TWO

"You brought me forward in time 9 years?" Cole questioned.

"Does that surprise you?" Tempus questioned. "Mine is the ability to manipulate time."

"That's not what I meant," said Cole. "I know you can manipulate time. But why did you do it? What sort of mission could you have that would necessitate bringing me forward in time? There are any number of mercenaries who could help you with an assignment without having to resort to moving someone through time."

"Ordinarily I might agree with you," said Tempus. "But this is an unusual situation. Look about you. What do you see?"

"Well," said Cole, looking around the street, "it appears to be one of the suburbs of San Francisco, assuming that street sign is right. Other than some changes in cars and fashion it looks like any other day. People busy about their business as they do every day of their lives."

"And you would be correct," said Tempus. "To a point. I'm sure you've noticed the law enforcement."

"Yes. It seems a bit unusual to have so many in one place but nothing really out of the ordinary. I can't say I recognize the uniforms. I guess styles have change in the last 9 years."

"More than you might imagine," said Tempus. "Those are not ordinary police. They belong to a special unit of the San Francisco area police departments. And they all have one thing in common. They are all witches."

"Witches? That's impossible. I'll admit there may be witches on the police force. But to have them all in the same unit would be very unlikely. And all together out here. The odds of that happening are staggering. There have to be 5 officers on the streets right now."

"Five that you can see. In fact, some of the 'civilians' are most likely what you would call 'plainclothes detectives'. All belonging to the same special unit of the San Francisco Police Department. A department dedicated to supernatural security."

"You make is sound like the police department has a special unit dedicated to fighting demons," said Cole. "That wouldn't be possible. Mortals aren't aware of the existence of demons. We all know how important it is to maintain that secret. If the existence of demons were to become known to the mortal world there would be hysteria in the streets."

"As there was in the beginning," said Tempus. "When our existence first became known, many humans were thrown into a panic. Decades of believing we were simply myths and legends suddenly came crashing down. Panic reigned in many areas. Not just here. But across the globe. Many believed it was the end of their world.

"Then the witches came forward. Once our existence was exposed they had no reason to remain hidden. They quickly demonstrated their ability to fight us. To help protect the mortals from our powers and abilities.

"When our existence became known, martial law was declared in hundreds of countries around the world. Entire armies were mobilized to seek us out and eradicate us. Of course, the humans had little success in that area. Our powers made us more than a match for most humans."

"But it would be different with witches," said Cole. "They would have the ability to fight us."

"And with their White Lighters, not even our shimmering proved much of a deterrent. They could follow us wherever we went. Save for the Underworld, of course. So witches were sought out. Not as they had been in times past. They were sought out become the protectors and saviors of the mortal world."

"Wait a minute. Are you telling me that the mortal world is aware of our existence? That they know that witches and demons actually do exist? And that the witches have been organized into a fighting force to fight the demons? Openly?"

"That is precisely what I'm saying. We are no longer myths and legends. We are considered a very real threat to anything mortal. And we are normally vanquished whenever and wherever we are found. Coming to the mortal realm is a risky proposition for most demons. The humans have even developed technology to identify us."

"And with witches helping them it wouldn't be hard," said Cole. "So what happened to this war? There are no signs of fighting or conflict. It looks pretty much like it always has."

"The war still continues. The fighting is more sporadic than before. As I said, the police force has a special unit comprised of witches dedicated to one thing: protecting the mortal world from us. Much like special units all over the world in thousands of other locations. Cities all over the world have instituted these units as their front line of defense against us."

"How did all this happen?" Cole questioned. "We all know – or knew – it was important to protect our secret from being discovered. I can't believe any demon would be so foolish enough as to expose themselves to the mortal world."

"Oh, it wasn't deliberate, I assure you. It was one of the Source's plans that went horribly wrong. He had wanted to escalate the tensions between two of the major political powers of the world. He claimed it would allow him to slip operatives into key locations to help further plans he had for the mortal world."

"Which two major powers?" Cole asked.

"The United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic," replied Tempus.

"That was insane," said Cole. "Both the U.S. and Russia have nuclear capabilities. Escalating tensions between the two could lead to nuclear war. That would be devastating."

"He felt the risk was worth it. Fortunately nuclear war never occurred. But something just as devastating did occur. Our exposure to the mortal world."

"How did he plan to escalate the tensions between the two?"

"Very simply. He planned to assassinate the United States president."

"He killed President Kennedy?"

"Correct. Many conservatives felt that Kennedy was 'soft' on communism. As I'm sure you're very aware, fear of the Soviet Union was rampant especially in the United States. Many politicians, as well as ordinary citizens, felt that Kennedy wasn't as tough on communism as he should have been. Given his position as a world leader."

"That's true," said Cole. "Communism is – or was – seen as 'the great evil'. Senator McCarthy showed that a few years ago."

"I remember. The Source planned to assassinate Kennedy and then let it 'become known' that it was a Soviet plot. His rationale was that such an act would polarize even the liberals in the government against the Soviet government."

"And precipitate a nuclear war," added Cole.

"Fortunately the Source had operatives in place to minimize that danger. Advisors and confidants of key world figures who would argue against the United States using nuclear weapons to avenge their president's death. As it turned out, they weren't needed."

"What happened? You said the demonic world was exposed to the mortal world. I assume it had something to do with Kennedy's assassination."

"And you would be correct. The Source hired a mercenary to kill the president. A demon wouldn't be hampered by the security measures the mortals have in place to protect their president. The mercenary decided that the best way to affect the Source's plan was to assassinate the president in a public place. Some speech he was giving at the time. A public assassination would enflame the American people. Have them calling for retribution for the attack."

"A mercenary?" questioned Cole. "Do you mean . . . ?"

"No, Belthazor, you were not that mercenary. As I recall you were busy dealing with the witch you mentioned earlier."

"So the assassination is supposed to take place soon?" questioned Cole. "Relatively speaking."

"You would be correct. The mercenary hired by the Source did his job admirably. The president was killed. But the mercenary made a fatal flaw. Like many world leaders, the president has a personal White Lighter to protect him against demonic attacks. The mercenary struck quickly, preventing the White Lighter from orbing the president out of danger. He died before even the White Lighter knew a demon was present.

"But there were also witches in the gathering listening to the president's speech. One of them recognized the mercenary, having had dealings with him before. She attacked the demon but not before she could prevent Kennedy's death. Two other witches were present at the gathering. Between the three of them, the mercenary was quickly vanquished.

"Unfortunately, the speech was being televised. Thousands of people watched the assassination of the president and the ensuing battle between the mercenary and the witches. And as many news reports are, the entire incident was captured on video. Allowing the tape to be shown over and over again on news programs. In a very short time the entire world became aware of what had happened."

"And the witch was forced to admit the truth," said Cole. "To explain what had happened."

"Exactly. There was little she or the ones who had helped her could do. Very soon the existence of demons and witches spread everywhere. And the knowledge of the war that has existed between the two for centuries also spread.

"Most governments quickly realized that mankind's only protection against the demons were witches. Witches were quickly sought out and formed into protective groups that would confront demons wherever they appeared. Since it was no longer necessary to maintain the secret, witches were free to seek out demons. Those groups have evolved into the special units present in most countries."

"And demons risk being vanquished even coming to the mortal plane," finished Cole.

"Yes. Each year we are able to make fewer and fewer forays out of the Underworld. The humans have developed technology that helps them in identifying demons. And as I said, demons are vanquished wherever they are found. It won't be long before we will no longer be able to come to the mortal plane. We'll be relegated to remaining in the Underworld."

"And all this happened in just 9 years?" Cole questioned.

"Yes," said Tempus, looking around. "Come. We must return to the Underworld before we are discovered here. I will continue once we are safe."

Together the two shimmered and vanished from the building.