"How are you feeling?"

Darkness looked down at the red mark on his side where the barb of the taser had entered his flesh. "I'm fine."

Tilpin pursed her lips and dabbed some salve over the wound, making him wince.

"You don't heal as fast as us," Gwen went on, "you need to be more careful."

He arched an eyebrow. "More careful? Did it look like I had a choice in there? Stern ambushed me."

"Why were you helping this...Matt Strikmore...anyway?"

Darkness shared a glance with Revenant who was sitting on the other side of the hotel room. "Oh, he and I have some history."

"Anything interesting?"

"Maybe for him. Just another day at the office for me though."

Darkness straightened once Tilpin had applied a bandage to his side and ran his good hand over it, testing how robust it was. He nodded his thanks and then crossed the room, lifting his jacket.

"Where are you going?" Gwen demanded, "You need to rest."

"I don't have time for that."

"What?"

"I have to be going."

"Where?"

"To Chicago."

Gwen's jaw dropped. "To Chicago? Why?"

"Because of something Kermit said to me."

"In the ring?"

"No, before that. Here in the hotel."

Gawain frowned. "Kermit was in the hotel?"

Darkness nodded. "He was coming to find me, but someone didn't want him to, apparently. That's my guess anyway."

"Someone? Like who?"

"Dragon," Darkness said grimly as he pulled on his jacket and slipped the baldric holding his sword over his head.

The Children were already on their feet, grabbing weapons. Gwen took command as usual. "Right, we need to find out what he knows. If we go to his offices in Chicago, we can..."

"No."

She turned to him with a frown. "No?"

"No. You're not coming. This isn't werewolf business."

"But we're your bodyguard!"

"Well you'll have to find someone new to guard this week."

"Like who?"

"Freya? I'm sure she'd appreciate the company."

"You're going to need us, Darkness," Gawain said, "how do you hope to break into an office building alone?"

"Oh I won't be going alone," Darkness smiled, "I just won't be taking you."

The werewolves looked around at each other, confused. Darkness pointed at Revenant. "You, Neophyte. Get yourself ready."

"Ready for what?"

"For meeting some of your colleagues in the Order, that's what." Darkness pulled out his phone.

* * *

Kermit sat down in Valerie Stern's skybox, crossing his legs and placing his hands together on his lap. He smiled at the Commissioner.

"Nice to see someone who knows about professionalism," Stern said, returning the smile. "Coffee?"

"Depends what you have..."

"Nothing very special I'm afraid. You'd think, in Latin America, that we could get hold of some decent coffee beans, but apparently not. It's decaff or regular."

"Then...I'll pass."

Stern sipped at her own mug and then cringed as she put it down. "Probably a wise choice."

"So...what did you want to see me about?"

"I wanted to discuss your promotional appearances going into Stranglehold."

"Ah. Yes, that might be a problem."

She raised an eyebrow. "Problem? I don't like that word, Mr. Gambono."

"I understand that, and I apologise. But I need to be back in my offices in a few days. As you know, there was an...accident...on my flight on the way here. I need to have my people investigate it."

"Yes, I did hear about that. What exactly is it that you do for a living, Mr. Gambono?"

"I'm a property developer and an investor in startup businesses," he replied without missing a beat, "as you can imagine, it's pretty hands-on stuff, so I'd like to get back as soon as I can."

"I do understand, but there are certain responsibilities that come with being the number one contender. You have to make public appearances and such."

"Will Darkness be doing the same thing?"

"Darkness is a special case."

"Well what do I have to do to become a special case too?"

"Threaten my life. Break the law. Become a liability to the federation."

"Ah..."

"So, as you can see," Stern continued, "I'd much rather you complied with your contractual requirements."

Kermit stopped himself from sighing and forced himself to smile obligingly. "Not a problem, Ms. Stern. I shall go where I'm sent."

"That's what I like to hear." She slid a piece of paper across the desk. "Here's a list of your public appearances over the next two weeks."

"Thanks," he replied smoothly, taking the paper and giving it a quick once over.

"You know, Kermit, I see a very bright future ahead of you in TCW."

"When I beat Darkness..."

"If you beat Darkness."

"Not invested in my chances, Stern?"

"I've been stung before, Kermit. I hope you won't disappoint me."

"I don't intend to."

* * *

Chicago was under a pall of grey cloud as Darkness ghosted through the streets, Revenant and Llenlleawg in tow. There was a subdued air, an all-pervasive quiet that hung over the heads of everyone they passed. Blank grey facades loomed over them as teeming crowds of people, heads down; shoulders slumped, parted for the three strange figures.

No one looked at them. No one cared. Darkness narrowed his eyes at the passers-by.

"Something's wrong."

"Like what?" Revenant asked him.

"You can't feel it?"

"Sure. But you're the one who brought it up. I thought you might have some ideas."

"Not yet. But this city is in trouble. And I think Kermit has something to do with it."

Llenlleawg sniffed the air. "Someone's coming."

Darkness gestured to them and they ducked into an alley. "Use your Slayer Sense, Neophyte."

"I'm a werewolf..."

"You're also a Shadow Slayer. That comes first. I'm a human being, but you don't see me relying on my eyesight."

"You're not a human being - you're a robot."

Darkness turned to him. "Was that a joke?"

"Kinda."

He smiled. "I think you're going to get on well with Jack."

"With who?"

"With me, son." Llenlleawg spun as a hand settled on his shoulder. His spear-stave was in his hand instantly and he swung it wildly, but it glanced off the blade of a narrow rapier.

"I remember you," the werewolf gaped, "you're Jack Dane."

"That's right," he grinned, pushing Llenlleawg's blade aside with his sword, "nice to meet you again."

More shadows stepped out of the darkness. The shapes of Marta Hayes, John Doe and several other Slayers resolved themselves.

"I didn't expect you all to arrive here so soon," Darkness told them.

"We still have a few contacts," Marta said.

"Good to see you, Dark'," Doe grinned. Darkness took his arm and they clasped wrists.

"Any news about what we talked about when you came to see me?"

"No more attacks."

"Good. How's the war?"

"Bad," Jack snarled, "I'm a little pissed you took us off the front line..."

"This is the front line. At least it might be. The man we're going to investigate was targeted by Dragon himself."

Marta nodded. "How did he get away?"

"I don't know. That's something I hope to find out too."

"And who is this man?" Doe asked.

Darkness beckoned with his good hand and pointed towards the mouth of the alley. He raised his finger until it was directing the gazes of his companions up at a looming tower a few blocks a way. "He's the man that owns that building."

"And what are we going to do about him?"

"We're going to break into his office."

"And then what?" Marta asked.

"Steal his stuff," Revenant grinned, showing off her fangs.

* * *

"The security is a little lax. He thinks he owns this town - as far as he's concerned, no one would be foolish enough to break into his building. The reprisals would be devastating."

Two Shadow Slayers sprinted across the plaza. The two security guards near the door didn't pick them out in time to do anything about it as two flechettes cut through the air and into their throats. In less than two seconds, both men were on the floor.

Darkness stepped between the two other Slayers and glanced down at the guards. He stooped down to check their pulses.

"Are they dead?" Revenant asked as she appeared behind Darkness.

"No, just tranquillised. That is...unless someone changed the design of those launchers and their ammunition without telling me?"

The nearest Slayer snapped the flechette launcher on his wrist shut. "They'll be fine, First. They might have a headache when they wake up..."

"I think we can live with that."

Darkness stood up and looked at the door of the building. It was modern - steel and glass - and he could see the circular reception desk in the centre of the marble-floored lobby. A security guard was sitting there, reading a magazine.

"Any way to open this door without alerting him?"

"Not really," Jack shrugged as he stepped up beside Darkness, "we'll just have to be quicker than he is."

"I like your odds."

"My odds?"

"That's right, Third Circle."

Jack laughed and pulled out a pistol. With a grunt, he discharged the weapon at the lock, sending the door flying open. The guard was on his feet, reaching for his own sidearm, but Jack had already lifted his arm and fired another flechette that sent him flying backwards to land on the hard marble.

"Spread out - destroy any security cameras."

Gunshots sounded throughout the lobby, but no alarms went off yet. Darkness jerked his head and Jack followed him. Off from the lobby was a security office. The metal door was closed and very obviously locked. Darkness looked through the small window and saw another security guard, not paying any attention to the wall of monitors just past his desk.

"How are we supposed to get in a deactivate the security system?" Jack asked.

"You don't have any ideas?"

"You're the First, not me."

"Alright. Get back against the wall." Jack obliged and Darkness did likewise, ducking back on the opposite side of the door.

"Better hurry up," Jack said as he glanced through the window, "that guard is about to look at those screens."

Darkness reached over and tapped his good fist against the door. The guard looked away from the monitors before he clocked that some of them were now showing static and walked towards the door. He fiddled with the locking mechanism and the door swung open outwards, separating Darkness from Jack.

"Huh?" the guard said as he turned and met eyes with the Shadow Slayer. "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm the guy breaking into your building," Jack grinned. He brought up his palm and slammed it into the guard's jaw, sending him staggering back against the door. The unfortunate man slid down the metal surface and ended up in a heap on the floor.

"Do you have to quip before you knock everyone unconscious?" Darkness asked, stepping around the door.

"Tell you what - when it comes back to bite me in the ass, I'll stop."

Darkness snorted and stepped into the office. He looked around and saw a computer in operation. There was one window open, showing something called ‘youtube', and another that was evidently the security system.

"Do you know how to work a computer, Jack?"

"Not really."

"Better get Revenant then."

* * *

Janice sat in Kermit's chair, behind Kermit's desk, in Kermit's office. She hadn't taken off her jacket. It didn't feel right. This wasn't her place any more - she didn't feel like she was a part of Kermit's life now. But where else could she go? Nowhere else was safe. If nothing else - and there was nothing else - she knew nothing from her past could come and get her here. There would be no unwelcome reminders of what had happened in Las Vegas or before that. When Raul had...

The big double doors burst open suddenly. A security guard came tumbling through and a dark figure stepped over him. She opened her mouth wide to scream, but no sound came out.

"Hello, Janice," Darkness said.

Words still wouldn't come. She felt herself go cold, but sweat was pouring down her brow.

"We're not here to hurt you."

"Then why are you here?" she hissed.

There were other people with him, all dressed in black. Mostly men, but there was one woman - she had one eye, and a crossbow. Two stranger figures followed them in, one a small girl and the other a tall man with dark hair in braids and a face that didn't look...right... The group fanned out around the room, examining filing cabinets and any lose documents they could find.

"I'm looking for something of Kermit's," Darkness explained, walking towards her.

"What?"

"Some documents. Records."

"Why do you want records?"

"I need to know what he's been...up to...recently."

"Why?"

Darkness smiled, but it lacked warmth. Janice felt herself tense up. "I think we'll keep that to ourselves." He walked around the desk. She turned the chair so that she was always facing him. She tugged her heavy jacket closer to herself and drew her legs up onto the chair to avoid being too close to him.

Darkness looked down at the desk. It was empty, but his gaze travelled to the drawers. He knelt down and tried to open the top one, but found it locked. For a moment, his eyes left Janice and he sought for the key. She took her opportunity. There was a letter opener just a few inches from her hand and, moving as slowly and quietly as she could, she grabbed it and pulled it close to her body. Darkness was still looking around for the key.

Janice twisted her grip on the letter opener so the point was facing at his temple. Slowly, softly, she brought it closer, preparing to strike.

He gripped her wrist just as she moved and slowly rolled his eyes towards her. She looked up to see the barrels and blades of half a dozen weapons pointed in her direction. Something else was strange too. She stared down at the hand that was holding her. It wasn't a hand at all.

"What...what happened to your hand?"

"You should ask Kermit sometime. Do you have the key to this drawer."

"No."

"Then we'll just have to..."

"You hear that?" Llenlleawg said suddenly.

"What?"

"Sounds like a high pitched...drone..."

"Drone?"

Then they all heard it as the alarm system kicked in.

"You know," Jack said conversationally, "we should probably have tranquillised that guard in the security office."

Darkness eyed him. "So now are you going to stop with the jokes?"

It's a funny change when you think about it. As I began to progress in the TCW, it became my focus. I spent less and less time at home dealing with the affairs relating to my business and other side projects, instead devoting my energy to winning some shiny belts. Now, I want to go home and focus on some non wrestling projects, but I have to work within TCW policy. Makes me chuckle a little honestly. But with no new leads, still no specimen in Honeydew's lab and the recent attack by Dragon, there is really no point to returning to Chicago is there? After all, what really is there to do? Yet, as fate would have it, my plate would soon become very full.


---------------------------------------------


Kermit sat by himself in the hotel bar, nursing the half empty Long Island in his hand. A piano was being played with lazy gusto across the room, but the music was too bland to be anything more than just white noise. Around the room, small groups of people chatted about this and that, and Kermit already counted two high class prostitutes working their skill on some of the more lonely men in the room, one of which made a nice pick of an unlucky loner's wallet. So beyond people watching, this evening was completely boring to the mobster. And Kermit hates boredom. Trying to occupy his mind, he considered Stern's words to him earlier.

"Darkness is a special case."

He had to wonder why. Based off her cryptic answer, Kermit could assume many things, yet none of these assumptions made any sense to him. From what he had gathered about Darkness, he was a man who appeared to fight the good fight, so why cause problems with Stern? Or, is Stern the one causing problems for Darkness, and he is simply returning the favor. After the taser attack he witnessed, Kermit could see why Darkness would fight back. But the question of who started it bugged him. But really, did it matter? Darkness likes to play by his own rules, and if Stern was half the business woman Kermit thought she was, she would be well within her right to try and lock down this unruly employee. And Darkness would rebel, further provoking Stern. Seemed perfectly logical to a fellow business owner like Kermit.

The pianist stopped his melody and basked in the half hearted golf claps. Kermit suspected that inside, the man was seething. The thought of this man going home at night and ranting up a storm at his lot in life and the lack of appreciative ears to hear his music, made the mob boss chuckle. But that was the only amusement he had. All in all, the night was a boring waste. Leaving some money on the table, Kermit got up and left for his room. Sleep seemed far more entertaining.

From across the room she watched him. Her eyes picked up on every visible strength and weakness in body Kermit possessed. She had already calculated, in mere seconds, over twenty different angles and positions she could shoot him from, and how he would respond to each. Her highly trained hunter senses missed very little about the mobster. Why her brother picked this man was still beyond her. He was strong in body, true, but she knew that that attribute alone could easily be overcome. You do not hunt bears with a knife and expect to kill them it close, you attack from a distance, where such strength is useless.

With a soft sigh, she too left the bar and casually walked through the lobby. Once outside, she made her way to a darkened alley, eyes flickering in every direction. Once confident that she was not being observed, she extended her finger into the empty air and cut downward. A few quick steps into this invisible slice, and she was gone.

------------------------------------------------------

"Unless I am mistaken." Spoke Jack is a matter of fact way "We have only a few more minutes before the police arrive."

"Then we should make this quick. Without a key, only one way in to this desk. "Darkness answered, as he fixed his good hand around the handle of the locked drawer. With a sharp pull, it was out, papers scattered on the floor.

"They aren't coming." Janice said, her eyes still fixed on Darkness's prosthetic hand holding her wrist. "Kermit would never have his alarm call the police. They call his own people."

The realization set into Darkness in a flash. Standing up quickly, he made a gesture to the door.

"You two." Pointing at Llenlleawg and Revenant "Gather this paperwork. The rest of you, make sure we have a clear exit."

"Wait, what's up?"

"Unless Kermit is just really good on putting on an act, he really is mafia. And if his people are coming to answer that alarm, they won't say Freeze like police will. These guys will just shoot first, and then ask questions. We have to avoid that situation."

Revenant and Llenlleawg shoved papers into a backpack quickly, without care for the crumpled nature. As long as they were still readable, it would be fine. Darkness let go of Janice, and looked her in the eyes.

"Why the warning?" he asked.

In her eyes he saw a flicker of light. She opened her mouth, as if to answer, but then shut it and looked away.

"Got them all." said Llenlleawg

"Let's go." He said, still looking at Janice. He broke his gaze and left the room, Llenlleawg and Revenant in tow. With haste, the three made their way down the stairs, eventually running into the rest of their party on the bottom floor stairwell. Jack was peering out the door at the lobby.

"These guys are fast." He remarked.

Darkness glanced out and saw five armed men conversing heatedly. Headlights danced on the glass doors, signaling the arrival of more members of Kermit's crew. He quickly weighted the odds. He had experienced Shadow Slayers with him, that was given. And he had little doubt that his team could easily get past a few thugs with guns. But, these men in the lobby where most likely ready for a fight and would shoot at anything that moves. Plus, they had back up coming, where Darkness had none. He had hoped to avoid any bloodshed this night, and the risk of losing one of his own, or killing one of Kermit's men, was too high. So, he decided on a second option.

"Upstairs. Find a fire escape, a different stairwell, or if need be, go out a window. Just avoid a fight."

Footsteps outside the door put the plan into action before any agreement or objections could be made. The door swung open as three men tried to enter, with weapons drawn. A brief moment of silence passed as each group took stock of the sudden appearance of each other. It was Darkness who made the first action.

"Move!" he shouted as he checked his body into the man at the door, knocking him off guard and stumbling back into his companions. He slammed the door shut in their faces. Out of desperation, he drops his cellphone to the ground and, after a very strong, very swift kick, jams it under the door. Sure enough, Kermit's goons are left struggling to open the now wedged door.

"Hey!" shouts John as him and Darkness bolt up the stairs.

"Buy me another then." was the growled response.

"That was a gift ya know."

Gunshots echoed in the close space, as Kermit's men resort to tried and true gunfire to solve their problem.

"Later we can discuss the proper respect of gifts. Now, we run."


-------------------------------------------------


The gardens were lush and bright as always. In ages past, she would spend days on end within the serene beauty they possessed. Yet recently, such cares where no longer in her heart. Lose does that sadly. The greenery that surrounded her could not tempt her away from her purpose. Pushing past the trees, she was guided by the soft tones of music coming from further within. Each note grew stronger as she got closer, and she sighed as she followed the tune.

That damn music again. she thought to herself. How can he even bother to play anymore?

Within a few more moments, she found her brother lying beneath a large fig tree in a small clearing. His eyes were closed, a small smile on his face as he plucked the lute in his arms. Each finger moved with delicate grace and skill, filling the air with the soft and cheery music. She stood over him and the music kept playing.

"I am back Brother."

The music kept playing, much to her anger. So this song would end as countless others had. She slapped the lute away, causing her brother's eyes to fly open in shock.

"Hey!"

"I am back."

"That is nice Sister, but I was playing. Could you not wait until the end?"

"And when would that be? Minutes or days?"

Her brother shrugged with a smile.

"Depends on where the music takes me."

"I observed your choice."

"And what do you think of him?" he answered with a grin.

"Poor choice Brother. He has nothing extraordinary about him."

"I would disagree. He has a lot going for him in physical prowess, mental ability,"

"But none of that matters" she interrupted sharply.

"Again, I disagree. Plus, you did not let me finish. He also has motivation."

"So do the others."

"And he knows what is out there."

"Again, so do the others." She was getting heated.

"But he has something they do not."

"Such as?"

"Resources and connections to those that fight the Abyss."

"Resources I grant you." She said as she sat down next to him "But those connections you speak of neither trust nor will aid him. His very demeanor burned those bridges."

"But said connections are there. In time, they can be used. So, since you agree he has resources the other independents do not, I fail to see how my vision is incorrect?"

"Brother, I do not doubt your vision. But this man is a criminal!"

"I am unaware of him ever being convicted of a crime." He responded with a smirk.

"You know what I mean. How can we trust the fate of the independents, and our own I remind you, on a man who cares only for himself and what he can gain?"

Her brother sat up straight, and adopted a somber look.

"Because his aims are our own. And as long as we provide him aid, he would be a fool to ignore us. Do you consider him a fool?"

"No" she said with a sigh. "But I highly doubt he can find our brethren, despite what your vision says."

"Perhaps. But at the very least, he can help us progress."

"We are running out of time Brother. Progress is not enough anymore, we need results."

"I know. But what other option do we have?"

Silence between them as both understood that options were few.

"Fine." She spoke, breaking the silence. "I will agree to aid this Kermit. But should he lose his usefulness, I will have no more part."

"Agreed."

The man stood up and stretched.

"Well Sister, time for you to rest and tend to our home. I will guide the independents to him, and we will go from there."

"Who will you be guiding?"

"Those that have skills Kermit would find useful. Have faith Sister, my visions are never wrong."

She remained silent as her brother walked away. No matter how true his visions are, she was still not convinced that this plan would work. But she would go along with it for now, staying vigilant in case of failure.

----------------------------------

The ringing of his cell phone woke Kermit from his slumber. He stumbled in the dark for the switch on the nightstand lamp and yawned. Fozzinini's number appeared on his caller ID, so he figured best not ignore it.

"Kermit."

Boss! Darkness broke into the Towers!

"Wait...WHAT!?"

The security guards were drugged, some kind of tranquilizer I think. Security cameras got busted, and the entire network is still down.

"You said Darkness broke in." Kermit was fully awake at this point.

Yea. Your office camera picked him up. Him, that girl that travels with him, and six others we have not identified.

"What did they do in my office Foz?" Anger was barely contained.

Harassed Janice...

"WHAT!" he shouted at a level that must have woken the entire floor. "What did he do to her!"

She fine Boss! Darkness just harassed her it looks like.

Kermit anger was fully on the surface. He still remembered the way Darkness leered and spoke to her the night she vanished a year ago. That was one insult Kermit could not get over.

Then he broke into your desk and stole your private files.

"Which drawer?"

Uh, I think the second drawer from the top?

"Which side?"

Right.

All his information on Darkness, Freya, Dante, and all the reports he had on the actions of this dark side of the world were contained within those files. Sure, he had copies elsewhere, but the fact that Darkness now knew what Kermit knows, concerned him.

"What action has been taken?"

Nothing yet. We searched the building and came up with nothing. The security guys will be okay, just a bit loopy now. Outside of the files in your desk, nothing was else was taken.

"Okay...." Kermit was developing a plan. "Here's what you do. Contact Statler and Waldorf, tell them about what happened and give them a copy of the tape. Tell them I am not looking for charges pressed, but I want Darkness and his friends detained. The cops we got on the take will ensure this. Do that and I will be back home shortly."

Okay, got it. Anything else?

"Yes. Extra security, particularly around Janice, my office, and my penthouse."

Gotcha.

Kermit hung up the phone and sat in bed for awhile planning his next step.

---------------------

"Why wasn't anyone watching her!"

Darkness was furious. Not so much at his companions, as at himself however. Somehow, in the chaos of their escape from Henson Towers, Revenant was missing. How she went missing was unknown, but the fact that she wasn't here and everyone else was, upset him greatly.

"Honestly, I thought she would be you and Llenlleawg." replied John.

"Well she wasn't. Did anybody see where she went?"

No answer was forthcoming.

"We are supposed to watch each other's backs, or is that a forgotten concept now?"

"You lost her too. Don't pin the blame on us."

"We should go back for her." Llenlleawg said with focus in his voice. If anybody could be taking this worse than Darkness, it would be him.

"Too risky." Marta spoke. "No doubt that building is swarming with armed men."

"All the more reason to get her out!" Llenlleawg's voice was rising.

Darkness put his good hand on the young werewolves shoulder.

"Marta is right. We go back in there, we risk more than losing just Revenant. Besides, we are not even sure she is even still in that tower."

"Um...Darkness?" Jack spoke up. "You might want to read this."

Jack had been shuffling through papers since they stopped, figuring floorplans or something useful to this bad turn of events could be found. He handed a sheet to Darkness with a worried look in his eyes. Darkness read the contents.

To : "Dr. Bunson Honeydew" bhoneydew@hensontech.com
From : "Kermit Gambono" kgambono@hensontech.com
Subject : [Reply] Autopsy Results

I want to assure you Bunson that I will spare no expense for whatever equipment or improvements to the existing lab space on level 3 that you need. I hope that now you are more inclined to believe me when I say that vampires do in fact exist. And given that you have seen the results of their handywork up close and personal, you can understand why I feel that they are a danger that needs to be exterminated. I will be leaving shortly for my scheduled match, yet am continuing to find you a suitable vampire subject for experimentation. Please make sure that you have holding facilities available and, I can not stress this enough, that they can hold a wild elephant. I will keep you informed.

----- Original Message -----

Mr. Gambono

Attached to this email is the results of the autopsies performed on Subject A, Doe and B, Doe. The results are strange and while they might suggest your belief in vampires is correct, I can not rule out other, more scientific options.

Darkness said nothing, but his body went numb.

-------------------------------------------------



So Darkness went off a made the first move. Good for him. Won't do him much good, but still, I bet he is quite proud of himself. However, if he has half brain, he should know to be worried. Breaking into my building, bothering my girl, and stealing my things, all three are worthy of a death sentence. But no, he gets off easy. I want him contained.

Hard to walk away from me when you are behind bars.

"First?" Marta's voice was deadly calm. "What are your orders?"

"We have to go back for her!" Llenlleawg wailed again. He shrugged off Darkness's grip on his shoulder.

"Neophyte! This is not a democracy!" Marta spoke harshly, but they were all tense after their desperate flight.

Darkness shook his head. "He's right, Marta. We can't leave her there."

Marta and Jack were already moving, shouldering weapons again and heading back down the alley towards the building from which they had just escaped.

"Wait, can we talk about this?" Doe said suddenly. "This Kermit guy is dangerous, judging by these documents," He shook the pieces of paper in his hand, "and now the alarm has been sounded..."

"The First had made his decision," Marta told him matter of factly.

"I know, but..."

"Ninth Circle! This is not up for debate! You will fall in line or you will face the consequences!"

There was a withering silence. Doe stuffed the papers back into the bag and handed it back to Llenlleawg. "Alright then," he said softly.

"Darkness?" They were all waiting for him at the mouth of the alley.

He narrowed his eyes at the black shape of the tower above their heads. Setting his jaw, he reached over his shoulder and yanked out his sword. It gleamed as he swung it through the air and held it, point-down, towards the ground.

"Let's go."

They didn't get far. As the seven figures left the alley and entered the street, screeching tyres and blaring sirens met them. The Slayers immediately adopted fighting stances, but Darkness shook his head and threw his sword to the ground as police officers surrounded them. They were demonstrably outgunned.

"What now?" Jack asked.

"Gaol, I would imagine."

"I was afraid you'd say that."

* * *

Stern was a reasonable woman. Unlike Darkness, who constantly flouted her rulings and made it his business to be a thorn in her side, Kermit had a little leeway in which to bargain. It was for this reason, with suitable reassurances of his hasty return and insistence that this was just something he had to deal with, that he had been allowed to opt out of his TCW duties. It was amusing, he reflected as he walked through the corridors of his building, that it was so easy to get what you wanted if you just played by the rules every now and again. Compromise on at least every third issue, and you could do what you want for the two remaining ones. Life, like business and crime, was easy if you knew the game well enough.

He tapped in a code on the number-pad affixed to the security door and then pressed his thumb against the sensor. Kermit found the science-fiction trimmings rather silly, but it had already paid for itself and the contract with S-Mart to obtain the technology had a number of fringe benefits.

The room behind the door lived up to the security measures. Men in white coats bustled around aluminium tables, doing important and complicated things he didn't pretend to understand. Computer readouts sat side-by-side with petri dishes containing organic samples he really didn't feel like investigating too closely.

Doctor Honeydew strode towards him, a hand extended. "Thanks for coming so quickly..."

"Are you kidding? Darkness breaks into my home and I'm going to stay in Brazil? You know me better than that."

Honeydew didn't return his smirk, and the scientist looked tired. It had been less than twenty-four hours since the break-in, but it didn't look like Honeydew had slept at all. Kermit too had been awake the whole time, but he had found the entire crisis revitalising. As furious as he was about Darkness and his goons breaking in and molesting Janice, the promise of an actual specimen more than balanced it out.

He was beckoned over to a monitor, showing a grainy black and white image. In an otherwise empty cell, he could make out a small, pale girl, sitting with her knees drawn up in front of her.

"What's with the shitty camera, doc?"

"She destroyed the good one."

"Destroyed it? How? Did you put it on a desk in front of her?"

"No," Honeydew pointed, "it was up on the wall there."

"So how'd she get to it?"

"She climbed."

"On what?"

"On the wall."

Kermit scratched his nose. "Come again?"

"She just...climbed up..."

"On the wall? Like Spiderman?"

"Exactly."

Kermit shook his head and then squinted at the poor quality image. "And she was found with Darkness?"

"That's right."

"How old is she?"

"I would estimate about sixteen. I'm not exactly an expert."

Kermit curled his lip. "A little young for a man like Darkness. Not that I'd put that kind of thing past him." He frowned at the strange girl. "She doesn't look like a vampire..."

"Well, she is. I mean, I've never seen another one. She meets all the criteria in your reports and the reports from other witnesses."

"The ones I saw looked like walking corpses."

"Well, she is very pale. She could be...um...a recent corpse...?"

It was clear that Honeydew, whose scientific credentials were above reproach, was having trouble articulating the evidence in front of him. It was like a different language to the man, and he was only just coming to grips with the vocabulary.

"Does she have, you know, fangs?" Kermit waggled his fingers in front of his mouth.

"Yes. Long, sharp teeth. But they don't match human canine patterns. All her teeth are pointed."

"Well, this isn't the movies, doc."

"No? It's starting to feel like it...."

Kermit laughed as he straightened. He slapped Honeydew on the back. "This is a great day, Doctor. The greatest scientific find in the history of mankind."

"Funny, it doesn't feel like I just cured cancer."

"You've taken the first step to curing a different kind of cancer, Doctor Honeydew," Kermit said, his face becoming serious, "a cancer that feeds on humanity and destroys it from within."

Honeydew adjusted his glasses. "I'll take your word for it, Gambono."

Kermit turned back to the monitor. The girl was looking around now, and she seemed to be fidgeting. "Is she alright?"

"She's showing signs of some kind of withdrawal."

"I'll bet..."

"There was an agent in her system."

The mobster cocked an eyebrow. "Agent?"

"Yes. Some kind of chemical substance throughout her bloodstream. We thought it prudent to remove it. Would you like to see?"

"See what?"

"The agent." Honeydew leant across the metal surface of the desk and lifted up a test tube full of a black fluid.

"What is it?" Kermit asked, squinting at the foul-looking substance.

"Nothing we can identify. It looks like blood, but it's not like any blood I've ever seen. We found plasma, platelets, cells that would have been red- and white- if not for the fact that they were...well...black..."

"It must be some kind of drug. A substitute for real blood that Darkness was using to control her."

"That's what we thought."

"So now," Kermit continued, turning to the monitor, "she wants blood again..."

"Presumably."

"Well maybe we ought to give her some?"

"We tried that. She showed no interest in it."

"What did you do? Give it her in a bowl?"

"Well, a cup..."

Kermit folded his arms and placed one long index finger against the small cleft in his chin. "Somehow, I doubt it's as simple as just drinking blood for these creatures."

"So what do you suggest?"

"A living victim."

Honeydew moistened his lips with his tongue. The laboratory had fallen silent. "Mr. Gambono...I don't think..."

"You don't have to think, Doctor Honeydew. As I said - I won't place you in a position where you have to potentially breach your ethics."

"So you won't..." he cleared his throat, "...feed anyone to her?"

"Oh, I'll do what I think is best, Doctor - but I won't make you decide. You go home, alright? Spend a couple of days with your family. We'll take it from here."

The doctor's shoulders slumped, but Kermit was already walking towards the door.

* * *

The police station's cells were strangely empty. It meant that each of the Slayers got their own private room, though the accommodations were otherwise not exactly five star.

"So, are we going to break out of here?" Jack was leaning nonchalantly against the bars of his cell, his hands hanging outside.

Darkness was imprisoned in the cell opposite, and he sat on the hard cot, his legs crossed beneath him. "We're not breaking out, Jack."

"What? You want this to come to trial?"

"No. But I expect someone will post bail for us."

"Yeah, maybe if you had your cell phone," Doe called from the cell next door, "you could look up that Freya chick's number and we could use our one phone call to get in touch."

"She's in Brazil," Llenlleawg pointed out, "I don't think she could help us."

"Stern won't let me go to prison," Darkness said.

"Or we could avoid this whole issue, and I could use the explosives I always keep about my person to just escape," Jack said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"You carry explosives?"

"Whenever I go on a mission with you, I always assume I'll have to bust someone out of gaol. I consider it a Darkness trademark."

"If we break out, questions are going to be asked..."

"Yeah, well, what do you care about questions? You're the First of the Shadow Slayers: you live in secrecy and your home is the night. You know how it goes."

"Jack," Marta hissed from down the corridor, "now is not the time."

"Sure it is. He's a captive audience, right?"

"You know my decision on this matter, Jack," Darkness said sternly.

"Doesn't mean I have to agree with it."

"Yes it does, Jack," Marta told him, "he's the First."

"Will you all shut up," Llenlleawg snapped, "I think I hear someone coming."

There were voices down the hall, beyond the barred door that separated them from the rest of the station. They all strained their ears to hear in the silence.

"Commissioner...found...looks like...weapons..."

"Commissioner?" Llenlleawg asked, shooting Darkness a look, "You think it's Stern?"

"More likely a police commissioner," he replied. He was at the bars of his cell now, his head cocked to one side.

"Shadow... ...ers...."

Marta's eyes went wide. "I think we're in trouble..."

"We're already in trouble," Doe pointed out.

"Quiet," Darkness told them firmly. "And tell me if you Sense what I do."

All the Slayers except Llenlleawg snapped their eyes shut and tilted their heads, concentrating on the cluster of signals just beyond their sight.

"You feel that?" Darkness asked.

"That's a vampire," Jack answered.

"Right."

"What's a vampire doing helping the police?" Llenlleawg asked.

"I have no idea, but I think it's time you got out your explosives, Jack."

"Right you are." He leant against the wall of his cell and lifted up his right boot, sliding a narrow object from his heel.

"That's an explosive?"

"Sure. Only a little one though." He attached it to the lock on his cell and took a few steps back. There was a low concussive noise, and the mechanism fell to the floor. "See?"

"Have you got enough for the rest of us?"

"Enough for you and Marta. I figure we go out there, do what we have to do and the find the keys for the rest."

"We can't kill any police officers..."

"Of course not. Hopefully when we explode their vampire friend though, they won't be in the mood to fight."

"Works for me."

* * *

No one liked the new commissioner of the Chicago PD. He was as unpleasant to talk to as he was to look at, and his eyes unnerved everyone. He smoked almost constantly, and no one ever had the guts to tell him he wasn't allowed to do that anymore. It certainly explained his hoarse, rasping voice though.

"You found them outside Henson Towers?"

"Yes Commissioner. We found them standing right there in the open. Looks like they were ready for a fight - they had weapons."

"Weapons? What kind of weapons?"

The police officer gestured to the veritable arsenal sitting on a nearby desk, all wrapped up in plastic evidence bags. There were guns, swords, knives, grenades, some kind of wrist-mounted flechette launchers and, most alarmingly of all, a crossbow.

The commissioner approached them and ran one of his pale, withered hands across them. His eyes alighted on the crossbow in particular.

"These are Shadow Slayer weapons..."

"Shadow Slayer? What the hell does that mean?" The cops in the room looked bewildered.

"This crossbow, did it belong to a woman with one eye?"

"That's right...hey, how did you know that?"

"And this rapier. It was with a man with a long braid, correct?"

"Uh huh..." The officer was impressed. This guy was like a regular Sherlock Holmes. He hoped he was going to explain how he knew all this.

The commissioner pushed some bags aside and then he jumped back. He crouched down, clawing at the floor like an animal, his teeth bared. For the first time, the police officers noticed something very odd about his teeth.

"Those guns - who had them?"

"Uh, a guy. He seemed to be their leader."

"Did he wear face paint?"

"Actually, he did, yeah."

The commissioner was backing towards the corner now, his white hands clawing at his trench coat. He looked like he wanted to hide, or run away as fast as possible.

"Commissioner Berriozar? Are you alright, sir?"

Suddenly, the door to the office exploded outwards, and everyone ducked for cover. There was the sound of a scuffle and a high-pitched, bestial scream. The cops reached for their guns. The officer who had spoken with the commissioner was the first to his feet and he levelled his pistol at the three prisoners who were standing over...

Well, nothing...just a pile of burning ashes...

The officer stared at the two men and one woman. The man with the long braid smiled. "Can we have your keys?"

"What happened to the commissioner?" the cop gaped.

"He..." the man waved a hand, "...I don't know, think of your own damn quip. Give me your keys."

* * *

It was much later. The moon had risen. The Shadow Slayers stood on a rooftop overlooking the city. Henson Tower dominated the nearby skyline.

"The rot in this town runs deep," Darkness said softly.

"If they've bought the police force," Marta said, "they probably control everything. It explains the weird feelings we've been getting."

"Whatever's happening, Kermit has Revenant. We can't let him..." he grimaced, "...experiment on her."

"So what do we do?"

Jack stepped up. "We could mobilise the entire Order. Bring down the Black Fury on that building."

Darkness shook his head. "That would risk open war between us and the Ordo Draco. Do you want this conflict to leave the shadows?"

"I like it better than the alternative."

"Well I don't. Not yet anyway. Besides, I'm not pulling out any more Slayers from the front lines. It's too dangerous."

"So what do we do?" Marta repeated.

"Getting Revenant back is the most important thing right now. If Kermit probes any deeper, he's going to give them exactly what they want by involving the legitimate authorities. We'll have World War Three on our hands."

"What are you suggesting?"

"We seek help."

"From who? Vindicators? Your wrestling friends?"

"No. From the creatures running this city..."

There was a thunderous silence. "Darkness..." Marta said, "you can't mean..."

"They don't want Revenant in Kermit's hands any more than we do. Dragon went to the trouble of attacking him. Right now, we both want the same things."

"But it goes against everything..."

"Marta," Darkness said, his voice firm, "I am the First, and you will obey my commands. The decision is made: we will offer the vampires an alliance in order to save Revenant."

I have no doubt that what I am doing is right. It is for the best. Sure, a few people will die along the way, but that's the price of progress. I think of the countless people in this world who will get to live based solely on my work, and that soothes my mind. Each vampire that dies, each demon banished, each vile and evil creature that I remove from this world, will in turn prevent the deaths they will undoubtedly cause. And when you add in the medical leaps that such efforts will produce, how can you cast blame on me for allowing a few casualties along the way? With the hundreds, thousands, no, MILLIONS, of lives I CAN SAVE, how can my actions not be right?

I know I am good.

I am good.


------------------------------------------



"And just exactly what am I going to do in the meantime officer? This man broke into my office and harmed several people under my employment, and all based on a simple match in a wrestling federation I remind you. With this kind of obsession, you can imagine my concern."

Kermit was trying his best to stay calm on the phone, but found it hard. The lowly police officer on the other end had called out of protocol to inform him of Darkness and companies little prison break, and Kermit was undoubtedly upset with the news. He knew Darkness would come looking for his little girl, and Kermit was not nearly ready for the attack.

Mr. Gambono, I can assure you that we will be providing appropriate police protection of Henson Towers until this individual and his companions are back in police custody. And Sir, they will be apprehended again. We got them once, we will get them again.

"And if he flees the country?"

We have O'Hare and Midway under watch Sir. Should they try to run, they will not get far.

"Well thank you officer, you have certainly calmed my fears." Kermit lied as he hung up the phone.

He leaned forward on his desk and rubbed his temples. Darkness would come, and he would certainly figure out where Revenant was being held. Any despite the regard he showed in his last break in, Kermit doubted Darkness would show any of the same in the forthcoming assault. In fact, Kermit knew it. Holding a hostage causes people to act in more violent ways, this he knew all too well. His intercom buzzed.

"Mr. Gambono?"

"Yes." Kermit responded with a lazy voice.

"A man is here to see you."

"Does he have an appointment?"

"No sir, but he says the matter is urgent and involves Las Vegas?"

Kermit was alert in an instant. He pulled his Glock 9mm for its holster under his desk.

"His name?" Asked Kermit, as he checked his rounds.

"Paul sir."

Sounded too much like Raul for Kermit's liking. And even with the fact that Kermit watched the wretched demon burn before his eyes, there are never any guarantees in life. Convinced his weapon was locked and loaded, he responded.

"Send him in."

Kermit kept the gun on his lap under the desk, but it stayed up and a firing position. A blonde haired man, mid twenties, entered his office with a grin on his face.

"Thank you Ms. Sue." Kermit said warmly, as she closed the door. He turned his attention back to Paul and his tone became harsh as he directed the young man to the chair sitting before his desk. "Sit."

The young man did as instructed, never losing the smile from his face.

"So tell me Paul, what is so urgent?"

"Well Kermit, I can call you Kermit right?" his accent was strange, almost, European.

"Mr. Gambono works for now." The mob boss answered coldly.

"Okay, Mr. Gambono it is. Well, hey, I can talk freely here right? Like no recordings or hidden cameras?"

"Would such things bother you?"

"Sadly, yes. You see Mr. Gambono, I come with information that is very sensitive and as such, would like it to stay just between us ya know?"

"You are free to talk." Kermit lied, trying to move this conversation along.

Paul eyed Kermit with suspicion, the grin on his face fading. After a few slow moments, he simply nodded.

"Doesn't really matter come to think of it. After we chat, I am sure you will want to keep such things to yourself anyway."

"And these things are?"

"Well first, please don't point a gun at me; I am not here to harm you in anyway."

Kermit was no doubt shocked, yet retained his composure.

"What is your purpose here Paul?" Kermit purposefully avoided any confirmation to Paul's request.

"I could spin a yawn about that broad topic for ages, but I am sure you mean right now. My business is the same as yours." A serious look crossed Paul's face as he leaned in towards Kermit. "Revenge."

"Against me?"

"No no no. We both want revenge against the same force. The force that stole your Janice from you, that manipulated you, the very same group that you are now trying desperately to fight against. Of course, in the more common vernacular, they are called The Abyss. Vampires serve it, Demons worship it, and it just an all around bad group. And I will give you a pro tip, they are not too happy with you. Sending Dragon your way is a dead giveaway."

Kermit slowly took his finger off the trigger as Paul leaned back in his chair.

"You've earned a part of my precious time. So, you know a bit about me, good. Why exactly are you here? That I am a little fuzzy on."

"Like I said, we both want revenge. Now I am no fighter, I gave that up a long time ago. Same for my sister. But both her and I have a score to settle, and figured you would be inclined to help us with that."

"Nothing comes free Paul. And if you and your sister aren't going to fight, then why should I help?"

The warm smile returned to Paul's face.

"Because we are going to help you. In fact, I have set the gears in motion, so to speak. This is going to be a long chat by the way. May I please call you Kermit? Mr. Gambono seems too formal."

Kermit nodded.

"Great! Well here is what I am offering. Information for one. Jason Dante told you little, Freya told you less, and Darkness told you nothing at all, so let us face it Kermit, you are behind the power curve. While you are taking some interesting steps in the right direction, I can tell you what those folks either did not, or would not. And secondly, you are not the only person with vengeance in his heart out there. There are plenty of other people just chomping at the bit for a piece of the revenge pie. My sister and I will guide them to you should you wish."

Kermit was naturally suspicious. An unknown man walks into his office giving him nearly everything he wanted? Way too good to be true.

"You do not trust me do you Kermit?"

"Honestly? No, I don't. Would you in my position?"

Paul laughed

"Well, no I would not. You have been played before by the Abyss, and you are not a man you takes things at face value. But trust will develop overtime. Besides, I am not asking anything of you in return."

"You want my help."

"And that will come in time. Consider these gifts as a way for me to prove my trustworthiness. And no, I am not going to take your soul, or trap you in some kind of Devil's bargain here. At a bare minimum, just you fighting the Abyss helps Tess and me."

"Tess? Your sister I take it."

"Yup. But back on topic, trust. I can give you some insider information right now if you want. Ask me some questions and I will answer. Then you can decide if you want to go further. Deal?"

"Sounds fair enough."

Kermit thought for a moment as to what he could ask. And since he had a wide load of questions, he decided to stick to the most current issues.

"Who is the girl?"

"You mean the one you have in your lab and are studying like a simple beast?"

Kermit's eyes narrowed at not only Paul's implication, but that he also knew about her.

"Yes, her."

"For starters, she calls herself Revenant and she is a Dhampyr."

"Wait, a what? She's appears to be a vampire."

"Well that is because she has such qualities. A Dhampyr is half vampire, half human. The fact that you have her in a cell is really a great achievement, you should be proud. Vampires have been trying to wrangle her up for almost a year now."

"Half...human?" Kermit mused out loud. "That would explain why she doesn't look like other vampires."

"And it also explains why she is with Darkness." Paul continued, connecting the dots for Kermit.

Kermit eyes lit up.

"Yes, Darkness. Tell me everything about him."

Paul frowned and put up his hands in a surrendering gesture.

"No can do Kermit."

"Remember when we were talking about trust Paul? This isn't helping."

"Look, it is not because I do not want to, believe me. Darkness is....well....strange."

"Uh-huh..." Kermit said not entirely convinced.

"My sister and I have access to a lot of knowledge, oodles of it. But every now and then we come across people who for seem reason are like a locked safe to us. Darkness is one of those people. And trust me when I say this Kermit, Tess and I have been trying for years to find out more about this guy. We've learned some things, but we've run into a lot of brick walls along the way."

"So what can you tell me about him?"

"Very little, but he is not your concern at this moment. Darkness is not your enemy Kermit. Well, he is in a manner of speaking, but not like the Abyss. They are the big bads around here not him."

"Sounds likes you're dodging the question Paul. Again, not helping the trust level."

Paul sighed as he sat back down.

"Well, I am sorry for that, but you have bigger concerns and my time is limited."

"Fine. Revenant, more about her then."

The smile returned to Paul's face.

"Her, I know more about. Okay, so I told you she is half vampire, half human. Well, thing is this has never happened before. So vampires around this green and blue world view her as some kind of Messiah."

"So she's a vampire Jesus? Hard to buy Paul."

The golden haired man simply nodded with a smile.

"You are, however, not a vampire Kermit. The very fact that she is here is the validation of some prophecy in their culture."

"So what do you want me to do with her then Paul?" Kermit asked, trying to gage any other motives this man had.

"Not for me to decide. Darkness will no doubt come for her, and if the vampires around here know you have her, they will come as well. Yet, I doubt you want to just release her given how unique she is. So really, you have to make that call, not me. I am just here to give you information."

"And men. You mentioned others."

"If you want them, I will guide them your way. But I do have one condition with regards to them however."

Kermit smiled ruefully.

"Figured the other shoe would drop at some point. What is this condition?"

"Only use them against the Abyss, not for your own "business" ventures. That's all I ask."

Kermit considered the request and found it quite reasonable.

"Okay, I can agree to that."

"Excellent!" Paul stood up again, face spilt with a wide smile. "Well, I had better get started on that I guess so..."

"Hang on a second chief." Kermit stood in return, holding out his hand. "I still have many more questions."

"I do not have a lot of time Kermit."

"How long can you give me?" Kermit asked, a warm smile on his face.

Paul glanced at his watch, out the large office windows, and back at Kermit.

"Hour tops."

"Then sit and talk for an hour." Kermit directed his hand towards the empty chair.

Two hours later, after Paul had left despite Kermit's attempts to keep him there, the mobster had begun to realize how deep this rabbit hole really was.

He could see no end.


-------------------------------------------


The employees of Henson Technologies had never seen so much security at their building before. Nearly every hallway, door, and even bathroom, had at least one armed man standing there. A mass inter office email had been sent out telling the employees that the increase in security is due to a visiting French military official coming to inspect the weapons development on Level 3. Most chatted about the suddenness of the visit in the lunchroom, each speculating as to the short notice. Nearly everyone except those in higher positions had no knowledge of their CEO's "other" activities, both illegal and supernatural, so such gossip ran the spectrum of normal business chatter. A second email was sent out from the big man himself a few hours later that not only poured praise onto the employees, but also gave them the rest of the day off along with Friday following. A reward it was called, for their excellent work that allowed such a visit to take place. And, as the minds of office drones and research monkeys are easy to distract, a paid three and half day weekend erased all talk as to the reason for the visit.

Of course there was no French official coming, however Kermit found it funny himself to refer to Darkness as a Frenchman. And Kermit was not one to give paid days off out of the blue, it hurt business after all. No, this gift was purely self serving. Having Henson Tech cleared of all employees, minus the small staff on Level 3 and the plethora of security, meant less damage to mop up when Darkness came. He had tried to cover all bases to prepare for the assault he knew was on its way. Radio checks every five minutes, security cameras rewired to use back-up power systems in case of power outage, and all his men were equipped like riot police. Orders were made very clear; Capture and contain, kill if last resort. But under no circumstances were any of them to reach Level 3.

And Level 3 was where Kermit currently was as night approached.

"Any change?" he asked the young man who had taken over during Dr. Honeydews brief break from research.

"Nothing of note."

Kermit turned and pointed to two of his own men in the room. With a quick gesture, he beckoned them to follow him. The three men walked to the door of Revenant's cell.

"Scooter!" Kermit barked at Honeydew's assistant, who ran over almost tripping over his own legs.

"Yes?"

"Keep watch on the monitors. Call out if she makes any aggressive action towards me."

The young man with thinning hair was aghast.

"You're....going in there? With THAT?"

"Yes." Kermit turned his attention to the two armed men standing next to him. "If he calls out an attack, enter and secure. Understood?"

Both men nodded in response.

"Unlock the door if you would be so kind Scooter."

The man was still shocked at the notion of somebody entering a room with, what he considered at least, to be a deadly creature.

"Scooter, wake up!"

"Huh? Right, open the door. Okay." And he ran off to input the coded command into one of the many computers occupying the room. A few clicks and the heavy sound of metal scrapping signaled that the door was unlocked.

"Uh...sir? She noticed that and has moved."

"Is she by the door?"

"No, she's on the other side, but she is focused on the door right now and in a crouched position."

Kermit said nothing. Instead, he opened the door and entered. Once inside, he closed the door and locked eyes with the girl. For several seemingly endless moments, Kermit and Revenant eyed each other, each trying to gather what the other would do. Kermit broke the silence himself.

"Please." He said with a cool voice. "Sit. We need to talk."

Revenant made no movement; she just kept staring at him.

"Suit yourself." Kermit made his way towards the table and chairs in the cell. "I feel I should warn you against doing anything foolish. It could be very bad for your continued existence."

He sat down and made an effort to appear relaxed and calm. Best not to show her he was the slightest bit concerned about being alone in a room with a half vampire. While the information as to what she is, if Paul could even be trusted, made it easier for Kermit, he still understood what she was capable of. He was naturally on guard should she try anything.

"Let's lay the cards on the table shall we? No games, no lies, just plain hard facts. Fact one. I know what you are Revenant and how important you are because of this. So that changes what I was planning for you a great deal, and for that, you should be very thankful."

She giggled slightly at the last remark, as if mocking his veiled threat. Kermit let it fly without retort, and continued.

"But that still leaves you in a very difficult position. What exactly am I supposed to do with you now?"

"It had better be something. I am bored locked away here all by myself."

"I bet." He said dryly "And yes, I have a few something's in mind."

"All men like you do." She smiled

"Like Darkness?"

Her glare was enough to him that the comment touched a nerve, but she said nothing.

"So Revenant, I think you should be the one to decide. A few options present themselves to me. First and he leaned in close to add extra effect "I could have you dissected and examined completely to find out exactly how you tick so to speak."

Revenant yawned off the threat.

"No? Okay, option two. I open that door and let you walk out on your own. With Darkness and pals in jail, I have to wonder just exactly how far you will get by yourself."

"Been there, done that."

"I am sure. Like I said, it is an option available to you. I wonder if any of your kind are out there right now hoping I do just that. Then, we have option three. You broke into my building and yes, I have proof. So I could always do the law abiding thing and turn you over to the police."

"Oooo...the police....boy I am scared now."

Kermit's features grew darker.

"You should be. Face it kiddo, you are a non person. You have no legal name, no social, no birth certificate; you are just some unknown little girl. Even if your friends beat the charges against them, you will not be let out to walk the streets. You will be placed into a foster home of some sort, and when I drop a little tip to contacts I have that Darkness will try to "kidnap you", you will be watched like a hawk. And even if Darkness freed you, he would become a severely wanted man. Taking a minor over state lines, well kid, that's a federal offense. You can see how this would snowball when we factor in international borders. So that's option three."

"Still not impressed."

"Then we have option four." Kermit continued, ignoring remark "You and I talk about a few things. When we are done, I let you go. I will also drop all charges against your friends. You all can leave Chicago free and clear. So, four choices, and I leave it up to you which one happens."

"And what if I don't like any of the options?"

"Well, then I pick. And I just can't stop wondering how much my boys can learn about your kind when they having you lying on a table with your insides in little jars."

"How can I even trust a man like you huh?"

"All I can give you is my word."

"Not good enough."

"Best I can do kiddo. Again, if you don't like it, I can always make the choice for you."

"What do you want to talk about then?"

Kermit smiled inside.

"I want to know why you people broke in, who and why Dragon assaulted me, and basically, everything Darkness knows about the goings on in this wacky place we call Earth."

"Everything?" Revenant laughed. "You got a few months?"

Kermit found no humor in such a request.

"I want the Cliff Notes version." He said calmly. "That's it. So, do we have a deal?"

Revenant was quite as she considered the options presented.

"Take your time kid. Knock on the door when you have decided."

Kermit got up and before opening the door, he turned back to Revenant.

"And one more thing. Since I am not that sure what exactly it is you eat, I will be sending a man up with some food. Eat it, or the waiter. Again, your pick."

And he left, closing the door behind him. After waiting for the tell tale clicks of the lock, he turned to one of the security personal standing next to him.

"Did you acquire a bum like I asked?"

"Yes sir, he is downstairs in the customer room."

"Get him and something from the cafeteria. Give him the food and send him in there."

"What should he bring?"

"Does it look like I really care? Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches or Lobster makes no difference to me."

"Yes sir." And the man went off to complete the assignment.

Kermit went over to where Scooter, who was fully engrossed by the monitor readings, was seated.

"I will be in the security office. Notify me of any changes or if she makes up her mind."

"Huh? Oh yes Sir."

"And make sure the samples we got from her are properly secured and spilt."

"Already done."

Kermit left feeling confident that he was in control of the situation. Darkness would need one hell of an army to get in here, an army the champion didn't have.


--------------------------------


So I do what I hate doing. I wait. Either for Darkness to show up or for Revenant to make her choice. I just hope she doesn't take her sweet ass time with it. Hard to negotiate with somebody when their hero is knocking on the door. Either way, I had the strange feeling that before the night was over, somebody would be bleeding. Either Revenant dead and examined, Darkness from bullet wounds, or me should all my security fail.

No matter what the outcome, I know that good will prevail.



And I am good.

The creature recoiled, backing away into the shadows. Instinctively, it had adopted a crouched, predatory stance, serrated teeth bared in its rotten mouth. "How did you find us?" it screeched. Incapable of subtle emotions like shock or surprise, it instead substituted simple volume.

"I'm the First of the Shadow Slayers," Darkness growled, "finding things like you is my job."

"Funny," another rasping voice said from the opposite side of the dingy room, "I thought cavorting around on television was your job."

There were maybe three-dozen vampires occupying the dilapidated townhouse in Chicago's Southwest side. Like all their kind, they seemed to destroy everything they came into contact with - that, or they had intentionally selected a lair that was crumbling into dust around them. The vampires in Chicago were spread much more thinly than the ones that had occupied Las Vegas last year, but once the Slayers knew what they were looking for, they found the heart of the infection soon enough.

These vampires were Ordo Draco, but they were clearly a lesser branch of Dragon's powerful army. What armour they had was a few broken pieces shared amongst the more powerful members of the Hive, and they lacked any sense of unity or discipline. All that marked them out as anything more than a leaderless horde was the tattoos or brands of sinuous serpents they all bore across their desiccated chests.

"I need to talk to you."

Darkness had come alone. While his followers had realised their duty and fallen into line, he could tell by their hard expressions that they wanted no more to do with this abhorrent deal than they had to. Darkness hardly felt any better about it.

"The First of the Shadow Slayers wants to talk?"

"Is there a Lord here who will speak for this Hive?"

"Berriozar was our Lord..." one skulking thing whined from a corner.

"Berriozar's dead," Darkness snapped, "so do whatever it is you do to figure out who controls you now and point him out."

One of the larger vampires, adorned in mismatched pieces of Ordo Draco armour prowled out of the shadows. Unlike his fellows, he gave off a genuine aura of menace, though he was a pale shadow of some of the creatures Darkness had fought in the past. The Ordo Draco was numerous, he realised, but their power had been spread thinly by this attempt at large-scale infiltration. Dragon was overreaching himself.

"I lead this Hive," it snarled.

"Fine. I'm here to offer you an alliance."

The vampire missed a step and then hunched down, padding backwards. He could feel the tension in the decaying room. "What is this? A trick?"

"No tricks. We both want the same thing."

It tilted its head. "Since when?"

"Since Kermit kidnapped the dhampyr."

The new Vampire Lord's pinprick eyes goggled at Darkness. There was an odd hum in the air, and Darkness realised it was frantic telepathic chattering between the members of the Hive.

"Do you have the authority to treat with me?" Darkness asked him.

"Of course...I...I am the Lord..."

Darkness narrowed his eyes. "You can tell Dragon that he can show up with as many vampires as he wants to try and kill me, but that won't get him what he wants. If the vampires could take Henson Tower alone, it would have been done by now. I know you control much of this city - that's why we need your help."

The Lord seemed to consider, one of his pale claws absently pawing at the dirty floorboards beneath him. "You can gain access to Kermit Gambono," it said after a few moments.

"Probably. If you can distract his security forces for long enough, then..."

"Kill him!"

Darkness paused. "If we kill Kermit for you..."

"The city will be ours!"

"But you'll help us take the building, yes?"

"Yes. Kill Gambono and free the dhampyr and we will help you."

"And what then?"

"Then...we will fight over the scraps, Nightwalker, yes?"

* * *

Kermit poured himself a generous measure of scotch and threw it down his throat in one fiery gulp. He was already pouring another before the burning fluid even settled in his stomach.

"I never want to see anything like that again," he said as he held the tumbler close to his face. He downed the second measure.

Janice watched him with dark-rimmed eyes from behind his desk. She was still drawn up in his chair, looking tiny and pale in the black leather embrace. "What happened?" she asked him in a voice that sounded even smaller than she looked.

"She chose the waiter," he grimaced.

"She's Darkness's friend, isn't she?"

"Something like that."

"I didn't think he would...I mean..."

Kermit eyeballed her. "I'd think you, of all people, would be more than ready to believe that man capable of anything."

Janice traced a finger across the mahogany surface of the desk. "So what did she do?"

"She bit him. Then he died."

"Did she drink his blood?"

He shook his head. There was already a third measure of whiskey in his glass. "No, his blood didn't seem to have much to do with it. Though, believe me, there was a lot of the stuff spread around. By the end, he was as drained as any of the other victims we've studied, but she didn't take any of it in."

"Why?"

Kermit hadn't told Janice about Paul yet. He didn't know if he wanted to. Whenever he looked at Janice, she reminded him of an earlier time in his life. He had to remember that he was a different man now: stronger, better.

"I don't know," he lied, "but we're going to find out."

"Will you kill her?"

"Don't you think she deserves to die? She just killed a man, and who knows how many more she's bitten in her time."

"I suppose."

His jaw tightened. Stronger, Kermit. Better.

"Darkness might try to attack again," he said, changing the subject. The third scotch was forgotten now, the glass placed on the counter next to the decanter.

"I saw more security arriving," Janice nodded, arching a finger at the bank of close-circuit-television screens on one wall. Just a few screens though. He wasn't Tony Montana yet.

"He won't get in this time. Not while I'm here."

"What if he brings friends?"

"What friends? This is Darkness we're talking about."

"Maybe Freya?" Janice suggested.

Kermit considered that as he folded his arms and watched his guards patrolling the corridors of the building. "Somehow, I think Freya is more likely to be on our side than his."

"Why do you say that?"

"I got the impression that their relationship was more than a little adversarial."

"They're still friends though. At least...I thought they were..."

"Freya's my friend too," Kermit smiled, "and I'm betting that Darkness isn't half the leader he likes to think he is. No, given the choice, I'd put money on his so-called allies switching sides if they were given the option. And that's what I'm doing, after all."

Janice watched him, but said nothing. He turned to her and smiled. It was only then that it occurred to him that she probably had no idea what he was talking about. He settled for widening his smile and crossing the room towards her, but now she was looking past him. His heart turned a somersault as he dashed to the desk, fearing she was having one of her strange turns again, but he could tell she was totally lucid when he got close. She pointed at the monitors again and he spun around in time to see them all go black at the same instant.

"What was it?" he asked her, still staring at the dead screens.

"Vampires," she whispered.

Paul's words came back to him. What was the term he used again? ‘Messiah'...that was it.

Kermit made the connection in that way that one does when half the brain is disabled by panic. What the hell would he do in their place, after all? If someone was threatening to dissect Christ, would he just wait in the shadows?

No, he'd bring an army.

* * *

Sparks from light fittings torn out by gnarled claws rained down across the corridor. The walls were smeared with blood.

"Darkness, this isn't right," Marta said grimly.

"I know."

"Is she worth this?" Doe asked, stooping down to check a downed guard's pulse but knowing from his pale face, drawn up into a rictus of agony and fear, that he would find nothing.

"Yes," Llenlleawg answered.

"If Kermit finds what he's looking for, he'll go public."

"You don't know that," Marta pointed out.

"Are you willing to risk this war on the honour of a Mafioso?"

"No, but I'm also not willing to risk this war by becoming no better than my enemies."

Darkness agreed with Marta. Every part of him was screaming out at him to put an end to this. There had to be another way. He was condemning men who had done nothing more than seek employment with the wrong organisation to death. It went against everything the Shadow Slayers had stood for for over a hundred and fifty years. A brutal war had been fought to learn that lesson.

No.

He would not back down. He would do whatever was necessary. He would become as stone if needs be. He had sacrificed so much already: a wife, a hand, a life - if it took his soul, if it took everything that made him human, then he would burn that too. There was no going back now. He had lost too much to turn around.

"I am the First," he said, "and you will obey my orders."

He walked down the corridor. Ahead of them, they could hear the sounds of fighting. Gunshots and screams - some human, some...not. The Shadow Slayers had provided the technology and know-how necessary to disable the building's security network a second time; now the vampires were dealing with the guards. The police wouldn't be coming either - the vampires had seen to that too. Barriozar had been just the tip of the iceberg where that was concerned, and Darkness hadn't been wrong when he said the vampires ran almost this whole city.

The building would fall. Then he would find Kermit and make him understand. And then he would save Revenant.

Revenant.

He was doing this for her. He was destroying himself for her. He would not lose another child, not even if he had to pluck the very moon from the sky to prevent it.

Not another one.

* * *

The heavy double-doors buckled on their hinges. They had only recently been repaired after the last intrusion. Janice cowered behind the desk as Kermit interposed himself between her and the attackers. He had a pistol in each hand.

The doors crashed open and half a dozen pale shapes leapt through the gap. They moved so fast that he didn't have time to take stock of the snarling figures. He just started pulling triggers, filling the air with enough burning lead to fell an elephant. Some of the intruders fell, screeching, but some kept coming, in defiance of all rationality.

He had seen this before though. He knew how powerful they were. The trick was not to lose your nerve. Keep shooting - don't stop to marvel at how they could be so tough.

One was up on the wall somehow. A big one, where some bits of armour that looked like the stuff he had seen the vampires in Las Vegas wearing. It crawled across the sheer surface as if it was the floor, stalking him. Kermit dispatched the last of the other vampires and turned to it, levelling one of his pistols.

Pull the trigger. Don't be afraid. That's all you have to do.

He squeezed.

Nothing happened.

Kermit looked down at his gun in disbelief. The magazine was empty. He tried the other one, but apparently that was out of ammunition too. Janice was on her feet. She hurled the letter opener, a sword that might have served a large rat well enough, at the vampire. With a dry thud, it entered the creature's face, puncturing its left eye. The letter opener was embedded right up to the hilt.

The thing smiled, showing its pointed teeth, and yanked it out of his eye socket, bringing the remains of his eyeball with it and casting both nonchalantly to the floor.

"I beat Dragon, you know," Kermit said, hoping that intimidation might work on these monsters.

"This time you don't have an airplane or any Vindicators though," the vampire grinned.

"But he does have me."

There was an explosion, and Kermit only realised a second later that it came from a gun. The vampire's torso exploded, and the whole creature collapsed into burning ash at his feet, rapidly cooling on the expensive carpet.

Darkness calmly stepped over the bodies of the other vampires in the doorway and holstered the pistol he had used.

"You picked a fine time to come to the rescue," Kermit snarled, "those things are all over my building."

"I know. I let them in."

Kermit pointed one of his guns at Darkness's face, then found himself looking down the barrel of the enormous weapon that had just dispatched the vampire.

"You're out of ammo, remember?" Darkness taunted.

Kermit let the gun drop slowly, and Darkness did likewise. "So what is this? You're working with them?"

"Only today."

"Why?"

"You made a mistake, Kermit. You took Revenant."

"No, you made the mistake - you and your goons were sloppy. You let yourselves get captured."

"Perhaps," Darkness conceded, "but I had to get her back, and so did they."

"She's a vampire."

"She's also a human."

"And how many humans died thanks to your friends here? I don't imagine the families of the guards will be very happy to know that they died because some psychopath with delusions of grandeur wanted his underage fuck buddy back."

Darkness nodded towards the smear on the floor that was all that remained of the vampires' leader. "I promised him I'd kill you, you know."

"I wouldn't want you to break your word."

"Oaths to things like him mean nothing. When you get your cameras working again, you'll see that Revenant's cell is empty. We got what we came here for."

"And now you're leaving, right?"

"Not quite. Almost every vampire in this city is holed up in this building. I told my followers to lock all the doors behind them. They're now stuck in here with me."

Kermit shook his head. "You're going to fight the creatures who just helped you save your friend?"

"Not fight. Exterminate. Big difference."

"So, you break into my home - again - kill my guards, unleash vampires on me and now you're going to stalk the corridors, making a mess? The least you could do is leave me a specimen to finish my experiments with."

"I'm giving you this city - that should be enough. Try to keep it clean in future."

Darkness yanked out his sword from the scabbard on his back and thrust it into the pile of carcasses at his feet. As the point penetrated the creatures' dead hearts, each of them turned to ash. With a nod, he turned away and left the office.

Kermit watched him leave. He was still holding the guns and, for a moment, he considered finding more bullets and going after Darkness to finish this once and for all. Instead, he just threw them across the room in a rage. The CCTV screens were flickering back into life now, and he could see the vampires prowling the corridors. He watched as Darkness tracked them, dispatching them one by one, leaving only ash in his wake.

This experiment had been a failure then. He had no specimen. He saw that Revenant was indeed gone from her cell, though the laboratory on level 3 - its security system separate from the rest of the building - had been left untouched by any vampires. His scientists looked to have been knocked unconscious. At least one sample drawer was left hanging open. He could guess which samples had been taken.

With a howl of fury, he slammed his fist into the desk.

"Kermit..."

"Not now, Janice." He was looking for the scotch he hadn't finished.

"No, Kermit. Look." She was pointing at something on the floor.

Kermit followed her gaze. On the carpet, next to the stain that had once been a being taller than he was, was the letter opener with the remains of an eyeball on it. As he picked it up, he saw that a good portion of dry flesh and bone had come with it too.

He smiled. It wasn't much, but it would be enough.