardsmen, the one who had been injured. He was interested in joining SI after what he had seen last night. I couldn't help but feel a little jealous though, but it was only natural that he would stare; she was sexy, even covered in ectoplasm. We returned to Murphy's place and cleaned up and I checked the time; still enough to make it to my rendezvous with Mavra. Thomas came back and handed me the book, just as I was leaving. I hugged him and met with the black court vampire, gave her the book, then put a little fear of Raith in her.

A week later, we were able to have our vacation in Hawaii. We built sand castles, Maggie buried daddy, and we saw fire dancers, frolicked on the beach, and unfortunately returned to the cold unaffectionate relationship with Murph. As thanks for my wild west gear, which I loved, I got Murph a P-90. She loved it. We had to put it in a box of chocolates to get it into the mainland, but she didn't mind the chocolates either.

I made some repairs to my mansion, Thomas and I practiced our new instruments with Butters, and every now and again, I stayed the night with Maggie and Murphy, cuddling, relaxing, loving life… then I felt a queasy revelation. What ever happened to the wizard my father mentioned last year; someone who knew the end of the story and would stop at nothing to change it. And he seemed fixated on killing me specifically. I couldn't sleep; I couldn't enjoy our outing the next morning to the renovated Field Museum. I was afraid that any moment my wonderful life with Murph and Maggie, and Butters, and Thomas would end.