Dead and Horny Ch. 13

This wasn't likely to happen. Once Mike invited someone into the house, the protective geas let them come in whenever they chose, and Cyrus was absolutely on the forbidden list. The mage was plenty curious about the home, and though time was made for him to study it from the outside, Mike had no reason or desire to let him in.

Lily played Dreamscape telephone for Dana in the real world, speaking in Cyrus' voice whenever he asked questions. In this manner, Real Dana could absolutely hold a conversation with the sleeping mage. This not only allowed Dana to get some valuable information about trans-dimensional fields, but make the deception less obvious should Cyrus bring up the conversation later.

After almost an hour of back and forth, she felt the mage start to stir. In the Dreamscape, she had gotten bored and was digging through Cyrus' fridge for a beer of her own. Lily made sure to line up Dream Dana with Real Dana, and then sucked down the contents of Cyrus' beer before sauntering over to the fridge to grab a new one. She pulled one out of the fridge, opened it, took a quick swig, then dropped it on the floor.

Cyrus startled awake, practically jumping to his feet to see what had caused the noise. He held a wand in his right hand, the tip glowing hot.

"Shit, it's just beer," Lily told him, pulling down some paper towels. "No need to vaporize me over it."

"My apologies." He put the wand away and rubbed his face. "I've been a little on edge recently."

"You don't say?" Lily found a small grocery bag and tossed the glass shards into it.

"It's Order related," he told them, then turned to Dana. "I think something big is going down. I'm no longer on the inside and don't know the details, but the few times I've been in contact with them, they've been on high alert. I get the impression that maybe they're dealing with something they aren't equipped to handle."

"And you think you're important enough to be involved?" Lily tossed the glass pieces into the bag, not worried in the slightest about getting cut.

"Well, that's only part of it. You see, they asked me if I would be willing to go active again. Not for their sake, but my own." He scratched at his beard and frowned. "I get the impression that other retired operatives may have gone missing."

"And you think you're next?" Lily rolled her eyes and mopped up the rest of the mess. "We are rather full of ourselves today. So, what, are you going to ask if you can move into our home? Or perhaps into the vacant one next to us? Mike is in the process of buying it, you know." That home had belonged to a man named Murray, who had become possessed by an angel. He had died in a fight with Mike and the others, and the decision was made to just buy the property once it went on the market. It would mean one less neighbor snooping on them.

"No, I'm comfortable here. I'm not used to living in big spaces." Based on his apartment, that wasn't a lie. Aside from a kitchen and living room, the apartment only had a master bedroom and a bathroom with blue-striped wallpaper. "But it doesn't mean I'm not worried."

"Your wards looked fine on the way in." Lily had spotted most of them, but knew the man had others. If she had meant him actual harm, he probably would have answered the door with a fireball. "And the Rat Queen has this place under surveillance."

"Ah, yes. The mysterious Eulalie." Cyrus chuckled. "I spot rats sometimes, but assume it's for my personal benefit."

"She hasn't forgotten what you did for her, or the others." Lily stood and put a hand on her hip. "She's got her eyes on the place. If she saw something, she'd warn you herself."

"That's good to hear." Cyrus looked at Lily and Dana. "I don't suppose either of you want to stay for lunch? I know that neither of you need to eat, but..."

The mage suddenly looked very much like the old, lonely man he was. His eyes darted back and forth at the two of them, hoping to see a sign of interest. Lily had seen this plenty of times in men like him. A lifetime of devotion had given him nothing more than a sense of accomplishment and no family to share it with.

"No, there's some stuff I want to check out in the observatory now, see if your theory about dimensional threading is correct." Dana made her way to the door. "I'll be in touch with what I find out."

"I'm eager to hear it." By the time he turned his attention to Lily, she had turned back into a little girl and thrown her arms around his neck before planting a big, sloppy kiss on his cheek.

"I'll miss you, Grandpa!"

Cyrus wiped his cheek and shoved her away. "Yeah, yeah, I answered your questions, now get the fuck out of my home, you spawn of Satan." He opened the door for them. "Oh, and say hi to Mike and Death for me. We're supposed to have tea next Tuesday."

Lily blew him a kiss and skipped down the hall ahead of Dana, her braids bouncing off her shoulders. She had taken advantage of the old man's kindness and gotten exactly what she wanted.

Somewhere, deep down inside, a part of her felt bad. With very little effort, she squashed it away.

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Tasia stared out the wrought-iron framed window at the Aegean sea. The dark waters surged, signaling a coming storm. There was a heaviness in the air, the result of the protective wards around her family's island absorbing energy from the pounding surf. The magic protecting the island was old, and had served to defend the Laskaris family for several generations, back to the founding of the Order.

She was waiting in a study reserved for guests. It had a wonderful view of the sea and a bar with thousands of dollars worth of alcohol at her disposal. Not that she planned to partake, as she wanted her mind to be at its sharpest before speaking with her father.

The door behind her creaked and an older man in a butler's coat stepped in and nodded in her direction. "Miss? Your father is ready for you in the tower."

"Thank you, Basil." This servant had been with her family since before she was born. He was a good man who could have retired years ago, but had recognized that he was a cog in a very important machine.

Basil smiled and gestured toward the hall with a white-gloved hand. She knew the way, but indulged him, allowing the butler to lead her outside to the stone bridge that connected the primary residence to the main watch tower in the center of the island. She could hear the waves smashing into the cliffs of the island, smell the salt and ozone in the air. The gray clouds above gave her the feeling that she was walking into a trap, and not into the personal office of the man who had raised her and taught her the way of the sword.

They passed through an entryway guarded by a Knight and Mage of the Order. Recognition flickered in their eyes, but they did not greet her as she passed between them. She was certain there were rumors about her disappearance, but didn't care what they were.

Last year, she had suffered several humiliations at the hands of a succubus, only to have her mind dominated by a dragon man. Her superiors hadn't blamed her for the failure of the mission, and had even commended her on surviving.

But they didn't have to live with the memories of being forced to slay her own teammates, or see the pity and scorn of the other Knights. She had been one of the best, but had fallen from grace in their eyes. More than anything, she had feared what her father would say when she had returned home.

The stone of the tower swallowed up the sounds of the island, and they got into a small elevator that took them to the top. She half expected a word of encouragement from Basil, but knew better. He was, above all, her father's servant.

The elevator doors opened into an opulent room constructed from marble and lined with gold molding. The walls of the room were decorated with different weapons and armor, all of them from members of her family that had either fallen in battle or performed great deeds for the Order. The enchantments lingering in this room were powerful enough that a wizard would give an arm and a leg just to study them. The Order could find nobody better suited to protect them than the Laskaris family.

On the far side of the room, the floor had been raised with a pair of stairs along the edges to reach it. Her father stood there, wearing a sleeveless white button-down shirt over navy slacks, his hair pulled back behind him to drape between his shoulder blades. He wasn't wearing any shoes and had both hands in his pocket.

Basil excused himself and moved to a hidden door next to a shield with the family crest: a wolf's head guarding an open book. The Laskaris family had long been the Knights of the Order, those who would lay down their lives to protect their brothers and sisters, the mages. Most of the Order was comprised of gifted orphans found around the world, but the Laskaris family was different. They willingly sent their children to become the most powerful Knights the Order would ever see, building an untouchable legacy that Tasia was very proud to be a part of.

"I see you survived the process." Alexandros Laskaris turned to face his daughter. His tan skin had olive undertones that mimicked her own, but the attribute they shared most were his piercing blue eyes. They were so light they almost seemed white in places, making him look more like a predator than a protector.

"I did." Tasia kept her head held high. Last time she had spoken to her father, he had told her about an experimental program that the Order had been working on for almost three decades now. The mortality rate was extremely high, nearly ninety percent. However, she had been unable to live with the memories of her failures, not without finding a way to become stronger. They had promised her, should she survive, she would inherit abilities far beyond those ever possessed by a Knight of the Order.

One of those abilities in particular mattered the most. Though Knights had formal training against psychic attacks, the dragon man's strength had been a surprise. With words alone, his magic had dominated her.

Now, though? Her mind was untouchable. Anyone attempting to dig around in there was in for a very brutal surprise.

"Show me." Her father held out a hand and his sword appeared as if by magic. It was the enchanted bracelet on his arm, an innocuous stone trinket that allowed him to remain armed at all times.

She pulled her own blade free. It was the size of a dagger, but unfolded rapidly like an old-fashioned switchblade until it was around a meter and a half in length.

Alexandros didn't move a muscle, yet he was suddenly in front of her, his blade whipping down through the air so fast she could hear the air around it shriek as if being pierced. This was no longer the man who had raised her, nor the teacher who had taught her. This was a man who was trying to kill her, to see if she was truly worthy of the gifts she had received.

She raised her own blade to counter, the impact of the weapons ringing painfully in her ears. There was a tense moment when it felt like the weapon itself may give, shattering under the brutal pressure of her father's strength. One of the first abilities taught to a Knight was how to project their mana or spirit into the armor and weapons they used, strengthening the material past anything their artisans could create.

She cleared the blade, then stepped to the side and dodged the knife hand strike her father followed up with. It was the same strike she had once seen him use to kill a minotaur, puncturing its sternum to damage the heart directly. The poor beast was dead for several seconds before realizing it, staggering around with fear in its eyes before collapsing to the ground.

This was a man who wanted to see what his only daughter was capable of, and she obliged. With his hand so extended, she twisted away and brought her sword down on his wrist. She didn't think he would lose a hand, but if so, the wound would be clean enough that it could be reattached.

Though she was fast, her father's speed with a blade was legendary. He withdrew his hand and struck the flat of her blade with the pommel of his own, deflecting it even further. Despite his parry, her sword was still quick enough to sever the tip of one of her father's fingers.

Alexandros paused, contemplating the wound. He winced, his hands shaking.

It was a trap. He expected her to back down, to ask if he was okay. The moment she dropped her guard, he would counterattack. When she tried to skewer him instead, his blade deflected hers and a proud smile broke across his face.

The fight continued for a couple more minutes, her father now using techniques she hadn't seen in years to bypass her defenses. Her sleeves and pants were soiled with her own blood by the time that they finished. Though neither of them were even panting from exertion, Alexandros had finally called a halt to their fight. Tasia had failed to strike her father after that first hit, but couldn't help feel the pride welling in her chest.

First blood had been hers. In any battle, that was sometimes the deciding factor.

The wounds on her body were already closing up, the scabs turning black as her body knitted back together. Her father, on the other hand, had to wrap his finger with a bandage that Basil brought him. Basil also presented her father with some rags and oil to wipe the blood off his sword. Her father had once told her that the greatest sign of respect a warrior could show to their weapon was to take care of it themselves. He was of the mind that all weapons had a soul of sort, and were bound to their wielder.

"You are much stronger." He wiped his blade free and inspected it.

"Faster, too." She turned to Basil, who offered her rags and oil of her own. Wordlessly, the pair cleaned their weapons before putting them away.

"It would seem your decision was a wise one, daughter." He bowed his head to her as a sign of respect. Though he had proposed the experimental treatment, it had to be something she wanted to do. Too many subjects had lost their minds during the process, and had been put down like animals as a result. He held out his hand and Basil placed a phone in the center of his palm. He inspected it for a moment, and then handed it to Tasia. "You have been called."

It was the closest thing to a dad joke she would ever get from the man, and it took every ounce of willpower to hold back her grin. The phone was her official connection back to the Order, and would have the details of her next assignment.

"Do you know what I'm hunting?" she asked.

"I do not." Alexandros was as high as you could climb on the Council without being able to tap into the divine, or utilize Creation level magic. Even those people were rare, and far more content to let men and women like her father run things for them. "But I suspect that your new team will require your strengths."

"And they're aware of my...condition?" She looked up from the phone to her father.

"The team leader has been made aware that you are to be given her full trust in this regard. Still, it would do the program wonders if you could show a bit of restraint." He chuckled. "So maybe don't rip someone's head off with your bare hands."

She blushed, but said nothing. It was entirely possible that her father knew everything that had happened to her during the program, or had even watched footage. Some of the things that had happened were embarrassing, to say the least. Her father was clearly speaking about an incident with one of the other enrollees, a man named Kent.

Kent had failed out of the program, which was code for 'He went batshit insane and tried to kill everyone.' Tasia had been unarmed and forced to improvise. It had been a bloody process, sinking her nails beneath his jaw and pulling from above until she ruptured a disk in her back. The pain she felt in that moment was numbed by the sheer exhilaration of defeating an opponent who was definitely bigger and stronger than herself.

"You are dismissed." Satisfied, her father turned away from her as Basil approached with a fresh change of clothes.

"Come, miss. I will show you to our guest quarters where you can clean up."

"Thank you, Basil." She was almost to the elevator when her father spoke once more.

"Tasia?" Alexandros was staring at her from by the window, his visage fierce and threatening. For a single moment, though, it melted away to reveal the soft core of the man within. "I order you to return to me when you're done."

"As you will, father." She bowed her head, then allowed Basil to lead her away.

The guest quarters were fit for a king. After her shower, she sat naked on the balcony and watched the storm roll in, protected from early raindrops by a stone ledge. She pulled out the smartphone and unlocked it with her fingerprint. Scanning through the file, she grinned.

Something was killing people in Florida, USA. The pictures she saw were horrifying, and there was already a dossier with several possibilities. As she scanned through the images, she thought back to her last mission, the one that had gone so very wrong.

This time would be different. No matter what she faced, she now had the power to confront it head on and defeat it, whether it be a dragon man or a succubus. Though her father had bested her upstairs, that had been a test of swordplay alone. If she had truly tapped into her new power...

She shivered in delight. Though the bed inside her room was soft, she far preferred sleeping outside, to feel the rain on her bare skin as if she were back in the woods once more. The sole fault of the program was that it had taught her that humanity was fleeting, but nature was eternal. She longed to feel soil beneath her feet, to inhale the scents of the forest.

But what she wanted most of all was to once again experience the thrill of the hunt. As the storm smashed itself against the magical barrier of her family's island, a growl of anticipation snuck past her lips.

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I hope you're excited, because this old fashioned tale of revenge will get messy as our characters get caught up in an evil plot that puts Tristan's plans to shame! Twice the swordplay, twice the demons, and a new monster are coming your way!

And Tasia? What the hell is going on with her?!?

As always, thank you for reading. I keep chapter release updates in my bio, so check it out and plan accordingly. You can also follow me, too, whatever makes you happiest. The main storyline shall return soon enough, but for the many of you who haven't read the D&H storyline yet, now would be a good month to do so!

If you haven't already, go do something kind for yourself. You've earned it!

~Annabelle Hawthorne