Chapter 112 – Historical (Multi – POV)

  “We didn’t know how many paranormal beings were in the armed forces and frankly we still don’t. When the veil broke, it afforded us a snapshot but people not only had to witness it but also report who was what when it happened. It seems that either numbers are very low or we have a strange amount of loyalty and camaraderie in the ranks.” - Brigadier General Thomas Coultier in an address to the joint chiefs on soldier readiness.

  The clean-up of the wendigo nest went rather quick with the assistance of the local mages. They had plenty of people familiar with rituals on hand, so they were able to determine what was done to summon the wendigo’s and then cleanse the site.

  Jay had filled them in on their findings and how they compared to the previous summoning. Apparently the first one that Kurt and Val handled was a failed summon. The people making the ritual hadn’t brought anything to offset the cost of summoning the creature, or at least nothing that the entity being summoned wanted. That was why they had died, as the ritual and the wendigo had consumed their life-force.

  This group pretty much did the opposite. They had used an unfortunate amount of people and animals as sacrifices to fuel the ritual. The problem they had was twofold. Firstly, the wendigo’s would likely have eaten them, regardless of them being the summoners, as was their nature. The second problem was that they sent more energy into the ritual than they had creatures come out, resulting in them being corrupted by the energies of the negative realms.

  Normally, negative energy like that wouldn’t be able to infect someone. It usually took lots of time and exposure to a lot of native energy to begin to affect a person in such a way. But in performing a ritual, they had bared their souls and power to that negative realm which gave all that excess energy a nice convenient pathway and vessel to flow into. All that was secondary to the new development that Kurt, Kristi, Penny and Anna had focused around.

  “So, there’s two now?” Kurt asked while staring at the identical long fox tails that waved behind Val as she sat on a bench in their staging area which was a public park’s picnic area.

  “Well… yeah?” Val answered while running her fingers through the fur of her new tail. “You know kitsune grow additional tails as they age and come into their power, right?”

  Kurt sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No, I did in fact not know that. I thought that was just myth, but I suppose I should know better about myths and legends by now.”

  “It’s early though, right?” Kristi asked.

  Val nodded. “Yes, by about sixty something years.”

  Thinking about the situation jogged Kurt’s memory. “I thought I saw an outline of a tail on our first rift. Is that part of this?”

  “Partly but not really.” Val said, switching to her first tail and running her fingers through the fluff. “The amount of energy we channel has an effect on our development. Its more related to the continuous strain we are under, like muscle development for humans. That’s what we were taught anyway. Recently I have been pushing a lot of mana into my spells, and I think that, along with being close to you, Rex, had something to do with it.”

  That made a strange kind of sense to Kurt. She likely had more mana to use being a hybrid and having both the internal and external sources at her disposal. When the amount was combined with the frequency of use, he could see how her development had accelerated. He then glanced over to Kristi, catching her eye for a brief moment before she shook her head.

  Penny, who had been listening to the entire conversation, finally spoke up. “Well, all that being said, I am glad you are ok, and I think you need some time to rest before you strain your pathways again.”

  “Agreed.” Val said, groaning a little as she stood up. “Are we free to get going?

  “Yeah, you can head back to the warehouse. Actually, you can just head home, I will follow up tomorrow.” Penny answered.

  Before anyone could move away, Kurt snagged their attention again. “Actually, Penny, can I borrow a car for a little bit? I will have it back to the warehouse by this evening.”

  Looking him up and down, Penny considered a moment before responding. “Sure, take one of the vans if that works.” She fished in her pocket for a minute and handed him a key.

  “Yup. Thanks Penny. We’ll see you tomorrow.” He headed off to the waiting line of sprinter vans clicking the fob that he had gotten. Kristi and Val followed close behind.

  “Where are we going?” Val asked. Her curiosity had been peaked since Kurt wasn’t one to be spontaneous.

  “Oh, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.” Kurt replied. “Not saying you can’t but since we are in the area, I want to visit a fiend of mine.”

  Kristi opened the door to the back of the van and climbed in, pulling Val along. “That’s fine, we will come too.”

  “Who is this friend?” Val asked as she climbed in the back with Kristi. She wanted to lay down after the morning events and the bench seats in the sprinter van seemed like the perfect spot.

  “Old friend from my time in the army.” Kurt answered as he pulled away from the staging area. He wasn’t looking forward to the visit but knew it was the right thing to do.

  *****

  “But why can’t he meet us somewhere with food?” Val moaned. She had taken a brief nap and was now lounging across the bench seat with her head resting on Kristi’s lap.

  Kristi, who had been looking out the window, taking in the scenery, responded in her most patient tone. “Maybe he can’t or maybe Kurt wants to surprise him?” She half asked, half offered as explanation. She was also wondering about the circumstances and Kurt had been rather tight lipped since they started driving.

  “Still would like to know…” Val said while looking at her tablet, reading something that looked like a PDF of some sort.

  Meanwhile, Kurt was busy navigating the traffic circles as best he could in the oversized van. He didn’t like the traffic circle to begin with, much less on roads he didn’t travel often while driving a very large vehicle. He sighed, knowing they were almost there, and that Val would likely stop her complaining soon. He knew that she was being herself and appreciated the slight distraction as it helped keep his emotions level.

  “Listen, I’m just saying that we don’t know anything about this guy…”

  Kristi suddenly sat up straighter as Kurt slowed and she saw the sign on the side of the road. “Val…” she tried to get her girlfriend to pay attention by tapping her on the leg.

  “Also, kinda rude that we are just showing up unannounced…”

  “Val…” Kristi shook her a little harder as they pulled into the drive, turning toward the ‘visitation’ split in the road.

  “What? It is. Honestly, it’s rude on both fronts – OW…

  “Val, shut up.” Kristi hissed.

  Kurt found a good spot and pulled over, he didn’t need to go to the office, he remembered exactly where to go without getting directions. He sighed. “You can stay here if you want. I will be back in a little bit.” He said and hopped out, leaving the van running for the air conditioning.

  “What was that for?” Val asked indignantly, rubbing when Kristi had flicked her on the head. She began to sit up. “Alright, where are… oh.” She began to say but stopped when she looked out the window at the gently rolling lawns and the thousands of perfectly arranged and matching white head stones.

  *****

  Kurt walked along the rows of knee-high marble grave markers. The few landmarks had changed, trees growing a little and bushes being trimmed but the Sarasota National Cemetery was nothing if not well organized. At least the sections and markers hadn’t changed in the few years since his last visit.

  He found the right row in short order, having parked right near it. Then he started counting as he passed each marker. It was hard for him to not think about the last time he had been there. It was a sudden and emotion-filled event, thus being one of those memories he couldn’t easily forget. As he walked, he heard the van shut off and a door open then close. The girls had gotten out but hadn’t joined him.

  After a few more headstones, he found the one he was after and stopped to look at it. “Hey Cam. Been a while…” Naturally, there wasn’t an answer as he stood there looking at the final resting place of one of his closest friends.

  *****

  A short distance away, under the shade of a tree, Kristi and Val waited. They watched as he talked for a moment, not hearing the words he said as the wind carried his voice away from them. They also didn’t speak to each other, for their own reasons. Kristi didn’t know what to say or even if she should say anything while Val just felt awful for everything she had said in the car.

  They stood there as Kurt eventually knelt in the grass, still talking to the grave. They stood there as they saw tears begin to form in the corners of his eyes. They stood there, feeling the sorrow and regret that pulsed in waves through the necklace, their focus drawn to it after they had ignored it for so long.

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  Eventually they couldn’t take it anymore and approached slowly, respectfully as Kurt wiped his eyes. It wasn’t until they had gotten within a dozen yards that they heard what he was saying.

  “… We lost Newman from second platoon. And John Martinez from first platoon is gone too. Cancer took him last year. You probably know that I guess.” He sniffed and looked over to the girls, standing and motioning for them to come over. “I just wish you could have met Val and Kristi. Heh, you would have loved them. Course they probably wouldn’t have liked you much.”

  Neither of them knew what to say as they piled in to stand next to Kurt. Val looked at the grave marker, seeing a couple coins placed atop the gently curving stone. There was also a picture, or what remained of a picture, worn and faded by the sun despite the lamination and frame.

  She then read the headstone. It was simple, as these usually were, just a name, rank, branch of service and the dates of birth and death. There wasn’t much else to it other than those few details. It made her wonder why he was buried here and not in a private cemetery, but she didn’t have it in her to ask.

  “You guys really wouldn’t have liked him much, especially towards the end.” Kurt said, clearly not talking to his dead friend anymore.

  “Why is that?” Kristi whispered.

  Kurt huffed a single sad laugh. “Ha, he was a right asshole at times.”

  Something wasn’t adding up for Val. She had read Kurt’s file from before he was with the Order and knew that he had been out for several years before Camron had apparently passed. “What happened?”

  “The war at home.” Kurt said with a sigh. “He got in a little trouble while still in the Army and, since it was a peace time Army, got discharged. I think that broke something in him, getting kicked out like that.”

  “D-did he t-take his…” Kristi began to ask.

  Kurt shook his head. “No, that wasn’t his style, but I sometimes wonder if it would have been better for him.”

  “What do you mean?” Val had never heard someone say that. It sounded so cold and very unlike the man she loved.

  “He, uh, he drank himself to death. As sure as if he had eaten a bullet, he killed himself. It was just a much slower, more painful way to go. More painful for everyone else too.” Kurt sniffed and wiped his eyes again. “He had a family, once. Wife, kids, parents and siblings. He pretty much drove them all away while drowning in his own sorrows.”

  Kristi rubbed his back, placing herself close to him in both physical and emotional support while he continued. “I-I didn’t even know he was sick, his body failing him over a couple years and I never made the trip down to see him. I just found out through the grape vine one day that he had passed. I made it to the funeral at least.”

  “That’s good. I am sure his family appreciated it.” Val offered from his other side where she gripped his hand.

  “Yeah, I think so.” Kurt smiled slightly. “It’s funny because I had known all these people from stories. His family I mean. Then I finally get to meet them and it’s in the worst way possible.”

  They stood for a few more minutes, all staring at the headstone in silence until Kurt finally spoke. “Well, I guess this is goodbye for now. I’ll try to visit again.” Kurt pulled out a dime and placed it near the others before letting his hand fall away. He turned, the girls moving with him as he walked away.

  *****

  “Tell us about him?” Kristi asked before biting into the sandwich she ordered.

  They had gone to a sandwich shop, getting food to go and eating it at a park near the water back in the city. They were enjoying the warmth and sun before returning to what had become a bit of a winter wonderland in the north.

  “What do you want to know?” Kurt asked.

  “Anything.” Val answered. “Funny story, what he was like, his favorite hobbies. Anything.”

  Kurt thought for a moment. “Hmm, there is a lot there. A lot that I don’t exactly like to talk about.” He decided to keep it light and began with just how he met the guy. It was a very confusing time as he was fresh to the unit and had no idea what was going on at any time.

  It was actually a very helpful way to help organize not only his thoughts but also his feelings. He was still hurting at the loss despite the years since the event. Both Kristi and Val could feel how his mood changed, flipping from sadness and regret to amusement and joy.

  Occasionally Kurt had to divert some of his stories to tell them about other people that they had interacted with. Both Kristi and Val could feel those moments when he mentioned someone, and the name brought the melancholy back to the fore. They knew better than to ask more about those people for now, assuming that they were also no longer alive.

  Eventually Kurt reached the end of the stories as the park was beginning to get busy with people. “I think we should get going.” He said, standing and throwing his trash in the bin. “Thanks for listening.”

  Val latched on to his arm like he was about to float away. “Thanks for sharing.”

  Kristi piled on, wrapping both of them in a hug as they made their way to the van to head home. Kurt drove them back to the warehouse where they returned the van before heading through the portal to the Order. After that it was a short trip back to their own portal home.

  Kurt looked out the window as they walked through the breezeway seeing all the snow. “Oh, shit. It’s like three days to Christmas.”

  “What are our plans again?” Kristi asked. She was looking forward to the whole event, having never done anything for the holiday.

  “I invited Penny and Anna for a sleepover on Christmas eve. They aren’t doing anything, and we are all exchanging gifts on Christmas anyway.” Val said after kicking off her shoes and letting her feet revert to their normal fuzzy state.

  “That’s a good idea.” Kurt said. “You can tell them to come over for breakfast and we can just make a day of it.”

  “But when do we do presents?” Kristi asked. She had pulled out a list and was running a finger down it.

  “When everyone gets here.” Kurt said, amused at what she focused on.

  Val pulled them both toward the bathroom. “Listen, we can figure that out later, but I have been a very good girl recently and I want a shower and get to bed so my stocking gets stuffed.”

  Kristi, still holding her list, flipped to the next page. “I thought that happens on Christmas eve…”

  “Not that stocking…” Kurt laughed and began to strip out of his clothes. “And the ‘good girl’ part is actually debatable.”

  *****

  Matteo stepped off the plane and immediately wanted to be back on it, going anywhere north of the Med. He hated Cairo’s heat, and it was still nighttime, long before the scorching sun came up and brought not only the heat but also the humidity. He really wished there wasn’t such a need for secrecy and for them to be so spread out all the time. He also wished he could have stayed north for the holidays and perhaps even enjoyed some skiing or gone to the Christmas markets before they closed.

  He struggled through the terminal and customs, running on auto pilot after having made this trip so many times over the years. He was just hoping that his visits to Europe wouldn’t be so brief in the near future. He missed his home in northern Italy and if taking down the Order Stabilitas allowed him to go home, then that’s what he would do.

  After climbing back into his awful used car and starting the drive back to his equally horrid house, his mind drifted to the conclave he had just attended. Of course, the food and the familiar languages and customs were just enough of a taste of home that he didn’t go insane but there was also a lot of business that had happened. As a senior keeper within the cult, he liked to think he was instrumental in many of the decisions.

  “What news of the American problem?” The man named ‘X’ asked in his strange accent. It sounded vaguely English to Matteo, but he was not very good with accents.

  One of their newer members who was attending via a ritual which created a ghostly image over a small ritual circle on the tabletop answered. “The Order has deployed their new teams at every opportunity to counter the summoning’s. Though the one undertaken by this latest group was very successful based on the report from our agents.”

  “Which teams are these?” Matteo asked. He was taking notes on where they encountered resistance so he could think through the issues later.

  “The mutants.” The same member answered, not at all hiding his distaste. “It was two teams working together, one of which seems to be responsible for taking out summon number six a couple months ago.” This set off a series of murmurs and cursing from the attending keepers.

  X raised his hand, barely lifting it off the table to draw attention to him. “Tell us about this team that the Order has put so much faith in.” That was enough to get the few people still having side conversations to shut up.

  “There are at least three teams that we know of before our informants were found out. I suspect that there were likely a few more. The one in question is led by a half-elf shifter by the name of Kurt Rosk.” The man paused and seemed to look at something outside the range of the communication spell. “He is the one we sent the initiates after a while back, none of which had any success but it’s to be expected by those types.”

  “Indeed.” X agreed. “Besides that, what other developments have there been?”

  The ritual projected man once more looked away before continuing. “The last thing we have been able to identify is that he owns a building in the town he lives near. It has a café on one side and what we think is an Order front of a business in the other unit.”

  Further down the table an American named Michales stood. “I have a little projection of a theory.” He said and continued after a nod from X. “We think he is building a base of power in that town. Based on who we have been able to observe him talking to and the connections we think he has. He seems to have ties in the area that he is leveraging to get some sort of political or economic advantage.”

  “Explain.” X demanded.

  Michales cleared his throat. “His actions lead us to think that he is trying to compete with another werewolf in a neighboring city. We have evidence of them clashing in the recent past and this behavior tracks with the nature of primitive beasts such as lycans. It is further supported by his association with a half kitsune and half dragon newt which make up his team.

  “Then there is also rumor that he conducted a raid on the enchanter’s guild within the Order pocket realm. We lost contact with our informants there, but he was seen entering the building and has some financial ties to a gargoyle arms dealer within the pocket realm too.” This naturally brought up a series of questions that Michales answered one by one.

  Matteo had come up with a little plan while the others were discussing and listening to who seemed to be the only subject matter expert on the Order field agents. “Idea.” He said while raising his hand. Once everyone turned to look at him, he continued.

  “Since the zealots we have contracted don’t seem to get the job done, how about we send them after his associates?”

  “Which associates?” Someone further down the table asked.

  “The ones here on Earth. I very much doubt that we could get anyone to do something in the Order, but we can try. What I am thinking is we do like a lot of special interest groups do and organize some ‘grass roots’ movements. Paid instigators, press puppets, use the willful and ignorant as always.”

  “Are you sure that will work? Won’t they see through it?”

  “America has a history of it in recent years. There is always someone upset enough to do something. Sometimes they get lucky and one of the useful idiots does something stupid which we can put a spin on to turn it to our favor. It would be like the bombing in that paranormal club a while back.” Matteo reasoned.

  X turned to look at him directly, casting his cold grey eyes on Matteo in a way that made him shiver. “What is your end goal with this… unrest?”

  “If he wants to make allies, let’s make sure those allies are as hobbled as can be. The goal is to make it so being aligned with him, and by extension the Order, is as miserable and dangerous as possible. Hopefully we can get more information on the other teams to do the same to them.”

  “I have also been in contact with some contractors from other realms.” Michales said. “Maybe I hire them to see if they have any more luck taking Kurt and his team out on his home turf?”

  There were nods and general muttered agreements around the table before X raised his hand again. “We are out of time. Matteo and Michales, set this plan in motion. The rest of you keep with the status quo. More summons, and more rifts. We need to overload them to establish out foothold. Go now and see it done.”

  And with that, the Keepers of the Black Feast ended their meeting. Everyone immediately left the building separately through various exits. They made sure to stagger their leaving so they would be less likely to be found out. Some didn’t have to go far but others had a long way to travel to return to their hideouts and allies.

  Matteo sighed as he pulled into his driveway, daydream coming to an end. He waited for the courtyard gate to swing open then shut before he made his way into the garage. He was exhausted but he immediately set to contacting people. He couldn’t wait too long after all, the time difference between him and his contacts in the US was several hours. While it was the middle of the night for him, it was still early in the evening for the people he wanted to contact. If he was lucky, he could even get those terrorists to do some work again.