Chapter Nine – “Grace”

Cumulus clouds gathered in heaps, like the whipped cream on top of a sundae, miles from the Triumph. The usually white, cotton lumps were stained with charcoal on their undersides, a portent of the forthcoming storm. Strong winds peppered the flat-topped roof and billowed Simon’s loose-fitting hoodie as he slumped against the rooftop exit. Looking forlorn, he watched as Haley waved to Damon Blake’s helicopter, which just a moment ago set Brute down on top the 34-story building.

The blonde inventor turned to look at her creation. Even after only a day in the wild, Brute had seen better days. Soot covered his normally lustrous metal hide and there were singe marks around the cavity where his head once was. Haley tried to wipe some of the grime away, lifting the bottom of her white tank top to use as a rag. The coating was too thick and set in, leaving her with nothing more than a stained shirt. Her shoulders slacked and then she sighed, shaking her head as she gazed at her formerly impressive invention.

“Okay, we need to secure Brute to the roof. He may weigh as much as a small truck, but with the way the wind is blowing up here, we can’t be too safe.” Haley announced, presumably to Simon, who was still sulking near the exit.

Her bald-headed friend did not answer. Haley frowned at the silence, and then pivoted towards Simon. The young man’s sorrow seemed palpable. Obviously, the small amount of consolation she gave him at the temple was not enough. As her blonde hair waved in the breeze, she crouched down next to her lamentable friend.

Haley’s fingertips tickled against Simon’s cheek, lightly caressing the man in a calming manner. His slate eyes met Haley’s. She smiled at her friend, but the concern in her eyes betrayed her.

“I’m sorry, Haley. Here I am brooding when you probably need my help.”

“It’s okay, Simon. I just didn’t know that you wanted to be a girl so badly.” She replied in a soft tone.

“It’s not that! I’m not like Bea or Madison. I would have been happy being a big, strong man just as much. I just don’t like being so weak,” he sighed. “I mean, I could have lifted Brute into the harness single-handedly if that pixie hadn’t changed me back.”

“You shouldn’t worry so much about that. You help in your own way. It’s nice just having an extra set of hands to help me, or someone to watch my back.” She touched the cold metal of her cybernetic arm, and then looked into Simon’s eyes once again. “Did I ever tell you how I lost my arm in the first place?”

Simon shook his head. He was afraid that it was a sore subject, and never brought it up as a result. In his mind, Haley was just about perfect, so since their initial meeting he did his best not to focus on the one flaw she had. Why sit around wondering about a mechanical arm when he could get lost in her green eyes, which were like two perfectly shaped turquoise stones?

“Well, it was right after I started working alone in my lab. You know the metal shelves that I keep everything on, right?” She asked. “They weren’t always secured to the wall. I was young and stupid and thought there was no way they could fall over, but of course, they did. I had to climb up to the top to get what I needed and the whole thing came down on me. The bone snapped right through my arm when I landed. I didn’t have an assistant at the time, and it was far from unusual for me to spend days alone in the lab, so I had to scrape myself out of the rubble.” Her voice wavered. “If someone had been there, they could have called for help. There would have been no infection and the doctors would have been able to save it.”

“I don’t know what to say. That must have been horrible.” Simon said, wrapping his arms around the girl.

“You don’t have to say anything Simon. I just wanted to illustrate that you’re more help than you’ll ever know, with or without your strength.”

Haley managed to smile, and then planted a soft little kiss right on Simon’s bald forehead. Crimson flushed his cheeks, and it seemed as if even his scalp was blushing thanks to the small sign of affection.

“Now, come on and help me tie this sucker down. I don’t want him to tip over when the storms come, and since we can’t bolt him to the roof, rope will have to suffice.” Haley stood, taking Simon’s hand to help him up as well.

The harness they used to transfer Brute to the rooftop was essentially a net with a high tensile strength. Haley and Simon were told that it was the same type of net used to do bear drops in the wild. Neither one thought to question why a millionaire entrepreneur would ever need such a strong net, nor did they much care, because it would serve as the perfect method to keep Brute in place now. They strung the net over the top of the giant robot like a tent, and stretched it until they could tether the ropes to something stable. This brought them dangerously close to the edge of the roof, which only had a wall about half the size of a person. It would be easy to fall right over the side, especially with the wind. Simon stopped and watched Haley as she backed close to the boundary.

“Haley, be careful! You’re going to fall right off!” He shouted.

She just smiled at him and pointed to a cord around her waist, which was itself tethered to Brute. Simon laughed nervously, wiping a cold sweat from his brow, and then returned to the center where the robot was to make sure he had his own lifeline. Way to go, stupid. Simon chided himself for such an obvious oversight. Once the metal man was about as secure as they were going to get him, Simon joined Haley near the center of the rooftop, next to Brute.

“Okay, what’s next Haley?”

“Well, I wish I could give Brute a proper cleaning. As much crap is there is on the outside, I don’t want to know what’s gotten into his circuits. I hope we can even get a charge from him still. I guess we’ll just have to give it a go and hope everything works out.” She responded, wiping her hands on the hips of her carpenter jeans.

“Oh, I could go find some compressed air for you. I’m sure that in a convention full of computer geeks, somebody had to bring along some cleaning supplies. In fact, I’m a bit surprised that you didn’t bring some along.”

“I can’t think of everything, but that would be a huge help. It would also be a good chance for you to find Anne and see if she can help with your body image; that is, if you still want it.”

“I definitely do, but don’t you need me up here to help out? It might take a while, and it would be much faster for me to get what you need and then come back.” Simon asked.

“Damon should be up here soon. I doubt much will happen other than some planning and tinkering inside before you get back. If Anne can help you, you’ll be much happier and a happy helper is a productive helper.” Haley patted Simon on the back, giving him another grin.

Simon felt a jealous twinge, and squirmed at the idea of leaving Haley up on the rooftop alone with a guy that seemed to define debonair. The way his luck was going, she would be swept right off her feet by the man. After all, the geeky best friend never got the girl in the movies. There was no reason he could think of why he should stay at the moment without coming across as overbearing.

“Alright, but watch out when you start working inside Brute. I’ve heard that scorpions are attracted to campfires, and the entire village was essentially one huge ball of heat yesterday. Then there’s the possibility of snakes or spiders thinking it would make a good home. Just make sure to shine a light inside before sticking your hand in there.”

Haley giggled at Simon’s worrisome nature.

“Nothing’s going to happen Simon. Now run along, and bring me back some Dew if you can find it!”

 

***

 

“I’ve been wondering. Do you ever get tired of all the zealotry and fervent worship?”

“You are aware of how redundant that sentence is, right?” Cronocke replied to his partner.

Midea lazily leaned against his shovel, one of a pair that the agents stole from a storage closet. They were fortunate that amongst the hotel’s many amenities was a small, indoor garden with just enough space to hide a body. After all, that was what they were doing. The grave was only two or three feet deep, but there was little need for anything deeper. The agents’ pants reflected the amount of work they had done. Soil was caked to their shoes and cuffs of their pants were stained with dirt. Then there were their hands, which made them look as if they had just finished working in a coalmine. That was the trouble with digging holes.

“I’m not an idiot. Just answer the question; do you get tired of it? I mean Ananke’s followers treat her like she’s some kind of goddess. I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach every time one of them calls her Mother.”

“I try not to think about it, but that’s what separates us henchmen from simple followers. You’d be surprised how little I care about things when I’m being paid as well as I am. Do you think I would have allowed myself to be sent back in time and to another dimension if I wasn’t making a mint?”

“I guess so, but it still gets on my nerves.” Midea responded.

“Look on the bright side. We’re henching for one of the hottest women either of us has probably ever seen. We could be stuck henching for Cobra Commander instead. Staring into a reflective eye shield every time you receive an order can’t be nearly as fun.”

Kssh. Static broke up the pair’s discussion. Cronocke picked up the handheld transceiver and took a few steps away from his partner to take the call. Agent Midea showed mild annoyance at the fact that he was not privy to what was going on, and took his frustration out on the previously dispatched demon, which was stuffed in an ordinary black trash bag. He kicked the corpse as hard as he could, sending it into the hole with a loud thump. Whatever the call was about, it did not take long, as Cronocke was already headed back his way.

“Remind me why you get to be in charge of the walkie-talkie.”

“I called dibs. It’s not my fault that you’re slow on the draw. Anyway, we’ve got our next mission. It’s time for Operation Giant Glowy Purple Cube of Doom!” Cronocke announced.

“You mean the one where we–”

“Yup, the very same. We’ll have the entire building in the palms of our hands after this.”

“Well then, I guess we should finish up here and get to the basement.” Midea suggested.

Loose dirt rattled against the plastic bag as the two men covered their victim. Before long, the hole was nearly full and Midea looked as if he was ready to move a wooden bench back in place over the gravesite. Cronocke scooped up one last shovel full though, pausing for just a second as he looked down at the last bit of black plastic sticking out.

“Time to put this baby to bed.” He slowly poured the dirt over. “Say g’night Gracie.”

 

***

 

Crap, crap, double crap! Kacie shouted in her head as she darted through the empty hallways. If it was any other demon that those men were after, she would have likely helped them dispatch the thing, but this was a different story. Anibelle was once human after all, and the former nurse could not overcome the desire to protect her.

Speed was not an issue though. She ran through the halls like quicksilver, dodging any hapless person that stepped in her way. There was no need to stop. For the first time in her life, the scar Anibelle cursed her with was going to help. Even the slightest burn would indicate a demon nearby, and she doubted there could be many more in the hotel. It was surprising to find even three in a single place after all. Her scan was proving fruitless though, and that left her with little choice other than to check every floor from top to bottom or from bottom to top as the case was.

She raced through the exit into the stairwell, and as luck should have it, immediately crashed chest first into a wavy-haired man with glasses. The man grasped her shoulders, holding her steady as she squirmed to escape, though he did not appear to mean her any harm.

“Slow down love. What’s a cute girl like you in such a hurry for?” The man asked her, as she stared up into his deep brown eyes.

Kacie gave him her best icy stare, which at times seemed to have the power to stop an elephant in its tracks, but he just smiled at her. Anybody else in the hotel would instantly have recognized the man as Damon Blake, but not Kacie, not with her self-imposed exile from the rest of the guests. She thought his smile reeked of arrogance. It was a smarmy kind of smile, which Kacie often attributed to men who were used to getting their way.

“None of your damned business, jackass!” She yelled. “Now let me go, someone is going to get hurt if I don’t hurry.”

“Which is it? Is it none of my business or did you just answer my question? You contradict yourself too easily, dear. I suggest you calm down and tell me what happened.”

“I didn’t tell you nothing, and I suggest you let go of me unless you want to be the one that gets hurt.” She growled. “I am not a patient girl and I do not have time to be hit on.”

“Nobody is hitting on you sweetie, though if the situation were different I would find it hard not to notice those long sensuous legs you have there. However, I do wish to help you out. After all, I am nothing if I am not chivalrous.”

“Fine, I saw two guys in flack vests unload a full clip each into a demon and then say that my friend was next on their hit list.” She stated matter of factly. “Happy?”

“Oh, that is quite a predicament. If you’d told me such a tale just a few days ago, I would have thought it to be nonsense, but I’ve already met a few demons since we were all taken away to Neverland. Your friend wouldn’t be Anibelle, would she? I had the pleasure of meeting her last night. She seemed quite taken with that Robin fellow.” Damon explained, looking as if he were pondering something. “In fact, I would not be the least bit surprised if she was shacked up with him right now. If you would indulge me, I could lead you there. At the very least, if she’s not there that will be one less place you have to check.”

Kacie’s eyebrow quirked as she thought over the man’s offer. She was sure this was all an excuse to get her alone so he could seduce her, but the man did release her from his grasp and the fact that he was standing on the top step with his hand extended meant he was going downstairs anyway. She was more than capable of fighting some playboy off after all.

“Fine, but if we’re too late to save her, I’m holding you responsible for her death.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Damon said with a grin as the exit door closed behind them.

 

***

 

The soft flickering flames from over a dozen candles bathed the honeymoon suite in a tangerine glow. Coital grunts and the sounds of bedsprings creaking from disuse echoed in the balmy air. The air had a peculiar stink, one of bodily fluids and decaying flesh, but the odor did not dissuade the love-locked pair. The man, in particular, was enjoying himself too much to notice. Methodically he thrusted against his mate, sweat glistening off the Green Lantern tattoo on his upper arm. His thick black mane of hair stuck to his back, and droplets congregated in the overgrown beard on his chin. His eyes were unfocused however, rarely looking down at his partner, and that was a good thing.

Anibelle lay there on the bed, her head turned to the side, looking at the man’s watch whose face was positioned perfectly on the nightstand. She yawned disinterestedly as her ersatz lover rhythmically humped her. Her bare bosom jostled with every motion, but that was about the only movement that came from the succubus, at least until she felt the man’s release. That was the moment she was waiting for, for with it came yet another bit of sustenance.

Her prey convulsed on top of her as he deposited his seed, unaware that he lost far more than his future children. A white wisp slowly snaked its way out through the man’s agape mouth, like the smoke of a recently fired gun. Ani leaned forward to get closer to his mouth, and then breathed in deeply. The vapor inched its way towards her waiting red lips until she was sucking it clean out of him. The reptilian-shaped breath crept into the demon’s mouth, and the man’s eyes lost all their color. His skin turned pallid and his arms refused to hold up his weight any longer. The heavy man collapsed and then Ani shoved him off the bed with one leg as if he was a sack of garbage.

My skin didn’t even turn blue, what a waste. Anibelle thought as she rolled her unclothed body so that she sat on the side of the bed. Indeed, she looked about as human as she could make herself look. Only the tiny little nubs in her forehead and the long spade-tipped tail betrayed her. She stretched, displaying her soft feminine features in all their glory. When am I going to get to bed my knight in shining armor? Oh, brave Sir Robin, only you could satisfy my desires. She mused, thinking fondly of the man she desired. After all, she was quite fond of the strong leader types. They were always the most virile.

Her erstwhile partner shriveled on the ground, as if his body was mummifying itself. Anibelle lifted him up by the scruff of his neck and then opened the closet door at the foot of the bed. She tossed the decaying man in where he collapsed next to three other corpses, all staring vacantly forward at the girl, like a group of voyeurs.

“Next!” She shouted as she closed the closet doors once more.

A stubby man wearing a Lord of the Rings t-shirt came walking through the door. They had not even started yet and he was already sweating. Anibelle groaned. Another loser, she thought. I should have expected as much. The stocky man looked at her, nervously tenting his fingers. It was clear he had never seen as fine of a female specimen in all his life.

“I-it’s my first time,” he stuttered. “It’s not going to hurt, is it?”

“Oh, don’t worry honey. It’s an experience to die for.”

So he’s a virgin, it could be worse. He could be some guy in a fur suit. With that, Ani led the nervous virgin to her bedside. He would never suspect that his first time would also be his last; after all, he was already in the succubus’s thrall.

 

***

 

Clink, clink, clang, the screwdriver sounded as Haley lost her grip and dropped it into Brute’s open neck cavity. Son of a bitch! She cursed. Currently, she sat atop Brute’s massive body, shining the light from her headlamp down inside the gap. Her biomechanical fingers grasped the heavy net that held the metal man in place and then she pressed her shoulder all the way against his body as her right arm fished around inside for her lost tool. The position she was in meant that she was grasping in the dark, probing for the right shape. Wires, cables, circuit boards, errant pieces of metal, none of it was right. Her digits groped the robot’s innards until they touched something that should not be there. It was cold, and slightly sticky. She recoiled as she touched the slime, which just happened to move her hand into the correct spot to find her lost tool. He must be leaking coolant, she thought. Either that, or snails decided to make a home out of her invention.

“Well, that’s a position I didn’t expect to see you in when I got here,” Damon articulated in his usual charming tone. “Not that I mind the view, of course. You do have quite a pleasant posterior.”

The fit girl slid down and landed on her feet in front of the 10-foot-tall robot, her cheeks turning a pale scarlet in color.

“I was tightening things up a bit and dropped my screwdriver. Did you really need to point out the fact that my butt was sticking out though?” Haley asked.

“Not really, but I find a little harmless teasing keeps the mood light and makes the work go faster.” Damon smiled.

“Speaking of going faster, you sure took a long time getting here. I sent Simon to talk to Anne because I thought you would be up soon, but then I was left up here for nearly a half hour by myself. What took you so long?”

“Oh, nothing really. When you’re as well known as I am, people tend to want to stop you and ask questions. I got held up is all, but don’t worry, I told my assistants to handle any further inquiries.” Damon said with a smile. “Have you given any further thought to what kind of rigging we should use?”

“Well,” Haley started, moving back over to Brute. “I thought that wind power would be the best solution. Brute has a few solar panels built in, but not enough to power an entire building. Still, if we could rig some kind of windmill, maybe with your helicopter’s blades, I think that that would be enough to at least get the lights and the refrigeration units in the kitchens back on.”

Damon paused, adjusted his glasses and then looked down at his fingers, which were moving rapidly as if he were calculating something. After a few moments, he looked up with a frown.

“I don’t think it’s worth the risk. We would be sacrificing a valuable asset if we took apart the helicopter. I think we should see if we can supercharge Brute’s solar capabilities, and perhaps install a lightning rod to harness the storms.”

“But, wind is the most abundant thing we have up here. It’s really the best solution, and wouldn’t your solution lead to a lot of power surges? Every time lightning struck we’d run the risk of losing everything again. There’s a reason why–”

“Haley, really, my neck is the one on the line here. Don’t you think that I would want to use the best possible solution? How about this? We don’t even know if your Brute will even power on again. We might not be able to use him as a conduit in the first place. Let’s make sure he’s in working order first and then we’ll argue about what the best solution is.”

 

***

 

Simon let out an exhausted breath as he reached the hallway leading to the theater’s dressing room. It took him nearly an hour of running around to discover that Anne had taken up residence there. The backpack that was now slung over his shoulders held the spoils of his previous errands. He managed to find both a computer cleaning kit, complete with a can of compressed air and several bottles of Haley’s favorite soda. Now all that was left was to take care of his own needs, to return his body to a state where he could do the heavy lifting.

The bald-headed youth was not the only one waiting for an audience with Miss Onymous though. At the end of the hallway, a small girl, no older than four was swaying back and forth. She was wearing the kind of pink dress that only a child could get away with and her blonde hair was up in pigtails. She reminded Simon of a miniature version of Haley, which brought a smile to his face.

“Why is you bald?” She asked, before Simon could speak.

“Um… I have alopecia. My hair would be all splotchy like a leopard’s skin if I didn’t shave it.”

She put her hands over her mouth and giggled.

“Could you tell me if Anne is in there?” Simon motioned to the doorway in front of them.

“Yup! Miss Anne is talking to her fairy godmother, but she’s gonna read us a story when she’s done. She promised!”

Simon figured that meant that she was talking to Irene. He was doing his best not to blame the pixie for his misfortune, but he knew that he should not. She did not know that Simon wanted to stay as Simone after all, and was just trying to help. He stared at the mahogany door for a while, wondering if he should just interrupt. What he wanted would not take that long, after all. At least, he did not think it would. He took a breath then raised his hand to knock when the door swung open.

The redheaded author stepped out with Irene flitting along side. She briefly looked at Simon, as if searching for who the man could be and then turned to the little girl.

“I’m sorry Lilly, something came up. I’ll have to read to you and your friends later. You’ll forgive me, won’t you?” Anne asked in a calming voice.

Lilly looked like she was about to burst into tears, as if someone just took away her favorite toy. Simon could see it building and thought the girl was going to throw a tantrum at any moment. Of course, that never happened. With a wave of her hand, Anne produced a large bag of chocolate chip cookies.

“I know it’s not a story, but maybe this will make it up to you.”

“Yay! Cookies!” Lilly screamed, sounding quite pleased.

Having placated the child, Anne turned and brushed right past Simon. The man tagged along, however, keeping stride with the woman.

“Wait, Anne, I wanted to ask you something.” Simon pleaded.

“Make it quick. I don’t mean to blow you off, but a matter of great importance just came up.” Anne responded, talking as she walked down the hall with a purpose.

“You met me last night. I was the um… really tall, muscular woman. You know, Simone. Well, Irene here changed me back into a guy accidentally while we were at the Amazons’ temple, and I was hoping maybe you could maybe turn me back into Simone again.”

“It was not accidental,” Irene said, sounding offended. “You were suffering and we fixed you.”

“I’m sorry Simon. I know we talked the other night and you seemed to want to stay as Simone, but I really don’t have time right now. I promise that I’ll make you one of my first priorities when I return though, okay?

Simon nodded, though he was obviously disappointed in the woman’s decision.

“Can you do me a favor though? Tell Robin not to worry about me, and that I would not have left if the world was not at stake.”

 

***

 

“I think I’ve fixed all I can,” Haley announced, wiping the perspiration from her forehead. “I couldn’t find the source of the leak though. I’m guessing that some animal just got inside. I think we’re ready to power on and do a system diagnostic.”

Damon stood off to the side, his polo shirt had hardly an ounce of dirt on it, where as Haley’s tank top and jeans were covered in the grime that coated Brute’s outer casing. He adjusted his glasses once more then ran his fingertips through his maintained tresses.

“Weren’t you going to wait until Simon returned?” He asked, though he did not sound overly concerned about Haley’s assistant.

“Nah, this is just a test run. I should at least be able to get a few systems up and running, enough to check Brute’s status, but you may want to stand back a bit.” The blonde inventor said with a chuckle. “If things go bad, the whole thing could blow.”

Damon nodded and took a position close to the rooftop exit. Haley was a little less cautious, as she stood facing her creation perhaps only ten meters away. It was just enough that she would be out of the blast radius should something go wrong, but still close enough for the wireless control in her arm to still function. She flipped open the paneling and powered on. Numbers and symbols scrolled by on the tiny screen faster than she could read until a command prompt appeared. Quickly she typed in the access codes and then prepared herself.

“Power on!”

The LED lights in Brute’s shoulders and chest were the first to shine. They flickered slowly and then turned a solid green, but they were not the only light show. Indigo sparks flew from inside the chest cavity. Haley cursed, as her creation seemed to be short-circuiting before her eyes. The electrical hum it was emitting was loud, and it sounded as if something was caught in the middle of it all. Like a dying rabbit, something from inside was screeching in mortal pain. Haley held her hands over her ears to block out the dreadful noise. Damon did the same, so neither one of them noticed when it suddenly halted.

Nor did the young inventor have time to move as a ghostly, gelatinous aura shot out of Brute’s chest like a bullet. It struck Haley in the heart with considerable force and took her right off her feet, tumbling over the edge of the building. Her tether snapped back abruptly, saving her from a more costly fall and left her dangling just out of her arm’s reach.

“Damon, help!” The girl screamed.

She looked up to see the man’s spectacles peering over the side of the building, looking like he was suffering from a case of vertigo. She extended her arm to him, waiting for him to grab it.

“I’m sorry Haley. I didn’t think I’d have to get my own hands dirty, but I can’t let an opportunity like this pass.”

“What the hell are you talking about? Pull me up!” She demanded, as panic entered her voice.

Haley felt a tug on her lifeline. She saw it looped in Damon’s left hand, and a knife in his right. Her eyes widened. This could not be happening.

“By the grace of Ananke, I release you,” he chanted as if it was his mantra. “Goodbye, Miss Ravenlock.”

The next instant, Haley was free falling. The small bit of rope that was once her safety net was floating above her like a kite’s tail. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, and then she crashed into the forest floor, her neck twisting so that the shape of the bone could be seen through her skin. The arm she put so much work into shattered, leaving it dangling freely. Blood flowed from her scalp and gathered into a pool around her lifeless body, staining her work worn clothing further. Haley’s vacant eyes stared unblinking up at her killer from 34 stories below.

Damon stood and unhooked a walkie-talkie from his belt, pressing the button on the side.

“Cronocke, turn the power on and then clean up the mess I left for you outside.” Damon commanded.

“She’s dead?”

“Yeah, one down, four to go.”