The Blood Eagle in the Big Easy (38 page)

They were coming along, but they weren’t going to like what I had to say. “You two can calm down you’re both coming.”

“Damn right we are!” Nicholas grumbled as he marched across the office. “She killed my mother and I want my pound of flesh.”

Digging in the bag I pulled four pistols out of the side compartment handing two to Nicholas and placing the others to my left for Kira. “You do know how to use those right?”

Nicholas dropped the clip and cleared the chamber before I got the words out of my mouth. Eyeing the weapon closely he demonstrated his comfort level with the weapon. “I’m familiar.”

Kira and Nicholas were dressed in similar body armor to my own. Surprisingly Kira picked up her weapons in silence holstering them as she waited for the catch. “You two will be coordinating with the SOG ensuring no one escapes the park.”

“Like hell we will!” Nicholas bellowed.

Kira put a hand on his shoulder as she gently pulled him back. She fondled the handle of her pistol as she made one of her mother’s highly disapproving looks. “So you plan on going in alone against them?”

“Not exactly.”

Nicholas tried to take a step forward but Kira held him in place. “Let’s hear what he has to say.” Giving me a stern look she kept Nicholas in check. “Who knows, he might actually have a plan.”

They would coordinate their efforts with Gregory and the SOG to secure the area. While they handled the perimeter I would already be inside the park hunting Smith. The goal was to catch Smith at the building nearest the merry-go-round. Hopefully I could catch him by surprise and end the situation quickly without raising Gullveig’s suspicions. If I failed in that option they were to enter the park immediately through the main gates to keep her busy till I arrived.

If things went smoothly we could initiate phase two of the plan by using our O.D.I.N. implants to keep in constant communication to coordinate our arrival. Once Smith was down we would proceed to Gullveig location as a unit and terminate her physical form. According to Mir the three of us were incompatible hosts for her but Gregory and his team were not. This was the main reason to keep Gregory and the SOG as far away as possible. The only reason she was able to inhabit her current body was due to the fact she took it within the first few hours of birth before the O.D.I.N system could reject the invasion. With The Staff of Gungnir we would be able to terminate her even in her ethereal form or such was the working theory.

While they had their reservations they agreed that there weren’t a lot of other options. Kira and Nicholas headed out to meet Gregory who had been even less receptive of the plan. It was only the fact Gullveig could escape while destroying one or more of his men that he finally agreed. Everything had been set in motion, but something continued to tug at my memory as I headed for the door. Mir seemed to know more that he had divulged to me but there was no time to deal with that now. It was something we discuss later. Closing the door I headed for the stairs once more as the hand of fate weighed heavily on my soul.

The day was warm even as the skies above turned charcoal gray as a thunderstorm rolled in off the lake. It wouldn’t be long before the sky opened up to cleanse the land of its impurities. Justine slowed the car to a near crawl as I rolled out onto a barren stretch of Paris Road near the rear entrance of the park. Using my shields to camouflage my arrival I blended into the background as I entered and cut through the park. Mir was taking the continuous communications a little too literal as the three of us shared visual and auditory feed. It didn’t take as long as I thought to adjust to the extraneous input but it was still a bit disconcerting to see through their eyes.

What had once been a joyous place to bring children had turned into something much more sinister. A suffocating blanket of dread accompanied the unnatural silence that enveloped the park. Nature, neglect and the elements had taken a toll on the once vibrant theme park which now lay in a creepy, crumbling, hollowed out hulk of what it had once been. The atmosphere here twisted itself into the eerie mirror image of what it once was. The stench of rot and decay permeated the area as if searching for something new to corrupt. The aging behemoth of a roller coaster that once marked the highlight of the park now barely stood as its supports rusted and fell away. I couldn’t help but shiver at the sheer perversion as nature and man fought for supremacy. The park refused to give up the ghost as nature had long ago won the battle leaving this dismal reminder of how helpless man was against the awesome power of the elements.

Mir’s alert pulled me from my revelry letting me know that Smith was slightly ahead of schedule forcing me to adjust my plan on the fly. Given the fact I couldn’t make the original point of interception, ‘Barb’s Ice Cream Shop’, I fell back on plan B. This meant that I would need to take my chances of being crushed if the supports for the coaster gave way as I passed under the crippled beast to the ‘Funhouse’.

Given the state of decay and the creepy jester that lay broken and slumped over the opening as it desperately clung to its prized Mardi Gras beads, the place was closer akin to a haunted house. From what I saw there wasn’t anything fun left to the entire park let alone the rotting building that had once brought such joy to its visitors. Quietly I made my way through the broken door crouching in the darkness as I waited for Smith to pass. 

Focusing on the feed Mir was streaming in my minds eye I was able to watch his progress through the virtual reality overlaid in real time with the world around me. It was the longest five minutes of my life as Ryker took his time strolling through the devastated theme park with hardly a care in the world. As he approached he slowed, seeming to sense my presence.

“I can feel you...” Smith taunted. “Come out and play, I’ve been waiting a long time for this.” He made a show of pulling off his jacket and hanging it on the broken ticket stand just a few feet from where I stood. “I always wanted to know which of us was better.”

Stepping out of the shadow I shimmered back into reality with my shields in tact as I closed the distance between us then hammering his jaw with a hard right hook. “Considering I’m not a pedifile the answer is simple really.”

Even though he rolled with the punch he still hit the ground hard enough to draw blood from several scrapes. Pushing himself to his feet he wiped the blood from his cheek as he gave me an appraising look. “Cheap shot, on both accounts.” Spitting blood as he gave me a wicked smile. “I like girls of all ages. Hell, your daughter is a pretty little thing!”

Now that’s a just good way to piss me off! In response to his smartass remark I threw a kick to his midsection doubling him over as I grabbed the back of his head and slamming it into my knee. His nose bloomed crimson as blood ran freely. As he staggered back and fell on his ass I slowly took a step forward.

Wiping his nose he chuckled. “I hope that’s not the best you got to offer.”

He swept his long legs out quickly catching me at the knee as he took my legs out from under me. Landing hard against the pavement I felt him scramble atop me as he pummeled my face and chest with quick heavy blows.

Throwing my weight to one side I pushed him off of me. Getting to my feet first I kicked him hard in the ribs and cracking a couple of them, though unfortunately the propulsion of the kick helped him to his feet. He was stronger and tougher than he looked which meant I was in for a long hard fight.

He went on the offensive as he launched himself at me, catching me in the throat with an elbow, causing my shields to give slightly under the pressure of the blow. He quickly followed with a knee to the midsection lifting me off the ground as he pushed me away, causing me to skid across the asphalt.

“You’re what’s she’s afraid of?” He advanced on me kicking hard against my midsection. “Pathetic! Your shields won't last forever and when their down, I’m going to enjoy making you bleed.”

Rolling to my knees I blocked his next kick using its force to help me up. Wrapping fire around my right fist I slammed it hard against his jaw causing it to blister as the skin burned away.

His amusement was suddenly gone as he grimaced in pain. He kicked me hard in the midsection throwing me back a few feet, allowing him room to work. Spreading his fingers on his left hand darkness filled the empty space until his whole hand was shrouded in an inky residue. Diving to the side as he flung the ichor toward me, it landed on the metal door frame where it became animated. The darkness oozed around the frame, disintegrating everything it touched including several inches of the cinderblock wall before winking out of existence. Quickly making a mental note for future reference, the black, inky, whatever the hell you call it, was something I should probably avoid.

From the stunned look on his face I suspected most people were not quick enough to avoid his inky little friend. I got to my feet as he stumbled back a few steps trying to call forth more of the darkness. Luckily it didn’t appear he had the ability to repeat the action again so quickly. Closing the gap between us I threw an elbow at his throat. Even though he was obviously taxed from the effort of calling forth the darkness he was able to move to one side causing me to only catch him in the shoulder.

He fell back against the wall of the ‘funhouse’ and his hands suddenly glowed. The blue paint of the wall behind him turned black from the heat of his body. The sudden lack of oxygen burned my lungs as the air superheated around me. Forcing more of my will into my shields I pulled a knife from its sheath and drove it through his right shoulder and was rewarded as he screamed out in pain.

He caught me hard in the face with his elbow, throwing me to one side as he quickly pulled the blade from his flesh. “You’re going to pay for that!” He grunted as he threw the knife to the side. “When I finish with you I’m going to find that pretty little daughter of yours, Kira I think her name is, and she and I are going to have some fun!” Licking his lips he lost himself to the thought. “She will beg for death before its all over, and who knows, you might wind up with a grandchild out of the deal! What do you think of that? She’ll like...”

He didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence as I slammed my will against his chest sending him through the weakened cinderblock wall.

Rage rolled over me as it washed away the pain, leaving only the burning desire to ensure the man wouldn’t be a threat to anyone ever again. “You should’ve kept your mouth shut!”

The biggest mistake people make during a fight is talking instead of finishing the job. Second biggest mistake is saying something to piss the other guy off and Smith just made both. Allowing my anger to fuel my abilities I stalked through the broken wall. Smith was on all fours, trying to get to his feet when I put all my strength in a hard right kick to his ribs spinning him in the air and landing hard on his back. Holding out my right hand I summoned the discarded blade and caught it by the hilt a half second later. Two or three of Smith’s ribs were broken and at least one of them punctured his lung, causing him to cough blood as he tried to right himself.

He tried to summon fire once more as I swatted his hands aside and slid my blade through the nook of his elbow making him to scream in agony. My fury had fully taken hold of me. I slammed my knee against his face knocking out a couple of teeth in the process. Blood ran freely across his burned and blistered face as I continued to advance on him. He crab walked away from me but it was of no use. I slammed my boot into his left knee shattering it.

He screamed again as he flailed uselessly on the floor. His sharp intake of breath caused him to choke on his own fluids. He was slowly drowning to death but I didn’t care. I wanted to make him pay for his sins.

“You’re not supposed to do this, you’re one of the good guys.” He pleaded.

Slamming my boot against his right ankle I felt it give way under the pressure. “That’s a matter of perspective...” I sent a hard kick to his groin causing him to choke as he got the dry heaves. “I lose perspective when you start talking about my daughter.”

Kneeling beside him I slowly slipped my blade through the iliacus, which is that soft spot between your pubic bone and hip. His lungs refused him enough air to scream so he mostly gurgled and choked as the blood frothed on his lips.

“You’re going to die here, in this god awful place, very shortly.” Twisting the blade as I yanked it free his body tensed in pain. “We have a few minutes.” I slammed my fist into his already broken ribs sending another one through his already ragged lung. “Make peace with whatever god you believe in.”

“That’s the man I remember.” A smile crossed his lips before another wave of pain hit him. “I remember that look when you killed my father during your raid twenty years ago.”

The thought of him destroying Gregory’s daughter filled my mind. “Is that why you molested Gregory’s daughter?”

“That’s such an ugly term.” He coughed again as I slowly forced my blade through the palm of his right hand. “She liked it!”

Turning the blade I pulled it towards me splitting his hand in two as it exited between the ring and middle finger. “You shouldn’t threaten a man’s daughter.”

Slamming the hilt into his wrist it shattered. “Just kill me!”

That was too simple and much too easy for a man such as he! He had threatened to harm Kira and that was more than I could bear. “Not yet.” Moving around his prone form I dropped to my right knee, quickly breaking two more ribs on his uninjured side. “You have yet to pay for the sins I know about, let alone the ones that I don’t.”