The Winged Wolf

Written by catsamurai16.

An Idea from TalosLives.

Chapter 6: First Day Blues.

Even after a few drinks, the tension in the conference room was thick. Loona kept staring at Jericho with murder in her eyes. Jericho glared right back, his mind combing through which spell would hurt her more. Moxxie had finished his daiquiri and grabbed a wine cooler for himself and a beer for Millie, who still looked upset over what happened between Jericho and Loona. Blitzø had emptied three bottles of malt liquor, two bottles of red wine, a six pack of beer and the last seven wine coolers without showing any sign of slowing down.

After a loud bletch, Blitzø said, "Alright, enough fucking around. Let's do this!"

Jericho thought, "This jackass is the boss? How have they not gotten themselves killed yet"

Then he asked, "Well, first I'd like to know what kind of magic you need for this job?"

Blitzø turned to the white board and said, "Alastor wants us to get his super powerful amulet off this poor fucker who found it. We need to kill him and get the amulet, and bring it back to him. This is what it looks like."

Blitzø turned the whiteboard over and showed Jericho the drawing Alastor left. Jericho stood up and stood in front of the picture.

"Hmm," Jericho said, "This is a pretty powerful bit of protection magic."

Moxxie said, "According to Alastor, the amulet is giving some of its protection to our target. We need you to weaken the amulets' protection for us so we can get close enough for the kill."

Jericho turned to Moxxie, "But that doesn't make any sense."

Millie asked, "How do you mean, Jeri?"

"Well, this kind of protection magic can do that, but if this guy just stops wearing it the magic should wear off on its own," Jericho said, "So, why would Alastor want us to kill him as well?"

"Aw, well, darn it all. I don't think any of us bothered to ask him," Blitzø said sarcastically, "Who gives a fuck why he wants him dead?!"

Jericho said, "I do."

Blitzø said, "Well, it's not up for debate, kid! We're wasting the fucker and that's that."

Moxxie said, "I will admit it's strange. When I asked him the significance of the amulet, he got defensive. And he did say the amulets' power would be trouble if someone had it."

"What kind of trouble?" Jericho asked.

"The kind were its none of our fucking business, asswipe!" Loona shouted, "You ain't here to be some kinda adviser or some shit. You're here to help us with magic. So, shut the fuck up and do whatever Blitzø tells you!"

"Alastor wants this guy dead for a reason!" Jericho shouted, "And until we figure out what it is, we should be careful."

Blitzø yelled, "Yeah, you'll 'carefully' shut off the magic and we'll 'carefully' put a bullet in his fucking skull!"

Jericho yelled back, "There's more to canceling spells than just waving my hands around!"

Blitzø, Loona, and Jericho continued to yell at each other while Millie rubbed her temples. Moxxie put his hand on his wife's shoulder.

He asked, "Do you want me to...uh?"

Millie smiled at Moxxie and said, "Please, sweetie."

Moxxie reached into his coat and pulled out an air horn and two sets of ear plugs. After he and Millie had plugged their ears, he let out a loud burst with the air horn. The others stopped arguing to cover their ears. Once he was sure they had stopped, Moxxie put the air horn and their ear plugs back in his coat.

"There you go, honey," he said to Millie.

Millie gave Moxxie a quick 'thank you' kiss and stood up on the table. She put her hands on her hips and said, "Okay, damn it. If I have to be the adult in the room I will."

She turned to Blitzø, "Blitzø, give Jericho some slack. He's probably never had a job before, let alone have to kill someone! Give him space and time to grow."

She turned to Loona, "I don't know what happened at that stupid hound party and I don't care! He's here now and you're just gonna have to get over it."

She turned to Jericho, "Of course Alastor's got more on the line here than a simple hit. Ya think we're so stupid that we don't know that? It's none of our business why someone wants someone dead, we just kill 'em and move on! If ya can't deal with that, then maybe ya shouldn't have taken the job!"

She looked them all over and said, "Now, can we knock off the fucking bickering and get to work?"

Millie plopped back down into her seat as Moxxie gave her some light applause. Loona still looked pissed, but she pulled out her phone and sat back in her chair. Blitzø crossed his arms and sat back too. Jericho lowered his ears and said, "I'm sorry to cause trouble."

Millie said, "It's fine, Jeri. We all have worries and questions about this whole thing. Trust me. Why don't ya tell us some of yours?"

Jericho nodded. He glanced at Blitzø and said, "Well, for starters, who do you think told Alastor about the book?"

"I don't think anyone did," Moxxie said, "He mentioned that he was curious about how we were getting to the Mortal World."

"Well, that makes me feel a little better," Jericho said, "But why do we have to kill the guy? Did he say anything about that?"

Millie shook her head, "Naw. He just said to kill him and take it."

"Can you think of any reason why we would need to kill him to get the amulet?" Moxxie asked.

"No. In terms of magic, there's no reason why we can't just take it. Was there anything else?" Jericho asked.

Moxxie shrugged, "Not that I can think-"

"Oh, wait! The case!" Millie said.

Jericho raised his eyebrow, "Case?"

Moxxie said, "Oh, yeah. Show him the case, sir."

Blitzø turned away from the group and growled while his tail tip flicked back and forth.

Millie said, "Aw, come one now Blitzø. Please?"

Blitzø made a sideways glance at Millie. He huffed and reached into his jacket. He tossed the case at Jericho.

He said, "Once we have the amulet, we're supposed to put it in there."

Jericho looked all over the case, "Nothing magical about this."

"Great. Toss it back," Blitzø said quickly. Once Jericho did, he asked, "Okay, kid, now here's a question for you. Can you shut off the amulets magic or not?"

Jericho said, "I can, but I need to get a look at it so I know how powerful to make my spell."

Blitzø asked, "Why can't you just zap the thing?"

"Because if I 'zap' it too lightly, the spell won't work, but if I 'zap' it too much, it may explode," Jericho said.

Everyone stared at Jericho in shock.

"Well, 'explode' is the wrong word," Jericho said, "It's more, 'cause a blast of magic big enough that someone from upstairs might notice it,'" Jericho said, leaning on the table.

"Upstairs?"

"Heaven, sir."

"Shut the fuck up, Moxxie. I knew that."

"The point is that I need a better idea of the amulets power," Jericho said, "But yes, I'm sure I can cancel the amulets magic."

Blitzø clapped his hands together, "Okay, now that we've got through the question and answer stage, let's go to the big game. First things first, surveillance. We head out to the target's location and scope the hell out of it. We need vantage points, possible exits, and if we can swing it, a spot for a sniper's nest. M&M, you two are on the street and I'll take the hotel. Then, we need a set of eyes on our target. Loona, since you've got the best disguise, you can get close in and see if he's got the amulet on him. Jericho, stay close by if he does so you can do what you need to do. We get this right the first time and we'll be back in time for dinner. Anything else? No? Good, let's get this shit done."

Jericho was kind of impressed that Blitzø could plan so well and be so stupid at the same time. Everyone stood up and headed out. Loona hung back with Jericho and said, "Remember what I said, douchebag."

Jericho grunted, "Yeah, yeah, bitch, I remember."

Loona growled at him, then headed back to the front. Jericho slowly followed. As they walked, Loona put on her human disguise. Jericho looked her over and blushed. He quickly shook his head and put on his own, which gave him sandy blonde hair, brown eyes, and a nose that was slightly crooked like it had been broken before. As they made it to the front, Blitzø, Moxxie, and Millie were finishing up their "disguises." Moxxie was wearing a blue plaid shirt with shorts and red flip-flops. He had a camera hanging around his neck and a beanie to cover his horns. Millie was dressed in a black woman's business suit with its skirt reaching her shins. Her brunette wig was large and easily covered her horns. Blitzø was made up like a street bum with a large dirty coat and scarf wrapped around him. Several brown paper bags covered his head and horns.

"What the fuck are you all wearing?" Jericho asked.

Blitzø looked at the others, then at Jericho and said, "Our disguises. What does it look like?"

"Why aren't you using your human disguises?" Jericho asked.

Loona rolled her eyes, "Here we go again."

Moxxie rubbed the back of his neck, "We don't actually have human disguises."

"What?!" Jericho yelled

Moxxie quickly added, "Well, these work just fine for us."

"Just fine?!" Jericho asked in shock, "Anyone could tell you're not human a mile away!"

"Hey, most human are dumb as bricks. They barely notice us," Blitzø said.

Millie said with a laugh, "Except the one time we opened that portal into that D&D group. Whoo, that was funny!"

"This isn't funny! Do you know how much trouble we'll be in if you're caught?" Jericho asked, "And why hasn't Uncle Stolas given you human disguises?"

"Say wha?" Blitzø asked.

Millie stepped forward, "Give us disguises?"

"Uncle Stolas?" Loona asked.

Jericho took a deep breath to steady his nerves. He said, "From your reaction, I guess you haven't even bothered to ask him. Nevermind, I could give you human disguises too, if you want."

"Naw, I'm good," Blitzø said, adjusting his paper bags.

Moxxie took off the beanie and said, "Come on, sir. As assassins, they can come in handy."

Millie said, "Yeah. And we wouldn't have to run from targets as much."

Blitzø huffed and crossed his arms, "We don't need that extra shit. We've been doing great without it."

"Well, the easier we move around, the quicker we get this hit done," Jericho said, "So, I can either give you a human disguise or you can keep playing dress up."

"Watch your fucking tone with me, kid," Blitzø snapped.

After a few minutes of grumbling, Blitzø took the bags of his head and said, "Fine, Goddamn it."

They pulled off the disguises as Jericho began casting the spell. The room was suddenly filled with a flash of blue flames that washed over Blitzø, Moxxie, and Millie. Jericho looked them over and said, "There, that's much better."

Millie looked down at her hands and saw she had five fingers. She flexed them and saw they still felt normal. Then she looked at herself. Her clothes looked like always, but she now had laced up boots instead of hooves. She took a few steps to test them.

"Huh. This is kinda weird," she thought.

She looked at Moxxie to see how he was doing and she gasped. Next to her was someone who she knew was Moxxie, but it was a human. Moxxie's horns were gone and his white hair had turned brown. His face was the same, but his eyes were blue and his skin looked like a humans. He had a cute button nose and buck teeth. He also had more freckles on his face.

"Wow, sweetie. I didn't think you'd look so cute as a human," she said.

Moxxie shook his head to clear it. He had been marveling over how pretty his wife was as a human. She also lost her horns and red skin. Her hair was still black and she still had that cute gap in her teeth. Her skin was tanned and her small cute nose. She had a scar above her eye he'd never seen before.

Moxxie said, "I'm honestly not surprised to see you look as beautiful as ever, honey."

Millie blushed and squealed. She pulled him into a kiss and held him close. A pair of hands grabbed Moxxie from behind and started shaking him. It was Blitzø.

He said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, save it for when the job's over. Anyway, you guys look okay, but what about me?"

They both looked up and were kinda shocked at what they saw. Moxxie took a quick look at Millie and carefully said, "Um… you look fine, sir."

"Yeah, just fine," Millie said nervously.

Blitzø raised an eyebrow and looked at Loona. She looked like she was holding back laughter as she recorded him on her phone. He looked at Jericho and said, "What the fuck did you do?"

Jericho kept opening his mouth to talk, but nothing was coming out. Instead, he raised his hand and summoned a hand mirror and held it out to Blitzø. Blitzø snatched the mirror and looked at himself. He was stunned. He looked like a human with shoulder length black hair and a thick black beard and mustache. His eyes were hazel brown and a little sunken. His nose was long and narrow. Blitzø's shock quickly became rage.

He yelled, "WHY THE FUCK DO I LOOK LIKE KEEANU REEVES?!"

Now, Loona almost fell over laughing. Millie and Moxxie bit their lips to stop themselves from joining her.

"It's not fuckin' funny!" Blitzø groaned and turned to Jericho, "Well, what the fuck happened?!"

Jericho shook his head, "I don't know! The spell's not supposed to work like that."

"Like what?" Blitzø asked, crossing his arms.

Jericho said, "Well, I just-"

"No, no! Nevermind! I don't care!" Blitzø said, "Just fix it!"

Loona laughed, "Hey, Blitzø. I got an idea for the hit. W-we put the guy in a speeding bus with a bomb on it and-"

"Knock it off, Loona!" Blitzø shouted.

Moxxie and Millie couldn't help themselves anymore. Moxxie fell on the floor, pounding it in fits of laughter. Millie was holding her sides and bent over laughing. Loona could barely stand as she kept recording.

"This is so going up on ticVox," she said between laughs.

"Don't you dare, Loona!" Blitzø yelled.

"Uh, like, come on Blitzø," Millie said in a valley girl voice, "Don't freak out, dude. Take a chill pill."

"A red one or a blue one?" Moxxie asked, snickering.

Everyone continued laughing as Blitzø's face became redder and redder. He looked at Jericho, who looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh. Blitzø stomped up to him and put his finger in his face.

Blitzø said, threateningly, "Fix. It. NOW!"

Jericho quickly said, "Okay, okay. One sec."

After taking a minute to calm down, Jericho cast the spell and the blue flames spread to Blitzø. Once it was done, Blitzø looked at himself in the mirror again. His hair was still black, but much shorter and kinda spiked with white highlights. His eyes were a deep almost reddish brown with bags under them. His face was tanned and he had a goatee. His nose was slightly shorter. Blitzø sighed and shoved the mirror back to Jericho.

"Better," he said, then he looked at the overs and crossed his arms, "I guess that none of you think this face is that funny?"

They all had stopped laughing. Millie wiped away a few tears and said, "We're sorry, Blitzø, but that was-"

"Save it until we get this done," Blitzø said, "Anyway, let's go before something else goes wrong."

With that, Loona opened the portal and Blitzø stepped through. M&M followed next and Jericho followed Loona. They were behind the main building of the target's hotel in the middle of New Orleans. Blitzø looked around and said, "Okay, gang. We all know our jobs. Let's go and be careful."

As they all split up, Jericho turned to Loona and asked, "Do you have the target's picture?"

Without saying anything, she reached into her pocket and pulled it out. She gave it a quick sniff and tucked it away. Looking around, she then started to walk toward the street.

Jericho sighed and started to follow her, "The fucking silent treatment? What are you, 9 years old?"

On the street, Moxxie and Millie were slowly looking around. Moxxie noticed that the street was busy with humans walking in every direction. They were coming in and out of the restaurants and the hotel was busy too. He shook his head.

"This street is too open," he thought, "If something went wrong, there would be so many ways and places he could run to. We'd lose him and might get caught ourselves."

Millie wasn't as focused on the mission as he was though. She was looking around, but it was in awe of the city.

"Wow. Ya know, this place is really something," she said.

Moxxie said, "I know. There's no way we can take him down on the street."

"I didn't mean like that, Mox," she giggled.

Moxxie turned to her, "What do you mean?"

Millie said, "Well, most of the time we're up here, we kill someone and go. We don't really get a chance to look at anything. And being on this amazing street, surrounded by humans that don't have to worry about noticing us, I just couldn't help but take in how pretty everything is."

Moxxie smiled at her and said "Not as pretty as you, honey."

Millie cooed and pulled Moxxie in for a quick kiss. Suddenly, very loud, almost celebratory music started playing in one of the restaurants. Moxxie's eye filled with stars as he listened. It was unlike anything he had heard before. The music seemed to be alive, like it had its own soul. Some people in the street began to dance to it. Moxxie looked at Millie and she was already bouncing to the beat of the music. He took Millie by the hand and they started dancing too.

As they danced Millie said, giggling, "Oh, we are so coming back here!"

While Millie and Moxxie were dancing, Blitzø was checking the third floor of the hotel. He was looking down and making notes about the staff and other people in the hotel lobby. He counted two receptionists, five bell boys, four security guards and one plain clothes cop, not to mention all the tourists moving around. He watched while people moved all around the lobby, heading to their rooms or out the door. He shook his head and walked to the elevator.

"Fuck," he thought, "This places is shoot-out waiting to happen. If we nailed the guy here we'd never get out."

As Blitzø was checking out the hotel, Jericho and Loona were following the trail of their target. They were just coming to a coffee shop. As they reached the entrance, Jericho grabbed Loona and pulled her to one of the tables. He pushed her into a chair and quickly sat down himself.

Loona growled, "What the fuck are you-"

"Shut up and look!" Jericho whispered and pointed over his shoulder.

Loona looked and saw their target was close by at another table sipping coffee. He had a light gray backpack and was looking over some papers and books from it.

"So, Miss Professional Assassin, tell me something. That's our target, right? And it would've been bad if he'd seen us, right?" Jericho whispered.

"Fuck you," Loona said, "Anyway, does he have the amulet on him?"

"I don't know. I'm not looking at him," Jericho said.

Loona groaned and looked over to their target again. He was wearing a black shirt and denim blue jeans, but she didn't see the amulet around his neck.

"It doesn't look like it," she said.

Jericho said, "Okay. It may be in his room."

"I've got an idea for getting inside," Loona said.

Jericho said, "Okay, how-"

Loona suddenly swung a quick punch and hit Jericho in the face. Jericho fell out of the chair and Loona stood up and continued walking.

"See ya back at the hotel, fucker!" he heard her say, "Get the fuck outta my way!"

Someone helped Jericho up, saying, "Holy shit, man. You ok?"

Jericho looked around for Loona and saw she had knocked over other chairs and customers, including the target.

"Why'd she do that?" the guy next to Jericho asked.

Jericho rubbed his cheek and said, "She has problems. Moreover, she likes causing them."

Jericho ran after Loona and when he caught up to her he said, "What the fuck was that for?!"

Loona smiled and held up a hotel room keycard and said, "Distraction."

"So, you decked me just to pickpocket the guy's key?" Jericho asked, getting more pissed off.

"Naw," Loona said, "I decked you cause you're an asshole."

Jericho growled and followed her to the hotel.

After he finished looking inside the hotel, Blitzø had decided to look around the outside. He rounded the last corner and headed out to the street.

"Neutral cover over here too. Damnit! Maybe Millie and Moxxie have good news for me," he thought.

He looked down the street and saw Moxxie and Millie dancing in a crowd of people. He rolled his eyes. He stomped down the road towards them. As he got there, the music was changing to a slow dance. Moxxie pulled Millie into a hug and began to slowly sway to the rhythm.

"What the fuck are you two doing?!" he shouting, scaring them and the rest of the crowd.

Blitzø quickly pulled Moxxie and Millie away and said, "Am I the only professional left in the group? What happened?"

" were just…Um," Moxxie stammered.

Millie said, "Sorry, Blitzø. We just got a little side tracked."

"Yeah, I'd expect that from No Nards here, Millie, but not you," Blitzø said, "We've got to stay focused. The sooner we get this taken care of, the sooner we get the Radio Demon out of our shit. Now, where's Jericho and my Loona?"

Millie pointed and said, "There they are."

Blitzø turned and what he saw made his heart stop. He watched Loona and Jericho go into the big hotel he had just finished scoping out. Now, part of him knew they might have been looking for the target, but the rest of him wasn't going to risk some dipshit boy stealing his Loonie away from him! He bolted to follow them inside. Moxxie and Millie followed right behind him.

"So much for staying focused," Moxxie said.

Blitzø burst into the lobby and looked around, but didn't see them. He ran over to the receptionist who was reading from her tablet.

"Hey, lady," Blitzø said, " Did you see a young, vulnerable, innocent girl come in with a disgusting, untrustworthy, STD-filled guy?"

Without looking up, the receptionist said, "All the time."

Blitzø groaned and started looking around for his precious Loona and that rat bastard Jericho.

While Blitzø started zipping around the lobby trying to find them, Loona and Jericho were in the elevator on their way to the second floor. Jericho was leaning on the wall, still rubbing his sore cheek and glaring at Loona. Loona still had that smug smile on her face she'd gotten since she punched him.

When the doors opened, Jericho pushed past Loona and said, "You're lucky I'm too much of a gentleman to hit a girl."

"Like you'd have the balls to do it if I wasn't, dickless," she said, following behind.

As they walked closer to their target's room, Loona suddenly became light headed. She groaned and shook her head and put her arm up to lean against the wall. Jericho turned to her, then back towards the room.

"You're feeling the amulets' effects from thus far away?" he asked, "Or is it those two bottles of tequila finally catching up to you?"

Loona groaned, "Shut the fuck up, shit stain. I'm not a lightweight like you. This doesn't feel like a hangover."

Jericho cast a quick spell over Loona. She did feel better, but she was still pissed.

"What was that?" Loona asked.

Jericho said, "Just a little boost to your magic. You should be fine for a while longer. Now, let's get inside. Give me the keycard."

Jericho held out his hand for it and Loona just slapped his hand aside. She reached over and unlocked the door herself. Jericho shook his head and followed her inside. The room was the average size of a hotel room. Most of the suitcases were closed and set against the wall, but the bed was covered with maps, notebooks, old newspaper clippings, and black and white pictures. Jericho looked over some of the clippings and noticed they all either talked about the tour of some famous celebrities and radio personalities from the 20's and 30's or an unknown serial killer that killed dozens across the country around the same time. Jericho looked at the pictures and saw they were mostly of the same man. He was a tall handsome looking man with large glasses and a friendly smile. In some pictures, he was standing with a large group of people.

Jericho thought, "I wonder what all this is about? Research?"

"Hey! Found it!" Loona said.

Jericho set down the picture and turned to Loona. She had opened one of the desk drawers and the amulet was inside.

Jericho walked over, "Okay. Let's see what we're dealing with."

He placed his hand over the amulet and began casting his spell. The amulet started to give off a golden glow. Jericho moved his hand closer and the amulets glow changed to red.

"Basic protection. No harm there," Jericho muttered.

Jericho used both of his hands to cast the next spell and they started glowing blue. The amulet was giving off its golden glow again.

"Hmm, weird," he said.

"What?" Loona asked.

Jericho quickly shushed her and cast another spell, this time his hands glowed green. The amulet began to glow brighter and brighter. Jericho took a step back as the amulets glow changed to green.

"Uh, let's back up out of the room," Jericho said.

Loona asked, "Why? What's it doing?"

"Just back up out of the room," Jericho said.

Suddenly, the amulets started glowing a deep crimson and black that seemed to fill the whole room.

Loona lowered her ears and backed away, "What did the fuck you do?"

"Run!" Jericho shouted and slammed the drawer.

The amulets glow changed back to golden, but still grew brighter. Loona and Jericho bolted out of the room. Jericho slammed the door behind them and cast another spell. He grabbed Loona and pulled her away from the door. The glow began to shine brighter and through the spaces in the door until it exploded in a large flash. After that, the glow disappeared. Jericho lifted his head and looked toward the door. Loona was still a little freaked out and shook her head. She realized that Jericho still had his hands on her arms, shielding her from the amulets magic. She shrugged off his hands and punched him hard in the gut. Jericho doubled over and fell on his side.

"What the ever-loving fuck did you do?!" Loona shouted, "You said the thing wouldn't explode!"

"Spell backlash… not my fault… " Jericho strained out.

Loona asked, "How was that not your fault?"

Jericho stood up, "Nevermind. I'll explain it to everybody back at the I.M.P. headquarters. Let's get back to the others."

As they went to the elevator, Loona pulled out her phone and called Blitzø.

He answered right away saying, "Loona sweetie! Where are you?! What did he do to you?! If that sleazy son of a bitch has defiled any of your holes, I'll-"

"Blitzø, knock it off! We're heading back to the lobby. Meet us there, " Loona said and hung up.

She glared at Jericho, "Now tell me what you did?"

Jericho groaned and said, "It's complicated."

Loona said, "Well, uncomplicate it and fast or I'll-"

"Save the threats for later!" Jericho shouted, "We may be in deeper shit than I thought."

As the elevator doors opened, Blitzø ran inside and grabbed Loona in a tight hug.

"Oh, Loonie! Don't ever scare me like that again!" Blitzø cried.

Loona pushed him off and said, blushing, "Goddamn it, Blitzø! Quit it!"

Moxxie came up, "Did you find the amulet, Jericho?"

"Yeah, he found it and then he nearly killed us with it!" Loona said.

Jericho said, "I did not, bitch!"

Loona shouted, "Don't lie, fucker!"

"Not this again," Millie said.

Before the arguing could get out of hand, Millie grabbed Loona and Jericho by the ears and dragged them out of the elevator and into the lobby. They both struggle to get her to let go.

"Hey, stop that, Mils! You'll hurt her!" Blitzø said.

"What about me?!" Jericho said.

"No way, Blitzø! If they're gonna act like kids, I'll treat 'em like it!" Millie said, "Now, are you two gonna behave?"

"Yeah, yeah! Fuck!" Loona said.

"Uh-huh, me too! Me too!" Jericho said.

Millie let them go and said, "Good. I don't think I won't do that again."

As Jericho and Loona were rubbing their sore ears, Blitzø came up from behind and said, "Now, what was that about nearly getting my Loona killed, cocksucker?"

Jericho grunted, "I actually saved us."

Loona said, "Don't try to cover your ass! You almost got us blown up!"

"It was a spell backlash!" Jericho said.

"So, what? Did 'uncle' Stolas not teach you how to deal with that?" Loona asked.

Jericho said, "He did and I did deal with it, you bi-"

Millie said, "What did I just say?!"

Moxxie said, "Everyone, calm down! We're making a scene."

The others looked around and sure enough, most of the lobby was looking at them. Some turned away, but others kept glancing in their direction.

"MIND YOUR OWN FUCKING BUSINESS!" Blitzø shouted.

Everyone turned away from them then.

Blitzø smiled and said, "There. That's taken care of."

Moxxie shook his head, "Well, now we really need to go, sir."

"Fine, Goddamn it," Blitzø said, "Let's get back to the office,"

Most didn't bother to watch them leave. Most everybody thought they were just rude tourists and went back to their business. Most didn't think anything more about the strange group that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Most, but not all. The receptionist at the deck had turned away with everyone else, but she watched as the group left. She watched them for one reason. The name one of them had said.

"Stolas."

She quickly typed it into her search engine on her tablet. After a second, she was rereading an article she'd read months before for her history final. Prince Stolas of the Ars Goetia. She had decided to do a thesis on legends and myth. Apparently, Stolas was a powerful being in Hell. She looked back to the door. She shook her head and closed the browser, dismissing the idea from her mind. It was a coincidence or she'd misheard her. Besides, It was crazy. There's no such thing as demons.

As Blitzø and the others made it back to their office, they lowered their human disguises and walked into the conference room.

Once everyone was inside, Blitzø turned to Jericho and said, "Okay, kid. Tell us what happened."

Jericho sat on the couch and said, "Well, we found the target and he wasn't wearing the amulet. So, we figured it must be in his room. That's when Loona punched me."

Loona took out her phone and said, "I needed a distraction to steal the guy's key card."

"Good thinking, sweetie," Blitzø said.

Jericho said, "Yeah, real good. Next time, just let me magic the door open, you-"

"Jericho," Millie said sternly, "Don't say it. Just let it go and keep going."

Jericho grumbled, but continued, "Anyway, after Loona found the amulet, I cast a detection spell to see what kind of protection magic was on it. It has a layered mix of different kinds of voodoo protective and repellant spells, some were stronger than others."

"What's repellant magic?" Moxxie asked.

Jericho said, "It's like a force that doesn't hurt demons, just weakens them or thins them out. Loona was feeling some of its effects before I buffed up her magic shielding."

"What did I say about you touching Loona?!" Blitzø yelled.

"Damn it, Blitzø! Don't make me wrangle you in too!" Millie said, "Just let him finish!"

"Alright! Alright! Fuck!" Blitzø said as he started pacing.

Millie nodded to Jericho and he said, "I tried to dispel the amulets' protection spells, but I noticed a different spell underneath them all casting more. I pushed the protection spells aside and started to try and isolate the spell so I could figure out what it was. But before I could figure out much, the unknown spell changed the protection spells and they started to absorb my magic in a spell backlash."

"The fuck does that mean?" Blitzø snapped.

"Like it told Loona, it's complicated," Jericho said, running his hand through his fur and after taking a second to think, he said, "Picture two magnets pointed at one another. Pushing one towards the other will cause it to be pushed away. That's what my spell was doing. Pushing the protection magics out of the way so I could see the unknown spell. My spell was basically a negative push against the amulet's positive push. Normally, this is a perfectly harmless way to look underneath multilayered spells. But the unknown spell somehow changed the protection spells to absorb my magic and started to build up power for an explosion."

"Which it did," Loona said with a grunted.

Jericho snapped, " No, it didn't! If it exploded, we'd be dead. When I saw it was gathering power, I cast a wide canceling spell to try and stop the blast. And it worked… mostly."

Blitzø slammed his hands on the table and said, "So, all that work and you can't do shit about that amulet?"

"I didn't say that," Jericho said, "Like I said, my canceling spell worked for the most part. It canceled my spells as well as weakened the blast from an explosion to a flash of light. That means that whatever the unknown spell is, it doesn't take control of magic. It just changes it. But that's where the problem comes in."

Moxxie asked, "What kind of problem?"

Millie asked, "Does it have to do with shutting the amulets magic off?"

Jericho nodded, "Yeah. Canceling the protection magic is simple enough, but if this unknown spell casts more of them again it could be trouble."

Millie said, "Well, maybe it ain't casting new spells as much as turning them back on."

"How so?" Jericho asked.

Millie said, "Well, like we told ya. Alastor said the amulet was giving some of its protection to the target. If that's so, ya can only permanently dispel the magic while he's wearing the amulet."

Jericho said, "Well, that makes sense. That just leaves the unknown spell."

Blitzo asked, " Do you have any idea what the fuck it's for? Could it be like, I don't know, protection for the protection magic?"

"Honestly, I don't think so," Jericho said, "The spell seemed to be buried deep underneath several layers of different spells, like someone was trying to hide it. It's main function seems to be a changing spell. And that raises a… scary possibility."

Even Loona put down her phone to look at Jericho as he leaned back in his chair and said, "I've heard of humans experimenting with changing spells before. Humans used to call it 'alchemy.' That spell could be doing something to whoever wears the amulet."

Moxxie asked, "How? Like changing their body?"

"No," Jericho said, "Changing their soul."

Moxxie said, "But what good would that…wait… could that be… Oh, crumbs…"

Millie grabbed her husband, "What's wrong, Mox?"

"It all makes sense," Moxxie said, slowly, "Why he would want the amulet back… and why he'd want whoever had it killed… Oh, Satan, this is so bad."

Blitzo said, "Ok, Moxxie, you're scaring the shit outta me now. What the fucks up?"

"Alastor," Jericho said, "I think the amulet may have something to do with why he's so powerful. My hunch is that the amulet changed Alastor's soul and somehow gave him his strength."

Bltizo started to sweat, "Wait. So, you're telling me that amulet could be making our target into a second Radio Demon?!"

Jericho nodded. Blitzo sat in his chair and looked around at the group. Loona had dropped her phone in shock. Millie and Moxxie were clinging to each other. He took a deep breath and slammed his fists down on the table.

"Cut the timid shit you guys!" he shouted, "We're better than that!"

Everyone jumped and looked as Blitzø as he continued, "We've gone into dangerous shit before and we've always come out on top. We've damn near taken down armies. Mafia bosses with hundreds of guards, waiting for some fucker to try and take'em out and we did! This is one shithead who doesn't even expect a thing. This can't be harder than when we blow up that trucker in that gas station bathroom, right Moxxie?"

Moxxie slowly smiled and nodded and Blitzø continued, "Or what about when you slit that pervy guidance counselor's throat in the middle of that P.T.A. meeting, Millie. Single handedly, I might add."

Millie gave a broad smile and nodded. Blitzø stood up and walked over to Loona and hugged her, "And this is a perfect chance for my Loonie to show us all what she's got! I know she won't let us down."

Loona gave a small smile, but she still pushed Blitzø off of her.

He moved back to his chair and said, "The only thing holding us back is that damn amulet, which Jericho here said he could take care of. Right?"

Jericho was a little taken back, but he nodded.

"Kick ass! So, I don't wanna see anymore scaredy-cat bullshit! We're I.M.P., baby!" Blitzø cheered.

"Hell yeah!" Millie shouted, "We're gonna kill the shit outta that fucker!"

Jericho looked around at the others. He thought, "Whoa. I didn't think Blitzø had a leader-like bone in his body. But look at him, rallying the troops like a pro."

"So, kid," Blitzø said, "Got any ideas on how to shut that amulet off?"

"Uh, yeah actually. Firstly, getting him to wear it is no problem," Jericho said, "I can hit him with a hypnotic spell that'll make him want to wear it. Second, I need to cancel all of the amulet's magic, including the unknown spell. When it comes to doing that, I have two options. One, I can cast a total canceling spell which will cut off all magic within a mile radius for about thirty minutes."

"Sounds kick-ass!" Blitzø said, "That's perfect! So, after we can-"

"But when I say all magic, I mean all magic," Jericho said, "Including our human disguises and it might interfere with our ability to summon a portal home."

"Sounds less kick-ass," Loona said, "If we couldn't use it, fuckface, why'd you bring it up?"

"I'd like everyone to hear all the options so we can form a plan, bitch," Jericho grunted out.

Millie said, "Now, don't start again you two!"

"A-anyway, Jericho, what's the second option," Moxxie asked.

Jericho huffed, "The other option is for me to cast layered canceling spells. They'll stack up against the protection magic and the unknown spell easily enough. The only problem with it though is I have to cast it carefully so I don't trigger another spell backlash. And I have to be close to him."

"How close?" Millie asked.

Jericho thought and said, "About fifteen to twenty feet would be the limit."

Moxxie asked, "Well, where would be the best place to cast the spell?"

"Some place where getting that close to someone is normal," Jericho said.

"Hey, what about that coffee shop?" Loona said, "It's got outdoor tables that are perfect for a sniper's shot."

Jericho said, "Yeah, that's a pretty good idea. Inside or outside, I could get close enough to cast the spell. But that depends if Moxxie can make that shot."

Moxxie said, "Well, with a proper place to shoot from, it would be no problem."

"Whoo! That's my Loona! Great idea, sweetie!" Blitzø said.

After that, Blitzø got up and drew on the whiteboard to lay out the plan. After drawing some sloppy characters of the other, Blitzø turned and said, "Okay, gang, here's the plan. First thing tomorrow morning, Team M&M and I will start looking for a good sniper nest for Moxxie overlooking the coffee shop. While we do that, Jericho will start working his magic on the target. Once he has the amulet on him and Jericho zaps the it, Moxxie'll paint the side of the building with the fucker's skull! Then, while the humans panic, Loona can rush up and grab the amulet and we can all get out faster then you can say, 'Pay up, you creepy radio fucker!'"

"Sounds like a plan, Blitzø." Millie said.

"Now, a lotta shit's happened today, so let's take the rest of the day off and get a fresh start in the morning," Blitzø said.

"That sounds like a better plan, sir," Moxxie said.

Moxxie took his wife's hand and they both walked toward the door.

Blitzø stood up and stretched his back, "Yeah, let's get them home, Loonie."

Loona stood up and followed them out, Jericho stood up and started to follow, but Blitzø stepped in front of him and scowled.

"What?" Jericho asked.

Blitzø said, "Listen up, kid. I took Stolas's word that you're the best guy for the job. Now, I want yours. Can you really pull this off or what?"

"I can do it," Jericho said.

Blitzø relaxed a little and said, "Good. So, you want a lift home?"

"No, thank you," Jericho said, "I can just portal home."

"Okay. Be here bright and early at 8 tomorrow morning," Blitzø said as he left, "And keep your fingers crossed we get this done quickly."

Jericho thought, "Man, I really underestimated Blitzø. He may act like a goofball, but he's a good boss and leader when he needs to be. Anyway, time to get home."

Jericho lifted his hands and opened a portal back to the training grounds. As he stepped through, he noticed the grounds had been cleaned up. He started walking inside through Stolas's garden, but the doors wouldn't open.

"Weird," he thought.

He decided to try the front door. Again, the doors wouldn't open.

Jericho knocked on the door, "Hello? Is anyone home?"

After a moment he decided to try calling Stolas, but as he did the front door opened. The imp servet at the door looked weak and terrified.

"Are you okay?" Jericho asked.

The imp servant didn't answer, but gestured for Jericho to come inside. Inside the entrance hall, several imps were sitting or laying on the floor. Jericho was stunned. What had happened while he was gone.

He turned to the imp servant and said, "Where's my uncle Stolas?"

The imp servant pointed out of the hallway. Jericho ran off. He caught a scent of Stolas and someone he'd never smelt before. The smells were coming from the dining room. He ran as fast as he could and opened the dining room doors. What he saw shocked him. The dining room had been destroyed. The table and chairs were reduced to splinters. The walls looked charred with dark magic. The once regal chandelier was partially melted.

"Uncle Stolas?" Jericho called out.

"Over here, Jericho," Stolas called back.

Jericho looked to the other end of the room. Stolas was standing there, looking out the window. His hands were behind his back and he had a grim look on his face. Jericho walked over slowly.

Jericho asked, "Uncle Stolas, what happened here?"

Stolas turned to Jericho and said, "We had an unexpected guest for lunch today. Alastor, the Radio Demon."

End of Part 6.