Sorry for the wait. This one is short. Suspense... Hopefully.

'You will not fail her... either of them.' the words returned to him as he took yet another shot and poured another, not bothering to even look at the nightmare before him; till it reached out and took the shot with a very human hand.

"Glenlivet, " the familiar English accented voice said happily before drinking down the scotch, "top shelf, as we used to say."

"Charlie? From Osaka? You old dead dog... how's the suit? Still feeling lite-headed?"

"She's a good shot... with a little help from our friends the Old Ones... blessed be. Three miles, high winds... Headshot? right above, and between my eyes. They LOVE HER... and our matriarch... the one inside her."

"You got too much air in the brain. Doppy won't join an all boys club."

"We weren't intended to be; Himiko was ment to rule us - to be the great mother... till father saw the truth of her ambition. The witch sought our destruction, even of her love. Who we hoped would be the kind mother to humanity, the one we had hoped would turn the fire of volcanus's wrath and petty revenges to the warmth of a communal hearth; she who would finally let us be stewards to man's true benevolent nature - turn the Sahara desert to lush farmland - turned out to be the whore to the fire spirit's darkest whims. Your daughter will laugh at ALL threats, FORCE all who resist the rights of others to be honored to kneel to the one true all loving creator's truth.. That ONLY IT can decide what is righteous. SHE will finally usher in the dawn of..."

"GOT IT!," Carter shouted, "You're all shithouse crazy and it's way past the time for your meds."

"Mad? Greater men than me have been called that... thank you... Brother."

"Right, You are admitting it to yourself... First step to wellness, or a padded cell. By the way, what is IT?"

"You know... the seer told you. You know of the truth... it is destiny's fulfillment. Have you ever searched for YOUR truth? Or only earthly pleasure? I see HIM in your features... and hers... blessed be."

"Who? Your wizard boss?"

"Nobody so base. I'm sorry you don't see what we know to be true: that the plan you have to defeat us... isn't a choice you made - but a fulfillment of destiny set in motion millenniums ago, that none of us can stop any more than you have caused it to happen. We are, all of us... puppets on strings. No matter; now that we have you, SHE will have to work with us; If not her, your daughter."

Carter turned the valve, "We could keep talking... like a pair of arrogant twats... or... " and poured two more drinks.

The Trinity agent grinned. "Good boy, you know your role of bartender at least."

"is to shut YOUR mouth. What say we get lit?" Had his drinking partner remained a werewolf, perhaps he'd have heard the hiss of the gas now filling the sealed room.

...

The second werewolf, staggered momentarily by the extinguisher blast, appeared to laugh as it tossed aside the prep-table as if it were a napkin. Then screamed as he transformed back into human, "FUCK!"

Serge laughed, and grabbed a butcher knife, "Touchy aren't you. Mood swings? They have drugs for that."

"Volcanus likes whatever you're going through in your head. SO, it doesn't want my claws ripping you apart."

"WRONG!," Marty inserted from a booth just outside the kitchen, "SET - the soul controling volcanus - is bored: You aren't scared... so he wants HIS frustration. Real god of chaos shit. antiquated bugger has the attention span of a gerbal on crack."

"Marty, that sounds great,"Serge responded, "but aren't you giving up your..."

"WHAT?" the Trinity agent screamed, "who the fuck is Marty?"

"Answer your question?" the seer stated.

"So, can you give me any help?" the frenchman asked, only mildly astonished.

"He's afraid of fire; his favorite color is blue; and he's about to die."

"Thanks?"

"WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?!" the agent screamed, and fumbled for a tenderizer mallet before grabbing his own chest... and dropping dead.

"YUP!" Marty answered before being asked.

"Right... it was Set! Hey! Do you want to...?"

"NO! No lottery, and no poker, no sports betting... bad shit happens. Karma of using what fate has given to help others for my own gain."

"Aren't you..."

"...being too dramatic? LOOK AT MY FACE!"

...

Jean grinned as he rolled the balls of the two billiard tables into two grain sacks, and tied them off just as the werewolf healed, and rose to it's feet.

It looked to his right hand.

He struck it in the crotch with the improvised weapon in his left, before swinging the one in his right around and hitting it in the left temple.

It staggered, but didn't fall.

He didn't care; swinging the sacks like slings, taunting it, he was feeling inexpressibly alive, powerful, amused... something found him useful.

Right claw swung for his head?

He swung under the arm, breaking three of it's ribs.

Snag the swung left sack?

He shattered it's right patela...

...the leg didn't heal.

Jean grew bigger, more powerful, more fluid in his motions, till the bags were blurred.

It knew terror... Volcanus was overjoyed. Then... hope.

The sealed door to the private bar behind the man before him... flew off it's hinges as flames erupted outward, engulfing Jean, and the rest of the pub up to the big man's hips.

Hopefully you aren't too confused... STAY TUNED!