Part II: My baby left me
Chapter: Lovecraftian moon
Abe, Clay, Margot and Kat stood in the middle of Avenue of the Dead (Agent Johnson had been left in the plane, and he had obliged willingly). It was two hours before midnight, and the huge full moon was high on the sky, illuminating the pyramids and the temples with eerie, silvery light. The night was warm as it can only be in the tropics, and it was filled with the sounds of locusts and grasshoppers, and bats hunting the moths.
"Look at that moon." Kat said, shuddering. "It gives me the creeps."
"Yeah, almost too lovecraftian to be true." replied Margot. "Can't be a coincidence."
"I have a bad feeling about this." said Abe. "We'd better make haste."
They were all sweating in the heat of the night, and Margot took a sip from a water bottle that hang from her belt. She was wearing her combat gear: black pants and boots, a black tank top and belt with all kinds of useful accessories like the bottle, a knife, a gun and some ammo. There was another gun attached to her thigh, and an extra knife on her right boot. Clay was equally well armed, but Abe was in his wetsuit and bore no guns. No one in their right mind would trust Kat with a gun (she was a famously bad shot), but then again she hardly needed one - her physics a lethal weapon that it was. She had changed into her blue form, her tail swinging restlessly behind her. Her eyes that reflected the light of the moon, shone yellow in the night.
"So, which way?" Asked Clay, taking a look of the vast complex of temples and pyramids. "You got the trail?"
Margot shook her head. "It's damn hard in a place like this. There have been thousands of people today, and their thought prints are a total mess."
"Yes." replied Abe. He had crouched down, and was feeling the ground with his wide spread fingers. "I do sense that they have been here, but I cannot see their current location."
Margot had closed her eyes, and tried to concentrate. She felt the traces of people's thoughts moving in the air around her, and she followed them deep, deep under the surface, away from this moment under the moonlight. And there it was, a familiar pattern of thoughts - John's. She gasped, as she caught it, grabbed it, and let herself see.
There he was, right in front of her eyes. His familiar posture, the broad shoulders and slim figure. His dark hair fell on his forehead on a way Margot had always found adorable, and he looked as relaxed as happy as ever. And he wasn't alone. Connelly was with him, and she had grabbed Myers' arm, leaning on him slightly as if they were a couple. They were walking on this road, wandering from temple to temple, under blazing sunlight. Both her and Myers, were dressed as ordinary tourists, with T-shirts and cameras, sunglasses and back packs, and they were happily walking among other people, smiling and chatting. Connelly's blond hair fell to her shoulders like a glimmering waterfall, and her slender legs, revealed by her mini shorts, were tanned and toned. Margot watched, as she leaned closer to Myers, to whisper something in his ear, and he laughed, his cheeks blushing.
Margot let go of the vision, and shook it off her mind. There was a bitter taste on her lips as she turned to look at her companions.
"Oh, they were here, alright." she said on a venomous tone. "That bitch brought John here, pretending to be tourists, probably multiple times during the last days. I bet she did it to mess the trail, in case we came after her. I have no idea where they are now, for the area is full of their presence."
"What about Red?" asked Kat. "Can't you see his trail?"
"Doesn't work like that." Margot shook her head. "I sensed nothing of him, I never had. It's probably because he's a demon and not a human."
"In that case we need to do this the old fashioned way. Let's split up." Kat decided. Broom had made her the team leader. "We must check the most obvious locations first, and contact each other in case we find anything. Clay, Abe - you take the Pyramid of the Sun. Me and Margot, we go to the-"
"Pyramid of the Moon." Margot stated. "I have a hunch."
She had just remembered, that it was that pyramid, that had been used to conduct ceremonies to honor the Great Goddess. She had read it from John's notes, that the platform on top of the pyramid had in fact been a sacrificial altar, where human blood had been spilled to ensure the fertility of the land. She glanced to the pyramid, but the top of it was now desolate, with no sign of any life.
"And what do we do if we find her - Ms. Connelly?" Asked Clay.
"Stay as far away from her as possible." Kat replied. "And shoot to kill. She's a traitor."
"Yeah." The older agent replied. "I still have hard time getting that."
"Well, you'd better." Kat's voice was stern. "She lured HB and Myers here to kill them. Don't let her pretty face get in the way of business, Clay."
"Sure." Clay muttered. "I just hope we get Red out in time."
"And John. These Gods have a taste for human blood, and I bet his is delicious." Margot gave Kat a glance. "We should get going already."
"Yeah, you're right." Kat replied. "Godspeed, comrades."
"Good luck." said Abe. "And be careful."
"Aren't I always?" Kat asked, raising an eyebrow.
They entered the pyramid through a tunnel on the backside. It was obvious, that it had been used recently, for the big block of stone that had covered the entrance, was lifted aside and they could easily enter.
"I wonder who opened the door for us." Margot whispered.
"Red." Kat replied. "It must've been him."
"I think you're right." Margot sent to her mind. "I sense John and that bitch too. They went this way, I'm sure of it."
"I'm going to call Abe. They should come here." Kat replied, likewise telepathically.
"No, don't. It might be a diversion. They might not be here after all."
Kat didn't reply, but silently led on.
The tunnel went deep under the pyramid, and it was pitch black inside. Kat had no problem seeing, though, but Margot had to switch on her flashlight - even if she knew it was incautious. In silent agreement they proceeded as soundlessly as possible, their footsteps agile and soft as a feline's.
"There's a chamber ahead." Kat's thoughts echoed in Margot's mind.
Margot had noticed the same. There was suddenly more light in the tunnel, and she turned off her flashlight.
"You sense anyone?" Kat asked.
"No. No one." Margot replied. "But someone left the lights on."
"Torches, more likely. Don't you smell them?"
"I smell something else too." Margot replied. "It's almost like-"
And then they stepped into the room. There was a large stone table on the middle of the chamber, and on it lay a big, grotesque statue.
"Oh, crap!" Kat cried out, threw herself across the room, and then Margot realized.
"-blood." she whispered. "I smell blood."
It was no statue, that lay on the table. It was Hellboy, and he was dead as a stone.