“That is a little strange,” Hunter concurred. “But hardly remarkable if she follows or studies mythology.”
“Until I took it to the next level. After Ligeia babbled on about the festivals, I mentioned that Flora would make for a great celebration. And Flora is a Roman goddess. She has no Greek counterpart.”
“So what?” Rachel mused. “She may have just been mixing up her mythology again.”
“But she claimed that the celebration, held here in Greece, for a Roman goddess, was beautiful.”
Hunter let out a breath. “Why would a Greek nation hold a celebration for a Roman deity? Of course she was lying.”
They all looked at each other for a moment.
“Okay…” Rachel said. “Do you think Serene realized that her talkative friend slipped?”
Shanna shrugged. “I’m not sure. She was acting a little…agitated. And she seems to be quite astute. But she may have missed that part.”
“Or she didn’t think any of us would know the fine differences between the two cultures’ mythologies in the end.” Rachel cocked her head. “Say, you’re like a whiz in mythology. Go you.”
“I couldn’t have put it better myself,” Natalia agreed, sending Shanna an amused look.
Hunter suddenly turned on his heel and marched over to a nearby table, where he laid down the scroll. “Well, I think a little translation is due then. They must have been covering something up that’s related in here. While the rest of you read up on singing demons that cause enough of a ruckus as to drive an entire town out of their homes, I’ll brush up on my Greek.”
“Alright,” Rachel sighed. “Let’s do this.”
Shanna stifled a yawn. “And if anyone feels like they’re about to nod off, get up and move around so you don’t fall asleep.”
“I can put some coffee on later, if you’d like,” Hunter offered.
“A little caffeine kick couldn’t hurt,” Rachel admitted. “You don’t happen to, you know…have a Cappuccino machine?”
“No, but there is a Starbucks in town. You could probably go make a cup yourself.”
Rachel smiled. “A Starbucks in town, huh? I’m feeling both a little disappointed that there’s a Starbucks out here, and a little relieved.”
“The familiar is comforting.”
“Mmm. How deep.” Rachel made a face, causing Shanna to laugh.
“Oh, my god,” Shanna breathed. “If I get the giggles from staying up late, just kill me.”
“Let’s just hope we aren’t doing this for weeks. I will be completely devastated if Valor comes and goes without seeing or hearing us.”
Shanna nodded slowly, mulling this over before she was roused out of her thoughts by the others as they settled in.
Quickly, they all found books and sat down with them at various desks, Hunter taking the table to set out several texts at once.
“So, how did you get to be such an egghead at mythology?” Rachel asked Shanna offhandedly as she flipped through the thick volume in her lap like a magazine, skimming briefly before moving on.
Shanna looked up. “Oh, I don’t know much…”
Rachel met her gaze and blinked.
“Well,” Shanna stammered. “I mean, I don’t really know how it came to me. I must have learned it in school and…I’m remembering.”
“Remembering that Flora doesn’t have a Greek counterpart?” Rachel shook her head in disbelief. “For some reason, it doesn’t seem to me that Serene and Ligeia are the only ones spouting bullshit.”
Shanna looked taken aback. “I really don’t remember. It must have been in school. I probably studied for hours with flashcards or something and my mind’s being jogged by…all of this Greek stuff.”
Rachel let out a breath. “Sorry. Don’t freak out or anything. I’m just a little crabby. I’m literally running on fumes here. All of that walking and exploring took a lot out of me.”
Softening, Shanna nodded and glanced over at Hunter and Natalia, both lost in their work. She cocked her head when she noticed Hunter’s hand moving up to touch something at the corner of the desk at one point. Curious, she stood up and walked over to him, staring down at the object with interest.
“What’s this?” she asked, touching the tape recorder gently.
Hunter looked up sharply and stared at the tape player himself. “It’s…it’s a riddle, I suppose.”
“How’s that?”
Hunter glanced up and opened his mouth to speak, but paused and instead stared at her for a long moment before standing up. “Can I show you something?”
Shanna’s eyes narrowed and she whispered “Diana?”
He shook his head. “No. It’s just that…well, you’re a demon hunter and I thought that perhaps you could tell me if you’ve heard of this demon or could maybe just make something out of it. I tape-recorded an interrogation a few years back with the demon before her host body’s appendix suddenly exploded and...well, I have it here since I’m always working with it. I’ve never been able to find anything significant in her words, but I feel like I’m merely missing something.”
“Sure, I’d be happy to help, but I haven’t really had that much contact with a wide variety of demons. I’m sure it’ll be a waste of time.”
“Humor me?”
“Of course.” She moved to follow him out of the room, and Natalia and Rachel immediately stood up to come with them.
“We’ll be right back,” Hunter insisted.
“Oh, come on,” Rachel prodded. “A little distraction goes a long way.”
Hunter hesitated.
“It’s okay,” Shanna said. “I want them to come. They may actually catch something that I wouldn’t. They’ve been doing this for a long time too, you know.”
Hunter shrugged and led them back to the table, shifting the tape recorder to the center. For some reason, Shanna felt a little nervous, like they were going to hold a séance or something. The air had a sort of anticipation about it. Like they were about to witness something extraordinary.
“It’s nothing special really,” Hunter assured them, as if reading her thoughts. “And it has nothing to do with what we’re experiencing here. I just…thought of it really. It was presumptuous for me to assume-”
“Jesus Christ,” Rachel sighed. “Just play the tape.”
Hunter pursed his lips and shifted his attention to Shanna. “Ready?”
Shanna nodded and he hit play.
Hunter: “You know who we are?”
Silence.
Hunter: “I said, do you know who we are?”
???: “Yes.”
Hunter: “Good. Then you know that you will tell us what you know whether you like it or not. Now, tell me, who are you?”
???: Laughter. “You know who I am.”
Hunter: “I’d like to hear it from you, if you don’t mind.”
???: “I am your worst nightmare. I am Rangda. I am your demon queen, Kiess. I am here to make you put your own gun to your head. Would that make you afraid?”
“Kiess?” Shanna whispered, shivering at the muffled, creepy quality of the tape.
“My last name,” Hunter explained.
Hunter: “You don’t have that kind of power here.”
Rangda: “Then why are you so fearful? I can feel you in my bones. You tremble.”
Hunter: “Why did you take this host?”
Rangda: Laughter. “Why, Kiess? Does she mean something to you?”
Hunter: “Why did you take this host?”
Rangda: “She wanted it. She wanted me inside her. You weren’t good enough when you were.” Laughter.
Hunter: “Leave her.”
Rangda: “I’m not finished yet.”
Hunter: “Then please, finish what you came for and be gone.”
Rangda: “She is weak. Why do you desire weak women? Do they make you feel strong?”
Hunter: “What is it that you w
ant?”
Rangda: “To speak, to breathe, to touch. Will you kiss me like you did yesterday? Come inside me once more?”
Hunter: “I didn’t know you were there.”
Rangda: “Don’t lie to me. You knew I was there. You felt me. You wanted me.”
Hunter: “What do you want?”
Rangda: “Who do you expect to hear this conversation, Kiess?”
Hunter: “Whoever wants to.”
Rangda: “Whoever wants to. Ha. I see you over and over and over and...oh.”
Hunter: “What? Do you wish to talk now?”
Rangda: “Hmmm. I wish you’d come inside me.”
Hunter: “I’m not going to.”
Rangda: “I am a seer, you are aware of that. I know what becomes and what comes undone. I see....mmmmm....you need to....hunt....you need to....ugh, it’s.....the stomach....I don’t know why I tell you. Maybe to....maybe to be listened to again. Do you trust me?”
Hunter: “What? No, I don’t trust you.”
Rangda: Laughter. “Not you.”
Hunter: “Does your stomach hurt? Why are you touching your stomach?”
Silence.
Hunter: “Who are you talking about? Who?”
Hunter pressed stop and looked up at Shanna hopefully.
Shanna shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say. She was your...”
“My girlfriend. But don’t worry about that. I just thought that you might have picked up a clue or something.”
“No, I...what happened after that?”
“After that? She wouldn’t answer me anymore. She hummed for a few minutes, then...then she made me put my gun to my head, like she said she would. Then she just slumped over, dead. Like I said, her host’s appendix burst.”
“That must have been awful.”
Rachel looked away. Natalia looked like she was considering something.
“I’m going to…I’ll be right back,” Hunter excused himself, quickly leaving the room.
The hunters awkwardly looked at one another for a moment.
“That was weird,” Rachel told Shanna. “Have you dealt with possession like that before? I guess I don’t know all that much about demon hunting.”
Shanna shrugged. “I…yeah, a few times. I like to hit my target. You can’t do that when the one you’re protecting is the only one around to hit.”
Rachel looked up at the door. “Do you think someone should…”
“Give him a few minutes to compose himself,” Natalia said.
Nodding, Rachel walked back over to her chair and sat down.
Shanna walked over to the table and ran a finger lightly over the tape recorder, a shiver running up her spine. It had been a pretty creepy encounter. She didn’t know how Hunter could stand listening to the recording over and over again, trying to make something out of the monster’s words. It seemed like he was inflicting needless pain unto himself. He probably harbored so much guilt over what had transpired…she could certainly relate to his not knowing a demon had taken over his girlfriend’s body, when just recently she had mistaken a shape-shifter for Cameron. She wondered how she would have coped had Cameron died, like Hunter’s girlfriend had. She closed her eyes, trying to banish the thought. Good think she would never have to find out.
She shifted her gaze to the side, at the papers that Hunter was working on, and smiled to herself at his progress. He’d barely been working for ten minutes and he was already pretty far in his translation. She touched the paper and read what she found at the top, a quote: “Lest for my daring Persephone the dread: From Hades should send up an awful monster’s grizzly head.”
And beneath that quote, she saw more…and she found herself enthralled by what she found there and read it aloud, drawing Natalia and Rachel closer to her with each word:
“Nora of Arta received a gift for her services at The Rock. A small vial that she wore about her neck. An accomplished, powerful sorceress, she grew overconfident in her abilities, and with her gift, vowed to rid the world of Persephone’s handmaidens. The blue liquid contained within the vial boasted the power to open doors to other realms, which Nora of Arta would use to banish the heinous creatures.”
The time came for her confrontation, but her bragging had forewarned the handmaidens, and the creature called Medusa was called forth from Hades and lay in wait. Rumors of the vial’s power had also reached their ears and the handmaidens plotted to steal the vial to open a doorway to their beloved Persephone in the Underworld.”
After a great chase, Nora of Arta pleaded with Apollo to whom she had served for so long to save her from her fate, but cunning Demeter had plotted accordingly, distracting her only hope for salvation at that most crucial moment. With but a glance at Medusa’s hideous face, Nora of Arta was turned to stone, a statue which the handmaidens mocked and spat upon. However, during their pursuit of Nora of Arta, the vial had been hidden from them. The handmaidens had been too quick to rid themselves of the threat and coincidentally, the lone soul who knew the location of the vial was forever lost to them. To this day, the key to their lady’s freedom yet eludes them.”
“Wow,” Rachel commented.
Natalia stared at Shanna as the girl looked up, slightly dazed.
Hunter stepped out of the shadows of the doorway then and crossed his arms over his chest. “Now this is an interesting development. Perhaps you could relate, Miss Hunt, how you were able to read that Greek scroll before I’d even begun translating it?”
Chapter Nineteen
Shanna touched the scroll softly, as if it would fall apart with much pressure. She stared wide-eyed at the Greek letters adorning the paper, the foreign words that came to her so easily as her eyes swept over them. She hadn’t even registered the fact that they hadn’t been English when she’d looked at them the first time. Suddenly, she felt a little sick at the realization, her heart pounding in her ears, bile rising in her throat.
She heard the words plainly, even though she knew they were being spoken in a foreign tongue. Another gift of hers. Her most useful gift.
“Shanna, what is going on?” Hunter demanded.
“Yeah,” Rachel was on her feet. “You’re starting to freak me out.”
“Did you have a vision?”
“Hey, wait….she doesn’t look so hot.”
“Shanna? Shan-”
***
“How can you stand this place?”
Shanna opened her eyes and was bombarded by bright yellow sunshine. She closed her eyes and groaned before attempting to open them again.
“God, still sleeping the day away? Some things never change.”
Bolting upright, Shanna’s eyes focused on the person sitting across from her on the bench. Shocking red-orange hair. Green, flirty eyes. “Kelly?”
Kelly raised an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah. Who else would it be?”
Shanna took in the train car, the scenery whipping past the window that was letting in that same suffocating sunlight as before. Everything in the train seemed to be tinted gold it was so bright.
“Obnoxious,” Kelly said.
“What?” Shanna looked at her uncertainly, pushing a stray strand of hair back behind her ear.
“Obnoxious is a better word for the sunlight. I’m trying to figure out if it’s symbolic of your over-enthusiasm for life or a metaphor for the good fight that you’re fighting here.”
“You read my mind.”
“Yeah. The dead don’t seem to be bogged down by the limitations of life so much.”
Shanna felt the smile fade from her face and the sunlight outside suddenly took a dip beneath the horizon, sending blue twilight racing over the scene, shadows over the train car. She saw a little flash of glitter on Kelly’s face and imagined for a moment those unseeing, glassy eyes that had stared up at her above a throat that had no longer been there.
“Your mood still turns on a dime too, I see,” Kelly
laughed. “You can be so serious sometimes.”
“There are plenty of things in this world that you have to take seriously.”
“Mmm. Like that night at Styx, you mean? When you were out slutting it up on the dance floor while I was having my life’s blood drained? Yeah, real responsible.”
Shanna’s mouth dropped open. “What? You can’t…I blamed myself for that night for so long, but…I couldn’t hunt all the time. I needed to blow off steam like everyone else so I would stay sharp.”
“At least that’s what you tell yourself so you can feel better about sleeping at night in a house full of new cozy replacement friends, or when you’re in Cameron’s big, strong arms. Did you ever think that it should be me who’s alive, enjoying life?”
“All the time,” Shanna murmured, a tear sliding down her cheek in spite of herself.
“Hmmm…You say it, but I don’t feel it. It’s only been a month and I barely cross your mind now. You’re over it, folded up the mourning clothes to make goo-goo eyes at your new crush.” Kelly paced for a moment before sitting down across from Shanna again. “Who was that girl that you were such a fan of in those comics of yours? The girl who became intangible?”
Shanna stared into Kelly’s face, studying it. “Kitty Pryde.”
“Kitty Pryde. Yes, that’s the one. You always said you wanted to be like her, an X-Man, fighting the good fight. You kind of do that now, don’t you? Except…it’s kind of interesting that your favorite fighter has such a passive power. I think you really took a liking to her because you like the idea of phasing, becoming a ghost.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve never been able to get close to anyone. Not me, not your aunt, and sure as hell not Cameron, as much as you half-heartedly attempt to find something in him to connect with. You like being alone. Face it, you wish that you could just spread those molecules apart and slip into the ground, phase right through to the heart of Earth, where no one can reach you, no one can touch you. Where poor Mommy and Daddy’s death won’t hurt your precious little heart again.”
“You’re being really harsh,” Shanna blinked away tears.
“Harsh like that bullshit fake sunlight you had coming in through the windows when I got here. Just another example of you overcompensating for your shortcomings.” She paused. “It should be me that’s alive. Not you.”