Skulduggery – Crow

Anton – Bear

Ghastly – Panda

Dexter – Wolf

Saracen – Weasel

Erskine – Snake

Solomon – Raven

Chapter 47

Twenty-four hours later, Valkyrie, Crow, Anton and Murder Rose were standing around the lobby waiting, hoping to see what their plan was. Scarab didn't disappoint on one level – he strode into the Midnight Hotel without a care in the world, just looking at them mildly.

Valkyrie already didn't like him.

When they got to the desk, he and his companion, a stoic, dumb-looking man, checked themselves in. There was nothing Valkyrie and Crow were allowed to do. He wasn't a criminal anymore at any rate. It wasn't until he had signed his name and Anton had given him his key that he spoke again.

"You," he said levelly. "Shudder. I hear you killed my son."

Anton stared at him blankly. "Who was your son?"

"Billy-Ray Sanguine."

Valkyrie felt the flip-blade in her jacket pocket keenly.

"I did."

Scarab nodded shortly and left for his room, ignoring Crow and Valkyrie completely. Rose, the dumb man who hadn't given his name, which was also allowed by policy, and Scarab left for wherever they were going. The man Rose was staying with still hadn't shown his face.

"I didn't know he had a son," Crow said when they were gone.

"I don't think anyone did," Anton said, sorting his files out. "Just remember the policy. If he starts something, it is my business alone. Once he leaves, then he is yours."

Valkyrie and Crow waited around for the rest of the day to end and when it finally got to half eleven that night, the group they were after came down together. Rose, Scarab, the big, dumb one and the man they hadn't yet seen. They filed in and sat opposite Valkyrie and Crow at the communal table.

"Pleasant," Scarab greeted mildly.

Rose couldn't stay silent after being around them so long. She glared at Valkyrie. "You killed my team."

"I did," Valkyrie did, smiling at her without humour.

She gave her that evil grin again. "I have a new one now. Meet Foe and Obloquy."

Obloquy was the one who came with Scarab; Foe was the one they hadn't met up until then. He grinned at Valkyrie. She didn't like the way he looked at her.

"Nice to meet you both," she said. "I look forward to kicking your arses."

Rose gave a nasty laugh, but Foe was apparently done with her being spokeswoman. "You did us a favour, Cain," he said. "Now we have Rose to aid us in our mission. Krav and Gallow were nothing compared to us."

Rose didn't seem to care about her dead friends anymore. "The rest of my team will be meeting us in Ireland and we will make this world burn!" Rose said, laughing like a maniac.

Valkyrie and Crow just watched them without reacting. They could take them. Even if they didn't know these people, they could do it.

It was almost midnight, almost time to go to Ireland.

"What is your plan?" Crow asked.

"You think we'll tell you?" Rose cackled. "We'll destroy you and the rest of the Dead Men! We'll take down the world! We'll make it blow!"

Valkyrie's stomach twisted at the sight of her madness. She could feel herself get a headache.

"We're going to kill you, girly!" Rose said, pushing herself across the table to stare at Valkyrie, her nasty breath hitting Valkyrie's face, grinning wildly. "We're going murder you all!"

Valkyrie pushed back in her chair and put an arms-length between them. "Please don't come close to me," she said.

Rose hopped on the table and crawled closer. Crow put his hand on his gun but didn't take it out. Anton was standing silently in the doorway. "Aww, do you not like the big bad lady?" Rose laughed, crawling across the table and crouching on the edge. Valkyrie didn't have many places to go. Outside, the view was changing and the hotel moving. "Don't you want to die?"

Valkyrie took a deep breath and felt the headache worsen considerably.

"I'm going to kill you," Rose said with what seemed like clarity. "I'm going to kill you and your little bitch girlfriend."

Valkyrie went to punch her but suddenly fell down in pain, screaming. Crow drew his gun and shot at Rose, missing her one, two, three times, but when she jumped on Valkyrie instead of dancing around on the table, Crow finally shot her twice in the head. Valkyrie fell to the floor with Rose's body, the pain increased more and more. Crow threw the body off.

"Valkyrie?!" He shouted, looking her over.

She just kept screaming.

Anton stepped into the room and the pain suddenly vanished from Valkyrie. She sucked in a deep breath and pulled herself up, not looking at Rose's body. The other three men stood up.

"Well, would you look at that," Scarab said. "Just when I'm told she's on our side, she's dead. Tell me, what was the point in that, Pleasant?"

"She threatened and attacked Valkyrie Cain," he said deeply. "I am in my right to defend my partner."

Scarab just sighed and shrugged. Foe and Obloquy stood with him and they turned to see Anton in the doorway. "Gentlemen," Anton said. "Although you have not attacked these guests, your associate has. I have to ask you to leave."

Scarab nodded. "Of course."

And they did. They signed out. Valkyrie followed, and she and Crow signed out also, ready to leave at the same time, to start the real work.

Right before Scarab lead the two men through the door, he stopped and turned to Foe. "Is it ready?"

Foe didn't say anything, just looked at Obloquy. After a moment, he said, "Yes. It is done."

They opened the door and jumped back. Valkyrie sucked in a breath.

A horde of dead, rotting zombies fell through the doors, making horrid, slow sounds. Valkyrie jumped back and Crow put a hand on her shoulder.

"Scarab," Crow said. The man was standing close to them, just standing there without a single care of what was happening. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Revenge," he said blankly. "On the man that killed my son. The rest is nothing to do with me."

"What is the rest?" Valkyrie asked quickly. Obloquy had helped a woman and a vampire into the building over the zombies that kept on coming. Anton suddenly hit a failsafe button and a magic shield came down on the entrance of the door, slicing through some of the zombies and stopping more from coming in.

"Why didn't you already do that?!" Valkyrie shouted. He didn't answer.

Neither did Scarab.

They were still stuck with maybe two dozen zombies and a gang they had never met before. Valkyrie and Crow ran into the table room as the horde of zombies ran at them and ignored the others. Right before they turned the corner she noticed Anton starting to undo his shirt, but then she had bigger problems and started concentrating.

"Take off their legs!" Crow shouted over the sound.

"Will do! Shoot them in the head!"

"I'll try," he said, turning and starting to shoot.

Valkyrie ran through another door and found the kitchen – quickly, she opened a drawer and found a massive meat cleaver. With a somewhat sadistic grin, she picked it up and rushed back to the other room and hacked the head off the closest zombie, then the arm off another, using the air to push them back and get a good aim. She reasoned they were already dead – she might as well finish the job.

Maybe that was a bit psychotic of her.

Regardless, she used that meat cleaver to chop pieces off the decaying bodies until they couldn't get to her anymore and when she accidentally snapped the blade, she ran back to the kitchen and found another. Quickly, she returned and started stabbing with the sharp meat knife, almost taking off her own hand when she was pushed by one of them violently. She responded by growling and stabbing it in the brain. It didn't slow it down though and she was almost overpowered when Crow pushed forwards and pulled two of them back, giving Valkyrie enough room to stab and slice the others to the floor.

It took a long time to get through them. Crow was covered in just as many decaying human bits as her, stinking horribly.

"Bear?" She called. She heard nothing back and felt dread rise, realising she hadn't seen any whole, alive humans in all the time fighting. "Bear!?"

She jumped through the zombie parts into the lobby and found no people, just zombies, and looked around. She went into the hall and tried to open the door to his rooms, but it was locked. Crow came up behind her. "Upstairs," he said, feeling the air. Valkyrie ran to the stairs and up them, finding him on his hands and knees moaning in pain. Valkyrie and Crow crouched on the stairs and watched.

"Is he safe?" The lady asked, looking at Bear wearily. "I don't want to see that gist again."

Obloquy nodded. He was standing right next to the Dead Man, staring at him. He was doing something to Bear.

"Mercy, how long will this take?" Foe asked impatiently.

"I don't know, I need the key," she said harshly.

Valkyrie heard Crow breathe a curse.

"I know…" she said quietly and went over to Bear. She kneeled in front of him and a moment later, Valkyrie didn't see what she did, she moved away. Crow looked like he was about to jump out but stopped when she unlocked a door.

She stuck her hand in the room and pulled it back quickly, closing it again. She didn't lock the door, just dropped a key to the floor. Crow put a hand on her back, stopping her from moving. Or maybe himself from moving.

Bear slumped and hit the ground, unconscious. Quietly, Valkyrie and Crow watched Mercy and Foe bicker about whether Valkyrie and Crow were dead until, finally, the dumb on turned and looked right at Valkyrie.

That pain, the one she felt before, hit her like a freight train.

She could hear shots fired and shouting and God knows what else but she couldn't control the pain and fell down the stairs in a screaming, painful heap.

Crow must have come to the same conclusion about Obloquy doing whatever it was to her because she heard shouting and more gunshots, and the pain fell away suddenly. She groggily pulled herself up but even with the pain vanishing, she was still queasy from the experience. Knowing her friends needed her pushed her to her feet and up the stairs, finding Crow grappling with the man, Foe, and also right in time for Mercy, the vampire and Obloquy to get to the top of the staircase, covered in blood.

A foot connected with her nose.

More drama! I know! And now Valkyrie's kidnapped and missing again, it's almost as if I wasn't satisfied with hurting her the last time... Make your own conclusions. I'm very excited for the next few, I think they've come are really good and all you readers will love them :) I'd love some reviews or even just some follows if your enjoying the story :)