I admit it… I had problems writing this part. There were things I wanted to do, but decided it would ruin the pace of the story and bring the climax up to soon… wouldn't want that. Anyway, that's all I have to say. So I'll do the Shout Out. Yup, you've guessed it, Peya Luna is the only reviewer again, but that's okay. I still thank all that have taken their time to read my story. I do dare someone else to review. That's right; the author is daring her readers to review… childish? Yes. Am I childish…. Yes…

Chapter Ten

He revealed everything; all the details of the unholy research that took place in the facility. How the Russians found a strange cave in the north and the creature frozen in the ice. How they build the facility around it to study and revive it for their own purposes. How the creature escaped and began to kill and transform the people in the facility. His smile or stare didn't break as he went through the gruesome history. He just stared and seemed to direct the conversation at Natasha. Sometimes he spoke in German, making Natasha translate for him.

She like him, Natasha didn't break her hateful stare with him. It was like no one else was in the room with them. It was only them and the memories of a mysterious past they shared.

…

"He just told you everything," Liz was surprised, "no forces, no threats needed?"

"None needed," Prof. Broom took in a deep breath.

It was a long story that he was relating, though he was more than happy to remember it. Or maybe it was more to remember her.

"He sang like a bird," Hellboy decided to add.

"But, why was he staring at Natasha," Abe wondered out loud, "I know you indicated that they have a past."

"Their story comes in a little later," Prof. Broom sighed, "Natasha was a woman of tragedy. There were very few times in her that she could recall being happy. What happened was defiantly not one of those times…"

…

"So you're trying to tell me that some Russian scientist found a frozen snake in the ground, dug it up, thawed it and then it killed them," the Captain was trying to absorb what Günter had just related.

"Yes… but you knew most of this," his wick smile wouldn't leave his face, "what you didn't know is that my people were involved in the project. I was a soldier at the time you see."

"I figured as much," Natasha commented.

"You knew that he was German soldier," one soldier asked.

"That's how we met," Natasha snorted.

"Ah yes, that cold Russian night in Moscow," Günter's smile curled even more, "you were on a mission to kill my commanding officer… which you so violently did," he laughed, "our gun fight in the streets, me chasing you down the alleys and eventually ending up in that abandoned warehouse. How many years has it been since that fateful night when you spared my life?"

"Ten years…," Natasha snarled, "keep to facility and snake. Do not deviate."

"How can I not, when it all tied together," Günter laughed, "all I've ever worked for has come to this."

"What do you mean by that," the Captain narrowed his eyebrows.

"I admit that things have not gone according to plan," he ignored the question, "Natasha is much more deadly and persistent than I thought, but is another reason that I fell for her."

"Plan? What plan," Prof. Broom questioned.

"What other plan could there be," Günter asked back, "the plan that every human desires, whether they admit it or not. The plan that gets them what they truly desire. The plan that leads down a dark path and seek answers in the deepest parts of their minds and hearts, it is the plan that lies in every single human being that has, is and will existed."

"Start making sense Nazi," the Captain was getting frustrated.

"The plan to obtain ultimate power," Günter plainly answered.

"He's gone crazy," the soldiers started to whisper.

"No… I'm not the one that has gone crazy," he continued, "this world has. With all the fighting and bloodshed, the arguing and mistake… no, this world would be better off if everything started anew."

He threw his head back and started to laugh manically. It echoed through the room, sending chills down the Professor's back. Truly this man had gone crazy from either being in the facility to long or the life he lived as a soldier and mercenary. In some way, the Professor felt sorry for the delusional man.

"Shut him up," the Captain ordered.

"Allow me," Natasha rushed in.

With one swift punch, Günter was knocked out cold; his insane laughter silenced. Natasha drew back her hand; a bruise was starting to form on her knuckles.

"He could never take more than one hit," she shook her hand as she walked away.

"Where you a heavyweight boxer back in the old county," the Captain looked at the damage to Günter's face.

She looked around, listened very carefully and decided it was safe, "I do not know what you mean by 'Old County', but I use to wrestle bears in the circus when I was younger," she whispered.

The Captain wasn't sure what to say about that or if she was telling the truth. He decided not to ask any questions; he probably didn't want to know. She seemed satisfied with her minor victory.

"I suppose that he should be put back in the closet… safest place for him," Natasha sighed.

"Yeah… boys… put him in his happy room," the Captain ordered three of his men.

They just took hold of the chair he was strapped down in and pulled him down the hallway. His head bobbed up and down as the chair creaked and jumped from the bumps in the floor.

"… … …," the Captain was in deep thought.

"Not sure to make of his story," the Professor was able to understand his confusion.

"Natasha, you know him the best," the Captain ignored the Professor's questions, "what do you make of his story? Is that crazy talk just an act?"

Natasha avoided his eyes, "I have known Günter for ten years now. I know of his life, tragedies and triumphs and he knows mine. He has always been a calm and collective individual. My rage and anger has always been subdued by his reasoning and honey tongue."

"So in other words," the Captain interrupted her, "that wasn't normal for him."

"I didn't say that," Natasha quickly answered, "like me, he enjoys a good drink. Whenever he drank too much, he would often speak of how bad the world was. How he had a plan to make everything better… then he would pass out before he would explain his 'ingenious' plan," she admitted, "I always thought it was drunkard talk, nothing more than that. But listening to him just now… well… I'm starting to think that he knew exactly what he was saying."

"So in other words…," the Captain was hoping that someone would finish for him.

Prof. Broom took the opportunity, "he is adamant about following through with this plan of his… whatever it may be."

"In some words like that," Natasha wasn't sure herself of what to think.

"This is crazy," the Captain threw up his hands in frustration, "the German didn't reveal much… just that he has a screw lose… which I already knew that."

"Didn't he," the Professor thought differently, "I believe he revealed more than he thought."

"How so," the Captain didn't believe him.

"Prof. Broom! Prof. Broom," one the agents came running from the research room, "I think we've found something important!"

"What," both the Professor and Captain asked at the same time.

"You better come see what we found," the agent was a little out of breath.

Without another word, everyone, except for the soldiers, head for the research room as quickly as they could. All the agents were abuzz with excitement at their discovery. Seeing that the Professor entered the room, they promptly place a thick, old looking book on the table.

"It's a journal from when the project started, Project Serpentine," the agent began to explain.

"It's in Russian," the Captain was looking over Prof. Broom's shoulder, "how did you translate it?"

"Mr. Gleb was helping us with another document. We naturally took notes and was able to piece together some of the entries… very important ones."

"What does it says," the Professor was getting a little antsy.

"It says," the agent brought out his notebook and began to read,

December 10th, 1945

I'm afraid that Prof. Konstantin and I had another disagreement on what the strange beast is or its origins. It is true that none of the local residents or folklore of the area has any explanation of what it is, but I have my theories. From what can be seen of the creature is it a large snake with arms… that's all we can tell. It is a semi-transparent white with what appears to be blue eyes…

"Hold on," the Captain interrupted, "the creature we know is black with red eyes. Was there a secondary snake… thing?"

"There is no mention of a secondary snake creature," the agent reported, "but read this one. It's about four months after this entry,"

April 2nd, 1946

I knew that we should have just put it back where we found it… most the soldiers are gone now… they disappeared whenever they went to seek food or fuel… none have come back. Only two Russian soldiers, four German ones, Dr. Konstantin and I are left. The soldiers are drawing straws to see who will go out and tempt fate with the snake demon. Only if we had kept the ice that the creature was found in intact. If we have only known that it would awaken when we took the scepter and manuscript from the melting ice. But the German scientists insisted that we melt the ice just enough to thaw out the items with the snake.

I will never forget that day… when its skin turned black and its eyes looked like they were on fire… when it broke through the remaining ice and leapt upon the German scientists, ripping into their flesh and smearing their blood onto the walls of the vault…

"Vault...," something struck the Professor, "I wonder if he means the vault in the back of this place?"

"We believe so," the agent agreed, "from what other entries indicated; this was the research wing of the facility and where the creature was kept."

"That is until it woke up and started to kill everyone," the Captain gave his summary of things.

"What else does it say," the Professor was still curious.

"Well," the agent began to read again,

It is strange how the manuscript and scepter disappeared a few days after we took it from the ice. The soldiers search everywhere and everyone for the missing items, but they could not be found. It is even stranger that I think of those things now. I have a feeling though… that the answers to the secret of the terrible beast lie within that manuscript. I can only remember one thing from that manuscript,

Feyo evoon saena, hau o Sake branea, HAU!

I do not know the meaning of this phrase or if is important, but it stuck out at me… I pray that something comes to mind… maybe Latin or Greek… something that might decipher this strange sentence in my mind….

"It says," Natasha interrupted, "Forget the blood, sleep O Lord Snake, SLEEP!"

"How do you know that," the Captain asked before Prof. Broom could.

"What… its old northern Russian," she casually explained, "my grandmamma use to speak all the time. She was from around in this area… just a little south I believe," she tried to recall.

"And what does that mean," the Captain was getting impatient.

She only shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. That is what the sentence says. The meaning behind it, I do not know."

"Great," he threw up his hands in anger.

"Forget the blood…," the Professor began to ponder out loud.

"Natasha," the agent approached her, "maybe you could look at some other books we have? There is similar writing in those as well."

"I should do that because," she snorted.

"Because if you don't," the Captain was nearly in her face, "I will personally make sure that snake eats you by tonight."

She only yawned, "I guess I don't have anything else to do… I'll do it… I guess."

"Thank you Natasha," Prof. Broom smiled.

The agents also seemed pleased with her response, though it was only half hearted. The Captain shook his head in frustration as Natasha began to look over a book that the agents were having trouble with. Prof. Broom had wanted Natasha to look over the books for some time but she either had no interest or made excuses. Maybe her reading that passage sparked her interest or it was Günter's strange mix of story and insanity that made her want to help. She would never tell or show what she was feeling inside; she just wasn't that kind of woman or at least he didn't think she was.

He left the agents and Natasha to translate the rest of the books and go find where Hellboy and Gleb had gone off too. Heading towards the back, he heard the sounds of laughter coming from one of the offices. He peaked in to see Hellboy relating a story to Gleb. It was one of his favorites and was the one the he always asked the Professor to read over and over.

"And so the Prince held the sword above his head and was about to bring it down into the Demon's heart…" Hellboy acted the part out, "when the princess took hold of hilt and said "Please don't my dear Prince! He has suffered enough! Please, allow him to live." The Prince looked deep into her eyes, they reflected back his image and he was terrified by what he saw. He himself had become the demon. "My dear gentle Princess," the Demon spoke up, "I must die… if I do not, I will continue to drink the blood of virgins… just as I tried with you. Young Prince, please free me from this curse and incessant desire for blood. Do not think less of your dear Prince," the Demon turned to the Princess, "he is only protecting you and others that would suffer from my horrid desires… I am ready," the Demon stood before the Prince, ready to die.

Prof. Broom was so proud of his son for remembering every detail so precisely. Hellboy finished the story with the single blow the Prince gave to Demon. The story ended and Gleb clapped quietly.

"That was very good little one," Gleb smiled, "you make great story… story… umm," he was stuck on the word.

"You mean storyteller," Hellboy was scratching his head in embarrassment as his cheeks turned a bright shade of red.

"Yes," Gleb smiled bigger, "you would like Natasha's stories. She very good storyteller too. She know a lot of stories from here. I like one about Prince Ivan most."

"Really," Hellboy was interested, "how does it go?"

Gleb began to fiddle with his fingers, "oh… I no good with stories…I always mess up ending… we ask Natasha to tell it later. Yes?"

"Yeah," Hellboy was getting excited at the idea of hearing a new story.

Prof. Broom laughed to himself at the innocents of his young son. He had grown so fast and was growing every day, but somehow he retained a childlike innocence that amazed the Professor. He knew that soon Hellboy would start to train as an agent for the Bureau and lose his childhood, but it had to be done. He was a growing boy and the Professor couldn't hide the world from him for too much longer. Maybe like any other father, Prof. Broom wished his son could stay a child forever. To stop time were it was and keep things the way they were.

"Well until then, I'll tell another story," Hellboy started again, "this is a story about the Magically Creatures rising up against the greed of Man…"

Another one of his favorites, Prof. Broom smiled.