THE VROL TRILOGY (136 page)

"Father, who have you brought to us? She
smells of Max's world," asked Gabriel.

"Who… who are you?" asked Maria.

"I am Gabriel."

"Who is my son," said Draagh.

"Oh my god… are you… God?" asked Maria,
looking at Draagh, and causing him to chuckle.

"Oh no, no, no my dear. He, who you
refer to as God, we know as Jah, and He is
my
father. This is Gabriel, the-"

"Archangel. Yes, I know. I'm Catholic. I just
never thought that… wow."

"It is my pleasure to meet you. What is your
name, young human?" said Gabriel.

"Maria. Maria
López. I'm a
reporter on Azul and… oh wow. This is cool."

"Well, Maria. It was a pleasure meeting you.
However, I have great need to speak with my father. If you'll
excuse us for a moment."

Being polite, Draagh and Gabriel walked a few
meters away, and were obviously communicating telepathically. The
woman could hear nothing, but Krynos called her attention to the
castle.

"Maria, would you like to tour the
grounds?"

"Um, sure. I guess."

"My brothers, I am bringing young Maria into
the castle. Please call upon us when you wish to depart. Young
lady, come this way if you would," said Krynos, putting his hooked
arm out for her to hold onto.

Maria watched with fascination as she walked
with Krynos across the expansive drawbridge. She noticed a small
girl picking up an impossibly large piece of an animal carcass and
easily tossing it into the moat. The child casually waved to the
pair as they entered an open court, where numerous men and women
moved about.

Wow, it's like I'm in a historical vid.
Craaaazy!

"So, my dear. Would you like to meet those
who would save your world?" asked Krynos.

"Um, yes! Who are you talking about? And, I
can't really be gone that long, ok?"

"Lord Draagh will place you back from where
we left at the same exact moment we departed. Ah, look! It is young
Max. Max! Here, my boy!"

"Just a minute. Is that… Max Gunnarsson? The
technology thief?"

"The one and only. King Krynos, who do you…
hey! You're Maria López! Reporter for Zorro News, aren't you?" Max
recognized the woman as easily as she recognized his name.

"The very one. I want an exclusive interview
once the revolution is done with."

"Hang on. I'm not so sure about that," said
the hybrid captain, "and we have other, more pressing matters to
attend to at the moment."

Max never had a great love for those in the
news industry. They tended to fold like a deck of flimsy cards
under government pressure. And it was thanks to them that the
population of Azul and her three moons were so enthralled with
Johnson and his new brand of government.

"I want to know how you got away with Lt.
Ryder Johnson's invention. Where did you go with it? You were
reported as dead, but we hacked military transmission that said you
were alive, and operating with impunity under some sort of
cloak."

Max gave her an incredulous gaze, with a rare
sneer lining his lips.

"I stole no such technology. I discovered
side space and invented the hook drive. Johnson's a liar, and I
have no time for people in your profession." Max started to walk
away, when his gorgeous wife approached, seeing her husband and
Krynos talking with a strange woman in modern clothing.

"Hey baby. Who's the newcomer?" asked
Jennie.

"Oh my god! Lt. Jennifer Escalante? How far
does this go?" yelped the foreign reporter.

"Are you serious? Max, what’s she doing
here?" Jennie immediately became perturbed after recognizing
López.

'Hey, don't blame me. The King here and that
old dude out there practically accosted me in a café in Santiago. I
was there for an interview, and now I'm here."

"Jesus Christ, Max. Wipe her brain! She's
part of the problem… damned reporters," said Jennie.

"Max looked like he was considering what his
wife had just said, making Maria nervous.

"So, what are you doing here?"

"The old guy-"

"You shall address him as Lord Draagh, young
whelp!" bellowed Krynos, now having lost respect for his guest.
Krynos was a forgiving type, but anyone who spoke of Draagh, Max or
Jennie in a demeaning fashion instantly incurred his wrath. The
woman instantly changed her tone as she continued.

"Apologies. Lord Draagh found me. I guess he
was listening to me speak with my underground. We are fighting
Johnson's regime, and he-"

"You're a rebel?" Max interrupted.

"Yes, I am part of an underground network -
the only one doing anything, and he wanted to meet my team. I said
I wanted to make sure he wasn't with Johnson first, so he took me
here. By the way, where's here?"

"Earth. Germany.
43
^rd
century. Didn’t he tell
you that? And you're in the amateur league, sweetie. We're the real
rebellion," informed Jennie, going heavy on the sarcasm.

"Yes, yes he did. Sorry. I'm just. Wow, Miss
Escalante, did you know you smell amazing?"

"It's Mrs. Gunnarsson to you."

"You guys married? Oh please, please! I
really need to have an exclusive interview with the two of you once
everything's back to normal. This is too good!"

"Girly, you don't get shit until you prove
yourself," growled Jennie.

"Love, be nice. I know Pops, and he has a
reason for everything. We'll need the media on our side for this to
work," said Max to his beautiful mate.

"For what to work, Commander?" Maria
asked.

"That's Captain… and if you pass muster we'll
show you soon enough."

"Why doesn't my recorder work?" asked
Maria
López, completely unaware of the fact that
technology and magic, in most cases, were completely incompatible.
She was seated at what passed for the family table in the
commissary, surrounded by Max, Jennie, Draagh and the newly-arrived
Michael.

"Your little box is useless here, girly.
Besides, you mention a word of what we have here and my husband
will fry your brain." Jennie didn't like the woman and it showed.
She was fiercely protective of her own, and she made sure the
reporter knew it.

"Now, now, my dear daughter. Please. We shall
need the cooperation of the news media on Azul in order to avoid
epic quantities of bloodshed once our operation begins," said
Michael.

"Dear daughter? Are you Jen… Mrs.
Gunnarsson's father?" asked the reporter.

"No. I am Max's father."

"Yeah, Maria. You said you're Catholic,
right?" asked Max.

"Yes, and?"

My father's… um… St. Michael."

"¿San Miguel Arcángel?" she gasped.

Michael stood up and spread his wings out
wide. Beautiful, obsidian feathers gleamed in the low light of the
commissary, as the woman stared at yet another being she thought
was legend all her life. She had been raised to believe, but belief
only goes so far. Now she was hit in the face with reality, and it
had a profound effect on her state of mind. She had a sudden
realization that she was doing the right thing, and that she was in
good company.

"Two angels in a day. Wow. Okay. I'm in. You
can meet my underground. How can we help?"

"Well, would you like to have your lycan
genetics activated so they'll work properly back home?" asked
Max.

Chapter 12 - New Alliances

Reporter Maria
López was
dropped off on Santiago, at the same exact moment she had left. No
surveillance camera detected her departure or arrival. However, due
to Len Johnson's earlier orders, she was seen accompanied by two
ghostly images in the café. Draagh's typical method of feigning
invisibility was fine in areas of lesser technology, but Johnson's
spies were loaded for bear, in a manner of speaking.

"Sir, we have analyzed the vid relay and Miss
López wasn't alone. She was probably with Commander Gunnarsson. It
is exactly the same readout as the vid from his mother's and her
home. And look when we activate the new infrared filters."

Ensign Piotr Jakovich was a bright
technician, doing his job, as all were expected to do. However, he
had an unsettling feeling about the direction the government was
taking. To his credit, he was extremely intelligent and had a great
sense of self-preservation, so he kept his mouth shut about his
personal beliefs and simply reported his findings. Still, he found
it fascinating that there were people running about, basically
invisible to most sensors. But now they saw the heat signatures of
two very large men sitting in the middle of a café.

"Good work, Ensign. I expect a full report on
my desk by the end of your duty shift," said Coby Worthington,
Chief of Staff to the missing Len Johnson, and unwitting spy for
the resistance. He had earlier learned of his lycan heritage, had
vid cameras implanted into his eyeballs and was then brain-wiped,
eliminating all knowledge of his off-world adventures and making
him an excellent source for real-time data on the dictatorship.

###

"Are you kidding? They can see us now?" Max
cried out as he stood in a plush office in New Sydney, having just
been informed that the standard invisibility cantus was no longer
effective. They would be required to use, in the future, a much
more taxing cantus that would make their molecular structure
extra-dimensional and no longer emit heat, nor even have to bend
light. It would simply not be there, in a manner of speaking.

"My son, I shall be there with you every step
of the way," said Draagh, who had just informed his grandson of the
unfortunate turn of events. "Now that the father of the headless
Ryder Johnson is gone, I believe it will be necessary to restore
the memories of Mr. Worthington. He appears to be in a position of
substantial power. Let us hope it has not gone to his head."

"One wrong move on his part and I cut it
off," mused Jennie. Max wrapped his arms around his wife and
nuzzled her ear.

"You always say the most amazing things,
baby," he whispered, prompting her to calm down.

"So, Pops, how do we approach him? Do we… oh,
hello Coby," said Max.

Worthington stood motionless, paralyzed with
fright, as he looked around and slowly recognized everyone while
his memories returned. He had returned to his office, with Max,
Jennie and Draagh fading into view as soon as he shut the door.

"Oh man! I'm so dead! Oh man!"

Jennie pulled away from Max, walked over to
Coby and punched him directly in the face, knocking him flat on his
back.

"Shut up,
boludo
! We brought you here for a reason. You
know who we are… Draagh, does he remember us? Oops."

"Yes, my dear girl. He should have recovered
his memories by now."

"Yeah, I know. I remember. Why did you make
me forget?" asked Worthington.

"For your protection, Coby," stated Max. "How
many times has Johnson put you under the engram extractor?"

"Oh god, twice a week?"

"Damned good thing he's gone now, isn't it?"
asked Jennie.

"Well, we don't know yet. It would be better
to know where he's gone off to," replied Max, and he was right. No
one knew where the dictator was - not even Coby. Johnson only
notified his pilot and copilot, coopting them from a flight deck
without prior notice.

"Well, my head feels a hell of a lot better
now. Oh damn, why didn't you guys just take me with you? The dude's
a maniac."

"Coby, we're really sorry, but we were
looking at the greater good. However, now that Johnson's gone I'll
promise you this - we'll let you keep your memories as long as you
willingly work with us. And if he comes back we'll take you and
your family with us, ok?" said Max, feeling badly about having left
the man in the clutches of a wanton torturer, but willingly lying
to the man. If Johnson indeed returned they would need Coby to act
as the unwitting spy again.

"Yeah, just don't puss out on us, got it,
spunky?" advised Jennie.

"No problem. I'm with you guys. Now, what are
we gonna do?"

Draagh and Max went over everything they had
been doing with Worthington, including the transport of the Saxman
Haidas and the Tokyo Samurai lycans. Coby found the concept of
Native Alaskan and Japanese Samurai lycans to be the coolest thing
he had ever heard. After going through all of the details for their
planned conquest he made an odd, but logical request.

"Um, if I'm lycan, are my wife and
children?"

"That depends, my boy. The odds are in the
favor of your children. The inactive genes are either passed along
full force or not at all, unlike other genetic qualities, but they
are usually inherited. Your wife is a completely different
situation. In any case, we shall need to analyze them all," said
Draagh.

"Will it hurt?" asked Coby.

"Oh man, not at all, Coby. In fact, we have a
new device that shows you anyone's subspecies," said Max. "My dad
made this device, and Draagh here just decreased its size to that
of a contact lens."

"A contact lens can be detected by any of our
surveillance devices," said Coby.

"Not this. It's organic, and would be
detected as merely a pterygium," responded Max.

"What that? A pterygilala whatever?"

"Pterygium. It's inflamed tissue outside the
sclera, common in surfers. Do you surf?" asked Jennie.

"Um, no, not lately."

"Well, you're starting again. Plus, it'll be
a great way to snag you without being nailed by surveillance," said
Max.

"Here, my boy. Hold still," said Draagh, as
he brusquely held the man's head and poked a finger into his
eye.

"Ouch! Crap, I thought you had magic and
stuff!"