Monster Hunter Legion

  The music stopped abruptly. “Up here!” Trip shouted. He was behind the DJ station on the second floor. He messed with something else and the normal lights came on with a blinding pop.

  “Dude, that was an amazing shot. I can’t believe you hit that chain all the way from over there!”

  “I could barely see anything. I just hosed him and got lucky.” Further proof that Trip must be living right. He was far too honest. I wouldn’t have said anything and just let him think that I was that awesome.

  The cuts on my forearm and calf burned, but they weren’t bleeding too badly. Addressing them could wait a minute. Thank goodness for Kevlar. I limped up the stairs and made my way down the walkway. Trip had dragged Green onto one of the lounge couches and put a tourniquet around his leg. All Hunters keep a few of those in our kits. When you run into as many different things that can remove limbs as we do, you’d be stupid not to.

  The blood loss had slowed to the rate of a mildly drippy faucet. The half of Green’s face that wasn’t covered in blood was deathly pale. Trip opened his med pouch and pulled out a pressure bandage. He gently lifted the shredded remains of Green’s armor and revealed the terrible injury beneath.

  Green moaned when the bandages touched him. “He sawed my foot off.” His voice was barely a whisper.

  “We know.” Trip knelt next to him. “It’s okay, man. We got it. You’re going to be fine.”

  “Where’s your partner?” I didn’t even know who Green had been patrolling with.

  “Gone . . . Dead . . . Ragman got him.”

  “Ragman?”

  “Listen . . .” Green reached out and touched Trip’s arm. “He was my first monster. In San Diego. Serial killer. Sold his soul . . . Turned into that. I killed him years ago . . .” Green coughed hard. “Guess he wasn’t done with me yet.” He coughed again, wheezed, then passed out. I checked his pulse. It wasn’t good.

  Another horror dredged from the back of someone’s mind and set free. Hugo’s last word had been Nachtmar. It was looking like nightmare was a good name for what we were up against.

  * * *

  When we got back to the conference center, we learned that the Nachtmar had struck in two places simultaneously this time. In addition to crippling Green and killing a Hunter from the Mexican company, by the name of Salazar, it had struck nearly simultaneously in another area. Pressfield, from Sticks of Fire out of Tampa, and Verne, one of the British liaisons from BSS, had responded to cries for help from one of the rooms. When they’d kicked in the door, Pressfield had been ripped to pieces by the demonic things that the anti-Hunting activists inside that room had mutated into.

  The surviving Hunter fragged the room, then head-shot everything. He’d been so shell shocked that when he’d walked back into the main lobby where most of the trapped tourists had congregated, his wide-eyed and blood-soaked appearance had nearly caused a panic. That had only been three minutes before I’d run in, carrying Green and shouting for a medic.

  Now the trapped tourists were ready to listen to us. Too bad we didn’t really know what to do yet.

  Afterwards, Pressfield’s boss, Allen, was able to identify the creatures from the description as something similar to an oddity that Sticks of Fire had encountered and wiped out a year earlier.

  “Pull the patrols back in. I want everybody in one area.” Earl was pacing at the front of the conference room. He was chain-smoking again, but it wasn’t like anyone present was going to give him grief about it. Representatives from every team were here, Hunters foreign and domestic, whether we got along or not, as well as some of the casino’s night managers. I was sitting on a table with my pants leg rolled up while Trip sewed stitches in my ankle. “This thing is screwing with us.”

  “You think it’s intelligent?” VanZant asked.

  “Yeah . . . It strikes one way, creating a beachhead. So we spread out to keep an eye out for that kind of attack, so it changes tactics and starts picking us off one by one.” Earl angrily lit his next cigarette. “Tell me that don’t sound smart? We need to fortify here, where we can keep an eye on each other.”

  “What if it picks an isolated spot and pulls a stunt like it did in Hugo’s room?” I asked. “By the time we knew, there could be an army of monsters coming at us. Then we’re back to where we were this morning.”

  “Pitt is correct,” Pierre Darne agreed. “Turtles have shells, but make for tasty soup.”

  “Is that like some old French proverb?”

  “I made it up.” Darne shrugged. “I thought it was a fine analogy.”

  “Okay, Pierre, put together a full team and send them down to the security room. I want that place locked down tight. Protect it at all costs. What’s your new buddy’s name there, Z?”

  I didn’t know if I would go as far as buddy. “Mitch.”

  “Tell Mitch that we’re counting on him to be our eyes. Nachtmar makes a big move, he calls us and we vector in on it.”

  “Consider it done.” Darne signaled two of his employees that were present and they left.

  Earl was talking quickly now. The gears were turning. “VanZant, you’re good with people. Take Tyler Nelson, he’s a shrink, and whoever else you need. I want every single person that’s locked themselves in their rooms brought down to this floor, and I want them here now.”

  “Some aren’t going to like that,” the diminutive man told him.

  “Persuade them, but don’t waste time on anybody who wants to do their own thing. If they want to hole up alone, leave them.”

  He didn’t care for that. “We’ve seen how this thing works. It’s just going to pick something nasty out of their heads, make it real, then kill them with it. If I leave them—”

  “Their deaths aren’t on our hands. I respect stubbornness and I respect folks who take personal responsibility, but we can’t be everywhere. They don’t want to come, write them off.”

  From what I knew of our California team leader, he was the last person who wanted to leave anyone behind, but our hands were tied. “You want persuasive? I’ll give you persuasive.” He gave Earl a sharp nod and then left the room. I heard him shout from the hall. “Jason Lacoco! You, large Polish man! Follow me.”

  The big fellow laughed with his hearty pirate laugh. “My name is Byreika, my small friend. Tadeusz Byreika! Let us go and scare all the people.”

  No way. If we lived long enough I was going to have to sit down with that guy and ask him about his genealogy.

  Earl turned next to the night supervisor of the casino. She was a sharp-featured woman in her fifties, and was the senior employee stuck under quarantine. The name tag on her tidy black pants suit said BETH. “Are all your employees accounted for?”

  “They are. In one way it’s fortunate this happened when it did. This is our smallest shift. Just my shitty luck that it happens to be my shift . . . All of them are in this area except for the people in the security room and our guards at the vault.”

  “I’d suggest leaving the vault and getting their asses up here. It’s only money.”

  “There are millions of dollars in cash in that vault. I’m not even authorized to know how much.”

  “Can’t spend it if you’re dead.”

  Beth shook her head. “I’m not authorized to do that. The last message I received from Management specified to turn all operating decisions over to you, Mr. Harbinger, but we were to keep staff in control of the vault, regardless of what you said. Management’s orders.”

  If no one could call in or out . . . “How did you hear—”

  Earl held up one hand to silence me. “Leave it, Z . . . Okay, Beth. This is what you do, pull those men out of there, because otherwise, when they die, it goes on your conscience. If we live long enough for Management to get mad at you, tell him that I forced you to do it. He knows that I’m pushy like that. If this is all a very elaborate scam to rob your vault, he knows where I live.”

  Beth looked really nervous. “They say he’s—”

  “He??
?s not here,” Earl specified. “I am. Get those men up here now. Then you’re going to go with the red-bearded gentleman,” Earl pointed at Milo. “And you’re going to send some of your people to raid your stores and bring things here. Food, water, medical supplies, and anything else Milo can think of that might be useful, and trust me, he will surprise you with what he thinks is useful. Move.”

  “Yes, sir,” Beth said, having been completely bulldozed.

  “You get used to him,” Milo told her on the way out.

  Earl continued handing out assignments. I knew I’d get my turn soon enough, and soon enough we were the only ones left in this part of the lobby. There was a sudden twinge in my ankle. “Dude, watch it.”

  “Sorry,” Trip said. “All done. Five stitches. No biggie.”

  I inspected his work. The cut from the chain had almost been shallow enough for super glue. All things considered, I was really lucky. “They’re way prettier when Holly does them.”

  “So sue me.”

  “Maybe I should, lousy stitching like that. You’ve ruined my chances of becoming a swimsuit model.”

  “You can still live your dream. That’s what Photoshop is for.”

  “Are you two done screwing around?” Earl asked. Trip gave him a thumbs-up as I rolled my ripped pant leg back down, pulled the armor guard back into place, and cinched it up tight. That stung. Everybody else had been dismissed. “Cody and the smart kids are inspecting the attack scenes, looking for clues about how to beat this damned thing. Get over to the nightclub and brief him on everything you saw. Take the elf with you, see if she can’t . . . wizard something up. Hell if I know, whatever it is elves do.”

  I hadn’t seen my wife in the meeting. “Is Julie with them?”

  “I gave her a few more men and sent her back up to the roof,” Earl answered.

  “Why?”

  “To keep an eye out . . .” Earl said, strangely defensive. “My call. Got a problem with that?”

  Normally I wouldn’t argue with Earl, but this was my wife we were talking about. “Yeah, I do. What’s the deal, Earl? You’ve been weird about her since this started.”

  Earl frowned at me and moved his cigarette from one side of his mouth to the other, thinking. I wasn’t about to back down, and he knew me well enough to know it. “Trip, give us a minute alone.”

  Trip, looking concerned that I’d just crossed some line with our scary werewolf boss, complied. “I’ll be right out here when you need me.”

  Earl glanced around to confirm that nobody was close enough to listen. “I put Julie on the roof because the roof is safer. She’s with solid Hunters in a wide-open space. No civilians with nightmares to raid. And if anything happens she can keep an eye on things for us.”

  “As much as I appreciate the sentiment of keeping her out of harm’s way, she’s got to have hated that order.”

  “She did. She called me a few choice names and raised holy hell, but as much of a pain in my ass as that stubborn girl has been over the years, she trusts me enough to do what I ask.”

  Now I was just confused. Earl had never been overprotective of Julie before. She had started participating in MHI missions when she was still a teenager. Julie had actually cut her prom date short in order to tag along with Earl to take out an ogre. “She’s one of the most talented Hunters we’ve got. Why waste her up there?”

  Earl’s manner made it obvious that he didn’t want to be having this conversation. “Because if everything goes to complete shit, or that bastard Stricken makes his move early, she can make a break for it in the chopper with Skippy. No matter what, she needs to survive.”

  “Yeah, no kidding. We don’t do this kind of thing and try not to survive. You yelled at her for going into 1613 too. I’m not leaving until I have an answer. What’s the deal?”

  “Listen to me, Owen . . .” Earl tossed the butt of his cigarette into a potted plant. “Here’s the deal. I don’t want her in harm’s way because Julie’s pregnant.”

  “Wait . . .” My stomach lurched. “What? How?”

  Earl folded his arms and smirked at me. “How? Really, kid?”

  “No, I mean . . .” My brain was having a really difficult time sending messages to my mouth. Suddenly flushed and dizzy, I was really glad I was already sitting down. “Pregnant? How do you know?”

  “You forget how sensitive my nose is. Humans are walking hormonal cocktails. Werewolves can spot a pregnant woman a mile away, you know, pick the slow ones out of the herd. Don’t you dare tell her I said that. I could tell as soon as y’all flew in. So yeah, that’s my first great-great-grandkid in there. You’re gonna be a father. Congratulations. Now, no matter what, we make sure Julie lives through this. Not counting the Boss back in Alabama, who ain’t no spring chicken, the last of the Shacklefords are all here, and I will not tolerate my family dying out. Period.”

  I wasn’t mentally ready for this. We’d talked about it, but because of the Guardian’s curse we’d been too scared of the repercussions to risk it. What if the baby inherited the marks? We’d taken precautions. Julie was on the pill. Ninety-nine percent effective, my ass. Thoughts and emotions were colliding in my head. I was too confused to know how I felt. “I . . . Wow . . . Oh, man. Does she know? Did you tell her?”

  “Thought about it. I couldn’t decide if that would make the situation better or worse. Quarantined with a nightmare creature? I figured she had enough to worry about without complicating matters. What was I supposed to do? Maybe I haven’t been thinking too clearly myself.”

  “I’m sorry about Heather.”

  Earl shook his head. “I’ve not given up on her yet. Heather’s a survivor. You’d like her. And now that I know more about what’s going on, when I get out of here I will find her . . . So yeah, that’s about it, Z. I’ve been protective because your wife is gonna have a baby. Regular cause for rejoicing. Normally I’d say ‘let’s celebrate,’ and you could fetch me a beer and a cigar, but right now I’ll settle for ‘let’s not all die.’ So now that I’ve ruined your calm . . .” He reached out and patted me on the shoulder. The gesture was about the most tender familial thing I’d ever seen from Earl Harbinger. “Get back to work.”

  CHAPTER 16

  “Hey, Z. Are you okay?”

  “Huh? Yeah, fine.” Truthfully I was in a daze. I wanted to be talking to my wife, not wandering through this ridiculous flashy casino, looking for a nightmare monster. “Sorry, just tired is all.”

  Trip just shook his head and continued between the slot machines. He knew me better than almost anyone, so didn’t bother bugging me further. Cutting through this gambling area was the quickest way to get back to the nightclub. Tanya and Edward were right behind us, Edward happily pointing and grumbling at the pretty lights and video poker. Finally Tanya said, “Jeez, chill, Ed. Don’t get all tourist and make us look like hicks.” I’d seen the trailer she’d grown up in. The girl wasn’t fooling anybody.

  I couldn’t wrap my brain around it. Julie and I were going to have a kid. You wouldn’t think that would be so mind-blowing—I’d fought alien gods, after all—but it really was. We had a lot to talk about, a lot to plan, a lot to get ready for. It was terrifying and exciting at the same time, but right then, mostly terrifying. Sort of like my job in that respect. Not that I wasn’t motivated to survive before, but now I really had a reason to beat this thing.

  A phone began to ring.

  “Oh, heck . . .” Trip muttered. Tanya’s pointy ears weren’t just for show, and she picked out the source first. The sound was coming from the entrance to a nearby sports bar. I found the phone under the hostess podium.

  “This is Pitt.”

  “This is Mitch. Are you guys okay?”

  I glanced around. Everything was as normal as a deserted, haunted casino could be. “We’re fine.”

  “Good. We were watching you, but then you weren’t on camera anymore. Where are you?”

  I read the sign over my head. “Johnny Football Hero’s Sports Bar and Gr
ill.”

  “I’m looking right at it. That can’t be right . . .” Mitch’s voice faded as he gave instructions to one of his employees. “Where? Jump up and down or something.”

  I sighed. “Everybody smile for the cameras. Move around so they can see us.” The rest of my team did so, everyone picking out one of the silver balls in the ceiling and waving at it. Edward waved at a slot machine that had a clown on it.

  “We can’t see you. There’s nobody on camera. You guys aren’t there.”

  Oh, that can’t be good.

  “What’s going on?” Trip asked.

  “Technical glitch with the cameras?” I asked hopefully.

  “Impossible,” Mitch said. “I’m going to call your boss and warn him something’s up.”

  “Do that—” The air temperature was dropping rapidly. My breath came out as steam. “Mitch, we’ve got company. I’ll have to call you back.”

  “There’s something wrong . . .” Trip said as he lifted the KRISS to his shoulder. “Feel that?” Edward drew his short swords. Tanya pulled an arrow from the protective foam quiver and tried to nock it with suddenly cold fingers. Every shadow in the dimly lit gambling area was suddenly threatening. “Where’s the fastest way out?”

  “Back the way we came.” I flicked Abomination’s safety off with my trigger finger. “Walk fast.” There was an awful moan. It was impossible to tell where it came from. “Real fast.”

  “You smell that?” Tanya asked nervously.

  “Dead things,” Ed answered.

  “Movement on the left,” Trip said. I turned, ready to shoot. “It’s gone now.”

  “Aw, hell.” I caught something in the corner of my vision and turned. Something had moved between two slot machines. “Contact right.” Shadows were dancing along the wall, but there were so many different oddly placed light sources that I couldn’t tell where they originated from.

  “They’re behind us too!” Tanya exclaimed. She was gesturing wildly at the sports bar we had just left. I turned just as several dark shapes were shuffling out the front door of the restaurant. Covering them with Abomination, I lit them up with the mounted flashlight. The shapes were illuminated in a brilliant white beam. At first I thought they were people, a crowd of at least eight, but then I noticed the blood and the torn clothing, then the exposed bones and missing chunks of flesh, and then their dead, blank eyes turned toward the light and they stumbled forward.