Spokane, Washington

In a small, abandoned house, a young man of about sixteen appeared out of a universal rent.

"Ah, it smells like pine trees here," he said, taking in a deep breath. His face became hard again. "I don't have time to mess around, though." He checked to make sure his sword and gun were in their places before pulling out a small electronic device.

"Order of Ecclesia is more towards the west," a voice in his ear told him. "Keep that in mind, Bishop."

"If that's Cerex, then I swear I'll drop-kick you," Bishop answered.

"Why?"

"You put that one chemical in my eight-week experiment!" he cried. "Two months wasted because you messed the thing up!"

"Sorry. Maybe I'll contact you later." There was a click on the other line.

Bishop walked into the garage and pulled the cover off of a vehicle underneath. It was a 250cc street motorcycle with retractable guns and an automated hover system, as well as a nice paint job.

"I'm glad I left this here last time," Bishop smiled. "All Earth universes interconnect. You leave a motorcycle somewhere in a different earth universe, the same one pops up, same place in the brand new one." He started the engine and burst through the garage door. "Whoops," he muttered. "That was messy."

He drove down the street while trying to locate where the building was exactly on his radar. He was pulled over more than once to show his license. That was a slight pain, since his license also showed information about him in the Universal Covenant's circle. Two of the cops thought it was a fake, so Bishop had to render them unconscious to get through.

"I should get an Earth style driver's license," he muttered to himself. "I also need to get papers to show the permit of carrying the gun at my side."

He drove as fast as he could, weaving between traffic the best he could so he didn't have to go under eighty. He checked the locater really quick before realizing it had gone out of whack.

"Oy, Cerex," Bishop called through the link. "You still there?"

"Yeah," he answered. "What did you need?"

"Give me directions to the Order. Something's messing up the radar, and I can't get a fix."

"Okay, turn left on the next exit," Cerex instructed.

"Got it," Bishop responded. He made to lane switches and drove off the freeway.

"Now, turn right at this stoplight…" the directions went on. Bishop followed each of these while never falling under sixty. His experience with lights made him an expert on which stoplights a cop would be waiting at and which ones they wouldn't be. Also, his skill with driving and his past training let him weave through traffic perpendicular of him. The paint didn't even get scratched.

"Now the building should be on your right," Cerex said.

Bishop turned his eyes sideways. "It's just a plain church building. Protestant, if I'm not mistaken. I'll check it."

"Okay, and-" Cerex started.

"Who's that in the background?" Bishop asked.

"Roxy's calling me," Cerex replied. "I better get going now."

"Heh heh," Bishop laughed. "Ah, the calling of one's soul mate is a sweet sound, is it not?"

"Oh, shut up," Cerex growled. "I'm going, now. Ciao, e buona fortunata!"

Bishop turned the earpiece off. He parked the bike and locked it down before entering the building. He clipped an invisibility field over the gun holster. He reasoned he wouldn't need to disguise the sword.

He took a look around and found there was nothing extraordinary about the building. Inside were pews, a pulpit, a large glass cubicle of water to be baptized in, and a large cross that hung above the water. There were also large drapes that hung across the window.

'It looks like the average church,' Bishop thought to himself as he climbed up to where the pulpit was. He checked the back rooms, but nothing was there. 'But I can tell that this place is way too different from the other churches I've been to. There's a lot of things here that are too fishy.'

He felt one of the foldable chairs in a circle and felt the seat with his hand. 'Someone has sat here recently, I can tell from the heat.' He looked at one of the music stands. 'That's been tipped over by someone rushing to get somewhere, by the angle it fell at.' He stared around the room till he found a book. He opened it and looked through it. 'It's all in Latin. Someone either likes the language or this church was based in the 1800s. No one uses Latin anymore.' He tossed the book aside. He picked up a sheet of paper. 'That's Latin, too. It's a spell. The words are hidden and you could only tell them apart because the capitals are out of whack with the rest of the sentence syntax. Not to mention the beginning letters are about ten tints off the regular black.'

He walked out of the back room and into the church hall itself. He looked at the pulpit. 'Someone left a Bible open. Revelations 14:20 is circled. That's about God bringing destruction on humanity, or that's my meaning. It's still emanating heat, so it's been used in the past half hour maybe.' He walked over and examined the water. 'There isn't any chlorine in it. I wonder if it is what I think it is.' He drew a small picture of a pentagram on a scrap of paper and threw it in. It melted out of existence. 'Holy water, I knew it. It has a white tint to it.' He experimentally put his hand into it. Nothing happened. 'I have a hunch that someone has been "baptized" in this.'

He felt around the floor. It was slightly sunk in more in a path leading to the cubicle. 'Aha! Well, it's time to go for a swim.' He stepped onto the pedestal near the water and dived into it.

There was a quiet splash and Bishop found a long pathway leading down. 'A passageway, eh? I'm glad I can hold my breath that long.'

He swam downwards, trying to be as quick as possible the path curved after forty seconds of swimming. 'I need weighted boots,' he thought to himself. After roughly a minute and thirty seconds, he emerged sideways out of an exit.

He took a deep breath of air. 'A magic force field I'm guessing. It's pretty dark down here, but I can see that someone's already gone for a little swim and went this way.' He walked down the path, keeping a steady hand on the handle of Dark Flaming. He hoped the 'Dark' part still worked after being in holy water for that amount of time. He quickly walked down the step and approached a door. He went to touch it before being pushed back by a field. 'I'm guessing you have to be a member or something. Well, then, I'll just muscle my way through.'

Salem, Oregon

"What ails these human cars?" Cornell asked, gesturing to the human cars that were around him and Julian. "Why are they all at a stop on this…this…?"

"Freeway," Julian finished for him. He wished that the werewolf would stop complaining. "Someone probably got into an accident. I hope that clone can pass my classes while I'm away."

"Is someone getting injured so fascinating that people must stare at it instead of driving?" Cornell asked again. "It is not a matter that involves them!"

"I don't get it either," Julian agreed, hoping to humor him. He turned through the cars and got off of an exit. "I know a quicker way to Washington, but first, let's get something to eat. Do you like Mexican food?"

"What is a Mexican?" he asked. "And what is their food like? Does it have a lot of meat?"

"We'll skip the first question. But the food is usually spicy, and if you want, you can get a Cheesy Double Beef Burrito at Taco Bell. Or do you like beans?"

"I'll take this Cheesy Double Beef Burrito of yours."

Julian parked the car, and they walked in together. "Do you want a drink?"

"Do they have Earl Grey tea?" Cornell wanted to know.

"No, I'll get you a Pepsi."

They ordered their food, and sat down. Julian was sighing in relief once the ordering was done. It was a pain to try and teach this out-of-time werewolf how to order at a fast food restaurant. When he realized Cornell didn't know how to use straws, it was his own personal hell all over again. Once Julian thought he was going to get a break, the image of Death appeared from inside his Extra-Large drink.

"Where are the two of you right now?" he asked. "Why do you stall?"

"I was hungry," Julian replied. "And there was also a traffic jam. We'll be leaving as soon as it clears up."

"We need the Dominus or the Sigma Glyph as quick as possible. Did you even open the large box in the back of that…car?"

"No," Julian answered. "What's in there?"

"Your food, you fool!" Death shouted. "Didn't I say the Master would supply the food you needed? Everything is already set up, you fool of a Belmont! I believe your clan has dulled throughout the years. Now, leave as soon as you're finished and find the glyph's location!" the image melted out of the drink.

"Whoa, that guy is scary," Julian muttered grumpily. He got up and walked out the door with Cornell. "He's got a huge temper, too."

"He is not the type of person you would want to fight," Cornell muttered as they got into a vehicle. "Believe me, I have fought him before, and it wasn't pleasant."

Julian shrugged and started the car. "Don't I need a legal permit to have a weapon?" he asked, pointing to the Baudelaire sword that was lying on the back seat.

"We do not need to concern ourselves with the mortal police," he said. "Different people like you and I should have no fear in breaking any of the laws. We are above them."

Julian turned his car onto the freeway north and pushed a little harder down onto the gas pedal. "I hope you're right, because I'm about to go eighty."

Queens, New York

"No, no, no!" Leah shouted impatiently as Will brought the spear down onto the dummy's head. "If I had animated the dummy with any more experience, he could have stabbed you in the chest! You're leaving yourself open!"

"She's right, you know," the spear projected into Will's mind. "That stupid hack thing you pulled would have killed you."

"Sorry if it's my first time!" he said indignantly. "I'm just trying to figure out how to use it."

"Just let me teach you," Eric sighed. "Okay, first I want you to block the dummy's first two blows."

The dummy stood up again and came at Will. With the guidance of his spear, Will blocked the first two moves and then attacked twice. "I want you to feint. Hit the sword up, spin the spear around, then swing upwards." Will did exactly what he was told and knocked the dummy clear to the other side of the yard.

"Wow," Kayla said approvingly. "That was cool."
"I say it was beginner's luck," Leah muttered. "I'm going to up the abilities a little." She said something under her breath and flipped her fingers towards the dummy. It held itself straighter and wrapped its small fingers around the handle harder.

"Uh-oh," Eric muttered. "She upped its skill. Be glad it has a wooden sword, or you might get cut up. Block its first four attacks so I can figure its pattern out."

"Okay," Will said. He grit his teeth together and braced himself for an attack. The dummy cut downwards. Will blocked and then tried to swing at it wide, but was jabbed in the stomach. "Ack!" he coughed as he sank to the floor.

"You great berk!" Eric shouted at him. "I told you to wait! What was that!?"

"I was trying to swing because it drew back," Will said.

"You should listen to me! Until you can fight as good as I can, you'll never get anywhere unless you LISTEN!"

Will rubbed his ear. "Fine, fine, I get it."

"I told you it was luck," Leah told Kayla in a final sort of way. "You want me to put it back to the level it was at?" she asked Will.

"No, I think I'll beat it this time," he replied. He gripped the spear and pointed it at the dummy.

"You know, I should teach you this right now," Eric said. "I'll show you how to summon spirits with me."