Hours Minutes Seconds
150 17 33
"Hey is everything okay between you two?" Hellboy's head jerked up from the scanner he was monitoring, startled by the unexpected question, and stared at Liz's beautiful face wondering how he could keep on lying to her.
"What, between me and boyscout? Naw, nothin's wrong we're fine." Liz glanced at John across the tent, he was wearing huge earphones attached to a CB radio and was writing something down at a frantic pace. "Why do you ask?" Hellboy questioned innocently. Liz shrugged and looked at him with those discerning eyes that he was so sure could read the truth in his face. She looked away and shrugged again.
"I don't know, I just thought he might be mad that you sent him to Antarctica." Hellboy shook his head and smiled easily.
"Naw, we talked about that, its cool." She still looked unconvinced and continued to question him.
"Are you sure, cause things seem weird between you two." The demon pinched the bridge of his nose, they had been at this tedious search for a day now and he was tired of staring at a blank scanner. He hated lying to Liz, but he couldn't stand the questions anymore and he snapped back hotly.
"Cripes Liz! We haven't seen each other for a year and half you think we're gonna be all buddy buddy and sharin' secrets?" She glared at him with a fiery countenance and retorted shortly.
"Fine! Excuse me for caring about you!" She stormed out of the tent. Abe walked over from the map he was marking and turned his blinking, fishy gaze onto his red tempered friend.
"That was not well played." Hellboy stood up and snorted angrily.
"What, are you harping on me too now?" He stalked off to the other side of the tent where John sat at a cramped desk seemingly oblivious to everything around him. The agent's face was pale and drawn and there were dark circles under his eyes, this work seemed to be draining him as much as everyone else. Red was about to get his attention, but to the demon's surprise John looked up and smiled knowingly at him. Cross hatching cuts appeared on his face for an instant and he said cruelly.
"Lying again Red? That's not going to build healthy relationships." Hellboy tore the clunky headphones off of John's head and leaned forward on the desk menacingly. He growled lowly so Abe couldn't hear.
"Why don't you just tell me what the hell you want, so we can stop playing this little game?" John cocked his head to the left and asked innocently.
"What game? Like sending someone to Antarctica just because they might be competition for you? Or like getting someone killed and then lying about it to your friends?" John leaned forward and whispered. "I'm dead Red its simple, I got ripped to pieces by those wolf demons." He snatched his headphones back and strapped them on. "You're the only one playing games here." Hellboy stormed out into the night only to stalk back in a few seconds later. General Thorn and Liz were standing outside talking and he had no desire to talk to either of them. Little did he know Liz and the General were actually talking about him.
"I know he's keeping something from me, I can feel it." Liz said forlornly and General Thorn regarded her with his steely gaze. He sighed deeply and, turning his gaze over the busy fleet, said.
"Normally I would say let it lie. These kinds of personal issues have no place on the battlefield, but this particular issue has bearing on Hellboy and Agent Meyer's performance in the field." He swung his steely gaze on her. "It would be wise to keep a close eye on both of them." Liz stared at him and her brow furrowed as the pieces fell together.
"Wait, General, do you- do you know what's wrong?" He looked away and Liz pressed for an answer. "General?"
"I-" The General began, but was cut off by a sharp cry that could only mean something was wrong.
"General Thorn!" Liz and the General turned simultaneously to face John, who had run out of the tent with his huge earphones still sitting askew on his head.
"What is it Agent?" General Thorn demanded sharply and John replied breathlessly.
"We have a spy coming in, sir." The General turned to Liz abruptly.
"Excuse me Elizabeth, it seems we have a situation." He marched into the headquarters with John and Liz trailing closely behind him. Abe looked up from the book he was perusing at the commotion going on near the entrance of the tent. General Thorn was ordering three ghost about yelling that he wanted the flight trajectory, identification and projected plasma discharge and he wanted it now Goddammit! Red was in a deep sulk and could only bring himself out of it enough to glare at them all sullenly. Abe joined the group and asked John quietly.
"What's happening." The agent looked at him and Liz the worry showing clear in his eyes, but not creasing his face.
"One of our spies is coming in with some information." Liz looked confused and asked.
"But isn't that a good thing? More information will help us find the person behind the attacks." John shook his head.
"It's not the information that's the problem, its the spy. Spies aren't part of the fleet." John explained. " They're lost souls that we encounter and employ to bring us information. Ghosts usually remain in the clothes they've died in, and we can't have a bunch of people in army uniforms trying to go undercover in the goblin market." John paused to allow a young man in a military technician's uniform and half of his body scorched to a blackened crisp to run through them. "So when we find another lost soul wandering in limbo we give them a purpose, something to be apart of. But the spies are tormented spirits, they're unstable and can be very dangerous." Suddenly General Thorn turned to them and barked an order at John.
"Agent Meyers get them in the back. We still don't know who's coming in." John nodded curtly and started shuffling Abe and Liz into the back corner where Red was still sulking. The demon glanced at them and then pointedly ignored them and watched the activities across the tent with detached interest.
"You said that ghosts usually stay in the clothes they die in, is it different in some cases?" Abe asked. John was staring at the floor in a daze and Liz prodded him gently.
"Oh, um yeah." John came to life and answered the question. "When a living person looks at a ghost normally they'll just see what they want to see, but if the ghost is vengeful or distressed or if the light is just right they'll see the wounds that ghost died by. Same goes for clothes, if the person knows the ghost or the situation demands normality then the person sees what they want to see, what they expect to see." Abe nodded and said.
"Ah, I see, and how many spies does the fleet have?" Abe asked inquisitively. John's eyes remained fixed on the frantic proceedings as he answered.
"One hundred and sixty four."
"So many." Liz exclaimed. "All tortured spirits?" John nodded and explained absently.
"Anyone who's died a violent death and is now trapped in limbo." Liz shook her head and commented sadly.
"Its so awful, I can't even imagine it." John looked at her for the first time with haunted eyes and affirmed forlornly.
"It is the most horrible thing I've seen happen to a person." The male tech called out sharply from his post at a scanner.
"We've got a spirit coming in hot!" The electric lamps in the tent flickered and the monitor screens started shorting out and blinking. A middle aged woman in army fatigues sitting in front of the radio yelped and yanked off her headphones as they emitted an earsplitting screech. The temperature in the room dropped a few degrees and the three living agent's breath came out in smoky plumes. In the center of the room a woman's silhouette flickered and became solid. She was deathly pale and had black circles under her eyes. She was clothed in a yellow summer dress that was made drab by being soaked in muddy water. She was absolutely drenched and the water made murky rivulets on her arms and face. Her shoulder length brown hair was tangled and full of twigs and leaves. She was gripping an empty baby stroller tightly. John whispered breathlessly.
"Oh no, its Amie." The agent pushed Liz back further into the corner. "Stay back here, don't let her see you." He whispered. At the possibility of danger towards his mate Hellboy came alive and stood in front of her protectively. General Thorn took charge of the situation by stepping forward and greeting the the spy.
"Amie, what do you have to report?" She glanced at the corner where the live agents stood and then turned to the General.
"The Appalachians' are buzzing with activity." She trailed off to stared at her stroller and then continued. "There's something coming up from under the mountains and its big and old." General Thorn nodded curtly and asked.
"Do you have a specific location to report?" She shook her head, dripping water and leaves on the floor.
"There's too much energy to discern what the origin is," She glanced back at the corner where the team stood. "but I know they're planning another attack."
"Where?" The General prodded gently. Amie checked her empty stroller again and stared at Hellboy almost longingly. "Amie?" Thorn said and then suggested in a calm voice. "Maybe we should discuss this outside." Her head snapped back to him and her eyes were blazing with worry and fear.
"Where's my baby?" She demanded and started looking around frantically. The General held his hands up and tried to calm her.
"Amie, calm down, its alright." She cried out shrilly and yelled with a tone of hysteria.
"Where is he! Where's my Tommy!" General Thorn grabbed her arms and tried to pull her out of the tent. She broke free from him and caught sight of the team in the corner. She disappeared and in an instant reappeared in front of them. The General and the three other ghosts in the room ran forward to stop her but she lifted a hand and a wall of water washed them all away. "You." She snarled, pointing at Hellboy. "You took my son." Hellboy held up his hands.
"Look lady, I've never seen you before, I don't have your kid." John stepped in front of him and tried to calm her.
"Amie. You need to calm down. No one's taken Tommy." She paused for a minute as if on the brink of an epiphany.
"Then where is he, John?" The agent sighed and stared at his feet.
"You killed him." He murmured. Amie let out an agonizing shriek and grabbed John's suit jacket. She screamed at him through gritted teeth.
"No I didn't do it! I could never!" She threw him into the computer equipment with supernatural force, but instead of crashing into the huge computer banks John passed through them and out of the tent. Abe looked at Hellboy with a questioning gaze and then they were both shoved out of the way by Amie. They didn't pass through the computers and the heavy machinery crashed on top of them. Abe reached out and caught the ghosts ankle, but she simply phased through his hand and moved closer to Liz who was now exposed. "Give me my son." She demanded coldly. Liz's arms burst into flames.
"I don't have your son, but if you still want to fight." she spread her fiery arms wide. Hellboy pushed through the metal boxes that were crushing him and muttered angrily.
"Let's see what this bitch thinks of the Good Samaritan." He took a shot. The bullet hit Amie in the shoulder and didn't pass through her. She yelled in pain and leaped at Liz, grabbing her and pinning her arms. The fire didn't seem to have any effect. Abe and Hellboy got to their feet and ran towards Liz and the ghost. But, before they could reach them, both women had vanished.
"Dammit!" The demon swore and kicked a piece of fallen equipment angrily.
"Well that's not going to help you." A familiar voice said from behind them. Both Abe and Hellboy turned to face John, who was sitting on the ground leaning against an overturned computer console.
"Agent Meyers." Abe said, the surprise clear in his voice. John didn't look up, but rested his head in his hands tiredly. "What happened to you, you passed through that equipment like a..." Abe trailed off and John looked at Hellboy.
"I'm sorry Red, I can't do this anymore." There was a small snap and John seemed to relax a little, as if some heavy burden had finally been dropped. Abe gasped, horrified.
"Agent Meyers your-"
"Dead." Hellboy finished. John drifted up slowly and beckoned them to follow him out of the tent.
"Come on, I know where she took Liz. We're going to need some supplies.
