Dashing Devil Omnibus 2: Books 4-6, page 157
“See?” Sinoe asked, beaming at him before taking another step closer. “Now, we can be as close as we wish.”
“Ah,” Boyd’s forced smile shifted to a natural one. “That’s great. And very kind of this mystery person to teach you how to control your aura.” The big demon then raised a brow. “May I ask who they are?”
Sinoe’s slow steps paused as a hesitant frown replaced her radiant smile. “I’m… not supposed to say. I probably wasn’t supposed to tell you that someone asked me to come.”
‘Don’t probe any further,’ Mindy warned him. ‘The one who helped her is the person you aren’t supposed to ask or even think about.’
Outwardly, Boyd sighed as he inwardly grumbled, ‘I’m only going to accept this for so much longer—people connected to the person who sent Omega Ray to Glorith keep popping up.’
“Can you at least tell me why she asked you to come?” Boyd asked out loud, putting on his most reassuring smile, the one meant to inspire trust. “I won’t ask anything further about her.”
He intentionally revealed that he at least knew the mystery person’s gender, if only to show that he wasn’t completely out of the loop.
Sinoe nodded, the radiant smile returning as she started to slowly close the distance between them. “She said that when you ask me to, I am to guide you to her. In the meantime, I’m supposed to help you in any way that you ask.”
Boyd’s head started to tilt down as his eyes tracked the approaching nymph. The big demon had thought she was beautiful when they first met, but he had never seen her this close before. Up close, he had to reclassify her from beautiful to breathtaking. Her features were perfectly sculpted to blend nature’s majestic beauty with an untamed wildness. While her eyes held a deep, vivid maroon color, they positively sparkled in the early morning light. That was to say nothing about her mostly bare figure, luscious curves over a core of lean muscle that hinted at tireless endurance.
Sinoe remained extremely alluring, even without the effect of her aura.
“And that’s all?” Boyd asked, lowering his voice to a deep rumble to account for her closeness.
“Yes.” She nodded, beaming up at him. Then her eyes dipped to his lips, and her smile faded slightly as she focused on them. “Well, that… and because she knew I wanted to be closer to you, even if I didn’t admit it to myself until just now.”
“I see.” Boyd returned the smile as he processed her words and the not-so-subtle non-verbal cues she was sending him. This was a very different encounter than those he’d had with the woman who once resented how drawn she was to him.
As she moved to close the remaining distance between them, Boyd’s heart pounded in his chest. His mind raced with conflicting thoughts—caution at getting involved with someone sent by the mysterious woman who had sent Omega Ray warred with an undeniable chemistry he felt with the breathtaking nymph. Then, he remembered what she’d once said about being drawn to certain men—and that reminded him of the loss she had suffered not long before making the statement.
“Sinoe,” Boyd rumbled gently, reaching up to place a big hand on her bare shoulder to stop her from taking the last step that would cover the space that separated them. “I appreciate your honesty and that you are here to help, but we must tread carefully.”
Sinoe shivered under his touch, her garnet eyes widening, surprise and disappointment evident in their depths. He got the distinct impression that this was the first time a man she was after tried to put an end to her pursuit. She seemed to be on the verge of protesting, but as his words sank in, a somber understanding settled over her delicate features.
“I… I understand,” she murmured. Her melodic voice was filled with unspoken regret. “I am sorry that I overstepped.” Her cheeks heated with embarrassment and her eyes dropped to his chest.
She stepped back away from him, and Boyd let his hand drop back to his side. “I will go now, but will remain close by. Come to the lake and call for me if there is any way that I can assist you and I will come. I will not bother you further if you do not call for me. Farewell.”
“That’s not…” Boyd started to say, but then the ground literally swallowed the embarrassed nymph up right before his eyes, and she was gone.
He had planned to invite her to visit whenever she would like, but apparently the hyperbole about wishing the ground could swallow you up when embarrassed could actually happen—at least for Sinoe.
‘Ponder where the conversation went wrong on your flight back, my little shit,’ Mindy interrupted his confused thoughts. ‘Your angel is about to wake up, and I know how much you hate when she gets pouty because you aren’t at your desk when she comes looking for you.’
Boyd let out a snort but acknowledged the accuracy of Mindy’s assessment. He briefly pondered if there had ever been another man fortunate enough to worry about being on time for his morning blowjob from an angel. With a grin on his face, he leaped into the air and took wing. He didn’t want to be late.
Chapter 47
Victory Seeker stared out the window of the apartment he had considered for his use in the Root of it All, scanning the orderly and peaceful city. As he did, he ran through his plan to lure the demon here and have the Changed destroy the energy barrier that had stymied his efforts to wake the sleeping father. He was primarily considering the way those around the Changed might impact his reaction to what he intended to do.
Having shaped the creature’s thought processes personally, he was confident that the demon would react as anticipated if left to his own devices. As Victory Seeker had a hand in molding the minds of many of those who the demon surrounded himself with, he was confident he knew how they would react, as well. The outliers could cause a deviation from the anticipated plan, but based on the information he was able to gather on them, he doubted it.
Even he couldn’t account for every possible variable; there were always random variables one could never predict—which had proven to be doubly true in any situation involving the filthy demon in the past. He was counting on the emotional drive that his once-promising student had obviously abandoned controlling, or controlling less than he had been trained to. And even at the demon’s best, he was never one to take a loss lying down. Victory Seeker doubted that anyone around him now could change that, especially given the recent emotionally driven killing of Mightbreaker.
It was a shame that Mightbreaker had fled his original arrest order and had never been captured after his escape. He would have made an excellent addition to the Hunter teams, which was his intended fate when the order had been given and why a kill order was never opened for him. Victory Seeker didn’t understand why they hadn’t sent him straight to the Hunters upon graduation from his PAC. His killer instinct had been clear at the time, even in the basic file Victory Seeker had reviewed.
He had reviewed every file of every PAC graduate, being one of those responsible for approving Hunter candidates. Mightbreaker had gotten his approval, much like Boyd had when he was still a promising child. The event in which he killed two high-ranked adult Powered shortly after his Change had proven Victory Seeker’s judgment was as sound as ever, even if him ending up as a Changed limited his functionality as a Hunter.
It wasn’t unheard of for Changed to be used on the Hunter teams, especially those that survived the PACs. They just required a stringent controller and constant supervision to remain useful. Even then, they typically had to be put down after a few years. Almost all of them ended up questioning their role after a short while. And once the questions started, it was best to just get rid of them before they turned on humanity.
Victory Seeker was certain that the demon was asking the types of questions that should go unanswered. It was past the time for him to be put down.
Unfortunately, a cancer had grown within the Authority—one that even Victory Seeker had underestimated up until it mobilized. By then, it was too late. They’d raised a Changed up as a beacon of what it should mean to be a Hero.
Not only that, but a demon of all things!
Their ongoing success in doing so was all the evidence he needed to prove that he and the rest of the true supporters of the Authority’s doctrine had overlooked the danger of what they thought was a small faction of bleeding hearts.
Despite these recent developments, Victory Seeker remained confident the Changed would react as anticipated. He decided to set the first phase into motion, luring his former student away from his home. Taking up the communicator, he placed a call to what was unfortunately his most capable remaining asset. The asset had proven he was loyal and enthusiastic, though he had never shown a high degree of potential.
In the hopes of unlocking some heretofore hidden potential, Victory Seeker had assigned him to the Hunter teams to gain real-world combat experience. It wasn’t unheard of for the intensity of life and death struggle to awaken an undiscovered talent. And while the asset had developed some methods that accounted for his personal weaknesses, his lack of tactical acumen remained unchanged.
The call was answered almost immediately. Cobolto knew that Victory Seeker only called when he had important matters to address.
“Victory Seeker,” the young man’s voice came through as soon as the line connected. “It has been a while since you checked in. What do you need?”
Victory Seeker decided he didn’t need to address the impertinence of pointing out the length of time it had been since he last contacted the asset. That would only serve to prolong the conversation. And as there was no point in further educating an asset that was about to be sacrificed, he preferred the call remain a short one. At least Cobolto kept his response brief and asked the only question that mattered.
“Cobolto, gather our fighters at Lima Base and prepare for an imminent confrontation.” Victory Seeker’s voice held the gravity of a command. “I have devised a plan to remove Devil from the board and to open a path for the Coalition to regain what it has lost. I’ll meet you there in two days to brief you and the other fighters and then lead you all to victory.”
“Which fighters do you need?” Cobolto asked, juvenile excitement peeking through the professionalism he was trying to project.
Cobolto always had been eager to live up to Victory Seeker’s expectations. It was a shame that actually doing so seemed to be a task that was beyond him.
“All of them,” Victory Seeker stated, allowing his impatience to show in his tone. He shouldn’t have had to clarify himself. “This will require every remaining fighter we have access to.”
He couldn’t be sure which of their remaining Heroes the demon was keeping track of, so it was better to use all of them to ensure he took the bait. Besides, once he woke the Sleeping Father as was prophesized, they wouldn’t need the meager forces he still had access to.
They were down to the dregs and himself. The demon had executed his decapitation move perfectly, just as Victory Seeker had taught him. The teacher would correct his error, though, and deal with his upstart student.
The texts were clear. The Sleeping Father would set his mistake right and save humanity from the beast that he had created. Doing so would be worth any sacrifice that was required.
Cobolto's voice crackled over the communication device, a sense of urgency palpable in his tone. "Understood, Victory Seeker. Lima Base will be prepared for your arrival in two days. We will gather all fighters and await your instructions."
The young man's determination echoed through the line, his loyalty unwavering.
Victory Seeker nodded to himself, satisfied with Cobolto's response. He knew that his success at waking the Sleeping Father hinged on the execution of this plan. They would only have one chance at it, the demon wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice. The fate of humanity rested on the Seeker’s shoulders, and he was prepared to do whatever it took to ensure their victory.
“Good. Victory Seeker out,” he stated, disconnecting the line.
It would likely be the last time he spoke to Cobolto, but he saw no reason to say goodbye or to engage in another emotional display.
As he gazed out the window once more, his eyes lingered on the empty city below. He hadn’t chosen the apartment for the view, but for its proximity to the labyrinth under the central building. Despite that, he found he enjoyed looking out at what he could see of the simplistic, orderly buildings.
He sneezed. He might have chosen a different building if he had known about the problem with the air filtration system. For whatever reason it seemed to regularly have issues drawing the dust out of the air.
***
“Wilkerson, report,” Stepper ordered the moment she stepped out of her personal void and into their assigned meeting place.
Given who the quarry of their observation was, they had a semi-random rotation going. Today they were in a different part of the forest that surrounded the Cradle of Carnage, where a boulder had broken into several smaller bounders sometime in the last few thousand years and created a memorable formation.
Wilkerson was sitting on one of the smaller chunks in his rough spun clothing, twirling a piece of grass between his fingers that absorbed way too much of his attention. At least she hadn’t caught him napping again.
After jumping in his skin in response to her sudden appearance and order, he dropped the grass and stood, his expression transitioning from bored to serious. “He has set something in motion. Last night he made a call to Cobolto to gather their fighters at what he called Lima Base. He said he would join them there in two days to disclose his plans.”
Stepper recognized the name Cobolto, having both reviewed their intelligence on him and encountered him in the field. They had known that he was raised in one of their child soldier facilities with Victory Seeker as one of his instructors.
It had been a more recent revelation that it was the same facility Crimson Paw had been raised in. Having fought both of them, she wondered how their much-vaunted training programs could produce such wildly different results. It wasn’t that Cobolto had been an easy enemy to beat; he was just nowhere near Crimson Paw’s level.
“Lima Base… that’s what they call that fortress at the southern edge of the continent,” Stepper muttered, wondering what Victory Seeker planned to do way out there. “What else did he say?”
“It was a short call, but the big news is that the objective of the plan is to take out Crimson Paw and restore the Ascended Coalition to its former horror.” Wilkerson scowled while continuing his report as if the words tasted bad. “I haven’t seen or heard anything that even hints at what the plan might be.”
“It would have to be some plan,” Stepper replied, her brows furrowing as she gripped her chin with the thumb and forefinger of her right hand and that elbow with her left hand. “With their remaining forces, they would be lucky to take The Devoted if they caught them in an ambush. They would have a better shot if they somehow separated Crimson Paw from the rest of his team, but… I don’t see that happening.”
“Just telling you what I heard,” Wilkerson said and then shrugged, scowl still firmly in place.
“Sure, but what you heard doesn’t make sense,” Stepper complained, pinching her chin a bit tighter. “Even if they could reliably take on Crimson Paw, that won’t help them get the Ascended Coalition back to where it was. It’s been gutted. The cat is out of that bag.”
“That’s big picture stuff,” Wilkerson shook his head. “You know I’m shit at big picture stuff.”
Stepper let out a sigh, realizing that she couldn't fault Wilkerson for his limitations. After all, they each had their own strengths and weaknesses within the Wardens, and he had his own value with his keen eye for detail.
“I know, but we need to piece together the puzzle if we're going to stay a step ahead of Victory Seeker. His moves are calculated at least five steps ahead, and there's always a deeper motive behind his actions.”
She paced back and forth on the moss-covered ground, her mind racing through various scenarios. Victory Seeker's plan was shrouded in mystery, but one thing was clear—it posed a significant threat to Crimson Paw, and thus to their cause.
“We need more information,” Stepper mused aloud, more to herself than to Wilkerson.
“That’s something I can hopefully help with.” Wilkerson nodded, his demeanor shifting slightly as he straightened. “Want me to keep an eye on Victory Seeker, or do you need information elsewhere?”
“We’ve got eyes and ears in the Hunter command structure,” Stepper noted, trying to think if there was a better place to deploy Wilkerson. “Victory Seeker has a lot of sway there, but we would have noticed it if he’d pulled a team to hit Crimson Paw along with the Ascended’s remaining forces. Crimson Paw himself has eyes and ears within the rest of the Authority and he’s the type to keep an eye out for impending threats.”
“Yeah… doesn’t one of the stories say that he can sense when one of his wives is in danger?” Wilkerson asked, a look of concentration twisting his features into a grimace as he tried to remember the story. “And like you pointed out, he doesn’t stray far from them. He always seems to have at least one around. That should give him an early warning about any ambushes, right? Because if he is in danger, they would be in danger, too.”
“Several of the stories talk about that aspect of his Power.” Stepper shrugged as she continued to pace. “But they make it sound like it gives him an extra moment to react when the danger is imminent—not that it warns him if they are walking into a trap. Anyway, I think it would be best to keep an eye on Victory Seeker.”
Stepper frowned at her subordinate. “How long has it been since you slept?” She stopped her pacing and turned to face the spy.
“Twelve hours,” Wilkerson reported.
“Got another twelve in you?” Stepper asked, glancing down at the display mounted on her wrist to check the time.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Wilkerson nodded, his expression serious.
“Good,” Stepper replied. “Meet me at location six in twelve hours. I’ll bring another infiltration expert who can escape Victory Seeker’s notice with me so you two can start taking shifts. I want eyes on him at all times until he leaves.”
