I continued to run through the darkness without taking the time to look back at my pursuer. I wanted more than anything to get the hell out of the abandoned building, immediately. Then suddenly, my ears had succumbed to a loud howl bellowing in the distance. As it got closer, it made me quiver as the howl erupted into my ears and sent tears rolling down my face.
I said to myself, “No God, please! I dont want to die!”
‘Come on Carlina,’ I then say to myself, ‘Get it together girl! You’ve come so far! Why surrender now?’
Wiping away tears, I continued running until I came to a long corridor leading to a window. I darted down the corridor as the moonlight peered in as a sort of compass or guide navigating me towards my destination. I prepared to leap forcing myself into somewhat of a ball hoping I had enough momentum to break through the closed glass window. Luckily, I was on the second floor, but still I have concrete to look forward to. I’d say that’s better than this being chasing me and possibly wanting me for a midnight snack. Why do I always pick the worst times to go looking for clues? I wish Kenneth were doing this instead of myself. I’m the one that should be taking care of the baby, not him. I crash through the window taking some tiny shards of glass across the face before landing with a thud onto a rusty dumpster and then finally rolling onto the ground.
“Carlina, come in Carlina”
I finally come to as the voice of my husband chimes in over the radio. It was a relief to hear his voice again “Im around the corner.”
“Wait, what??” I yelled in confusion. No sooner had I replied a black Chevy Tahoe bolted towards me. I jumped into the passenger seat and without hesitation, rode off. He leaned over to kiss me and I pulled away immediately.
He then proceeded to ask.
“Did you get it?”
Ugh, typical man.
“Yes, I got it. What do you think?”
“Umm, Kenneth…Where is the baby?” I asked him frustratingly looking into the back seat.
“Oh…I dropped him off at your mom’s house the minute we lost comms.”
My husband, a handsome and intelligent black man with his little afro hiding underneath his Houston Rockets cap decided to leave our child at my mothers to pursue me. Don’t get me wrong, I love that he did that, but he dropped our baby off at my mother’s….sigh!!
My mother is quite a strange woman. You think you know Mexican mothers, not like this one and I assure you. This lady does not mind getting all up in our business telling me how to raise my baby. You should do this for the baby. You should do that. Marlen doesnt do that. Martha would have done it like this. She acts like I’m the only daughter she’s ever had with a child. I mean Martha and Marlen too have children. Eight between the two of them to be exact. The official reason why I do not speak to her is due to a comment she made about my husband. “If you hadn’t married a black one you wouldn’t be in this situation.” That is why I steer clear of her. Any typical black man in America would have gone off of the hinges, but my husband I swear, this man is a rare breed. He only gets angry when you threaten the lives of those he loves or any form of injustice. Any and everything else is underneath him. To him, you must have a serious psychological issue that obviously needs attention. Which to him is a problem that weak people must fix or never. Then smile, and walk away. Almost as if he feels sorry for them. Believe me, this man has made gangsters look incredibly stupid. Take my brother for instance. He tried to punk my husband, but he simply brushed him off as if he were a bug on his shoulder. My brother expecting something return, ended up looking like a complete idiot in front of everyone. He was so embarrassed that now my brother looks up to him. I know, strange.
“Mi amor, we’ve had this discussion about taking the baby to my mothers. You could have rushed him over to Marlen’s house whos much closer.,,but no!”
“I had to think fast so, i took him to your moms. Why are you yelling at me?”
I glared at at him trying to translate the bs that was being filtered out of his mouth. I rolled my eyes and said, “Whatever Kenneth! Can we just go get our son please?”
“Sure, ok” he adds.
Part2
I love my husband, but sometimes he does some stupid shit….and he always has to have the last word.
“And…might I also add that….”
He continued on about why I shouldn’t cut my mother out of the picture the way I do. She should be able see her grandson whenever she’d like sounding as if he’s some kind of apprentice to Dr Phil. I turned my attention from him and thought about the creature I had uncovered back inside the abandoned building. There’s no way that that sort of creature should still exist. We’ve exterminated most of them in this region. Without our abilities, we are powerless against them. I interrupted him just as he began babbling about my mother setting up my appointment to see a therapist.
“Wait, what the hell?! A therapist?!”
My husband shrugged his shoulders throwing up his hands. “I had no part in this.”
“Anyways,” I said, shaking my head. “Remember those creatures we took down right before we found out we were pregnant?” Oh God, what did I walk into asking him that.
“I… I wasn’t pregnant. You were pregnant.”
See what I have to deal with? “Damn Kenneth, why must you always be a smart ass? This is serious babe!” My husband doesn’t raise his voice with me when we engage in a disagreement or verbal altercation. Don’t get me wrong, we argue, but he does it to where he isn’t so threatening or domestic violent mode. Which does him no good because I end up winning anway. He is for the most part usually pretty mellow and very considerate of others. Some people tend to take his kindness for a weakness and in return will wish they hadn’t done that. I’ve been a witness to these incidents on more than one occasion. The words of his mother suddenly rang into my ears. “When he start acting stupid, just slapped him upside the head. You’ll feel a hell a lot better!” So I popped him upside the head.
“Hey….?”he scowled at me.
Thank you mother in law. I do feel much much better now.
“Are you listening?”
“Yes yes, I’m listening… god.” He mutters rubbing the back of his head. ” Yeah so what, what’s the big deal?”
Well,” I hesitated for a second, “I’m pretty sure one of them were in that building back there.”
“So that’s why you’re acting like this. It’s got you a little shook up.”
I’m not going to lie, he was right. He knows me so well. Just when I think he isn’t paying attention… he actually happens to be. I don’t intimidate or falter very easily. Not to mention, I’m Mexican so yeah, that isn’t going to happen. But when creatures that you and your husband have taken down years ago suddenly reemerges, that frightens me. Never once in our battles together have we ever come across such a thing. They were elimimated and those few that remained were sent through the void.
Part3
“Let’s discuss this after we get the baby. Plus, it’s very, very late and I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.”
“Not even if your little sister is here?” He adds pointing towards the driveway.
“What??” I glanced up at my mother’s driveway and noticed my sisters vehicle parked on the right side.
‘She’s back from Mexico already?’ I asked myself.
“I thought Martha and her brood were in Brownsville?”
“Yeah, me too.” I added…frowning.
My sister Martha, who is 27 and the youngest of us five kids, was supposedly visiting her husband’s family down in Brownsville, Texas which is literally five minutes from the Mexican border.
“They were supposed to be there for about a week, right? It’s only been what…two days?”
“Yeah.” I added unbuckling the seat belt with a look of confusion. “Strange”
Closing the door to the vehicle, I glanced down at my watch as the hands positioned themselves in what little moon light remained.
“Ay Dios Mio Kenneth!! It’s already 6:10 in the morning.” I whispered loudly to my husband as he opened my mother’s gate.
He responded like an annoying husband ought to with a sarcastic expression of shock. As if he couldn’t believe the startling discovery I had stumbled upon. I swear, sometimes I just want to slap his sarcastic grin off of his face.
My mother is a fanatic when it comes to her yard. A six foot black metal fence outlines the yard decorated with plants from aloe vera, roses, lilacs, and lavender she’s got them everywhere. Don’t even get me started on the back yard. She grows her own vegetables and fruits. She’s not old fashioned, she’s just a very smart woman. Me and my sister’s have encouraged her to start up her own nursery. It took a while, but we finally broke her. Now, she’s even happier that she did.
“See Mommy,” my sister Martha boasted one afternoon when I first introduced Kenneth to my family. “This entire time you were saying it’s a waste of a talent if you make it a chore.”
Yeah, she got the chancla after that comment, in front of everybody. Even her kids stopped playing just so they could video her yelling, “Worldstar!!”
Kenneth leaned over towards me whispering “Oh no they didn’t.”
“Baby, you don’t know the half of it.” and planted a kiss on him.
(To be continued)
Part 4
(Eight Hours earlier)
I continued slowly pacing through the pile of bones that came up to my waist buried miles below a bustling, and humid Houston metropolis. It were as though I was treading through a highly dense marshland. Actually, it was more like a river, so to speak, entirely of blood and bones. There were a lot of bones, everywhere. I look down only to realize that these must have been the remains of fathers, mothers, but mostly…children that had been abducted throughout the centuries. I felt a sudden urge of nausea beginning to tickle my stomach and work its way up my throat. I removed the black balaclava, that had secured my identity, in time as the bile exited my mouth. It has been a long while since Carlina and I have done this line of work. Whatever this thing is obviously shared no clemency or compassion, to say the very least, for the human race. Even Mona had forewarned us before we dove into this. This was indeed a demon that we were about to entangle with, or should I say…”I”. The second one encountered since we’ve been back in the game for about three months approximately. In all honestly, I never would have known about who I really am If it had not been for Carlina, or should I say, Xocaja a.k.a the Mayan Princess. I know, its so much to take in. Several years ago, we’d take down a vicious race of beings called the “Sra’Kathans” from the planet Xipanu in the Andromeda galaxy. I’m not going to exaggerate, but it has been a very, very long time. The darkness howled over me as I replaced the balaclava and continued my trek through a long history of immense genocidal terror. I drew MOSI from her sheath on my back as she radiated with fury, matching my own expression, that she seared through the darkness with her blueish light.
“Please…Help me!!”
Came a voice in the distance. It had belonged to a woman…young, and possibly mid twenties. I could hear the exhaustion in her voice. It had been three days since Kendra Millers parents had reported her missing. I gripped MOSI firmly at her hilt as I peered around the corner. A young woman, bound at her wrist, hung motionless from what looked to be a rope over an endless abyss….great. It was too dark to actually see where the rope swayed from. I continued moving forward in the cold stillness towards the young woman.
“Please….somebody… help… me.”
Poor girl, she could barely lift her head and her curly black wooled hair draped over her face. She still wore her Starbucks uniform, or what had been left of it aside from the frazzle made from what looked like bloodletting talons. She was covered in blood, but not all had been hers. I got closer guiding MOSI towards a set of cobblestone like steps as the weight of the blood and bones finally lifted falling from my black ninja garb.
Part 5
“Kendra…Kendra Miller?” I called, hoping it was her at least. With MOSIs light I could see much more clearly that her face had been covered in dried blood and sweat.
I immediately replaced the head set in my ear I had taken out earlier. I thought it best to remove it as I descended into this abyss. Carlina always seems to think that I’m tuning her and Mona out. Which is obviously not the case. At any rate, if any thing were to happen, I’d already devised a plan that would not hinder my escape. We were already familiar with the kind of Demon we were dealing with. She goes by the name of Mosphselex. A very ancient demon that is one of the Children of the Fallen that were casted out from the heavens. She has lurked this city since it’s birth on June 5th 1847. Although, no one has actually seen her. Nor were there any reported sightings that would indicate her presence. It wasn’t until recently a revenged feuled opposing gang from the Southside of Houston were struck by an abnormally gruesome death. It was a late midsummer night and people had begun pouring out the bars into a light trickle of rain. A tall, slender black man and his girlfriend were walking towards their vehicle along with some other friends. The man was a well known gang member and he and his associates were enjoying the spoils of a recent robbery of a dealer from an opposing gang. The group decided to rendezvous at the IHOP a couple of blocks down the road. The opposing gang got word of his location and retaliated without hesitation. As soon the man exited the restaurant, a black vehicle with it’s light off, sped in front of him and his girlfriend. The dark tinted windows descended as the roar of automatic rifles littered the night mowing the man and his girlfriend down like lawn of tall grass. Bullets rip into the restaurant as patrons and employees screamed and ducked beneath the tables. Some didn’t make it…even two children, a sixth month old and a ten year old. All because of two people’s selfish actions, two children died in the process. The windows ascended abruptly as the vehicle sped off into the intersection. The following morning, the gunmen from the vehicle were found mutilated on a rural road heading towards Pearland. When I say mutilated, I do mean just that. One man entrails were found ripped out of his torso, through the windshield, onto the hood. Another man had his face gouged out of his skull, was hanging over the passenger side door with his left arm ripped completely off. The other two men were found several yards from the vehicle…in pieces. Some of their remains lingered on the trees….as if they had been bashed viciously against it. That was when my wife, Carlina and I, discovered Mosphselex presence and she had been here for more than several decades now.
I turned on the head set as it connected I said.”Kenneth to base. Kenneth to base. Come in Carlina.” The head set garbled and my wife’s voice enters from the other end.
“Hey, it’s about time. I was beginning to worry.” She replied
“I know babe, I’m sorry, but I’m standing in front of Kendra.”
Carlina gasped as I conveyed to her my current status.
“Kenneth, we need to get her out of there immediately!” She yelled.
“I’m working on it babe. As soon as I get her down, we’ll be out of here as soon as possible.”
“Ok, just be careful. I don’t see movements in your immediate vicinity, but keep a look out. She may be watching you as we speak.” She added. Got to love the wife! Not only is she my wife, but a very skilled warrior of Mayan descent. The original of her people before the Spanish (Europeans) came and tainted them. With shoulder length hair the color of ravens, her beautiful dark indigenous complexion complimented her beauty as well as the ferocity that gleamed in her eyes. She was accompanied with remarkable strength and stellar intelligence in both math as well as science. I happen to be the direct descendant of the Moorish King descendant in Africa before the Europeans too ravaged my land. Carlina and I were taken long before the Europeans shored. Anyways, I’ll save that for another story. I glanced at Kendra.
“I’m gonna get you out of here Kendra, ok? Just trust me.”
She struggled a bit to raise her head as I spoke her name. Tears began trickling down her face as the very sound of her own name were music to her ears.
“Please….get….me….down from here.” She muttered delicately and that was more than enough confirmation for me. I wasn’t going to lounge around trying to play match the description when this young woman is in dire need of medical attention.
“Ok sweetheart, I’m going to need you to do something for me, ok?”
She glanced back up nodding in agreement. She was far too fatigued to reply verbally and I wasn’t going to force her to.
“I’m going to need you to swing a bit so that I may cut you down over this platform. You think you’ll be able to do that?” I asked her. She nodded again.
“Okay, you ready?” She nodded once more and I began to gently pull her towards me, no more than two steps. I released her as she swung away from me. As she swiveled back, I fleetly swung MOSI. The swords illuminated radiance hissed swiftly through the rope as Kendra fell into my arms. Returning MOSI to her sheath, I removed a kunai from my garb and severed the remains of the rope that had bound her wrist. We sat there for a second as Carlina chimes in.
“Baby, I hope you’re ready because I’ve got movement in your vicinity and it’s huge. When I say huge, I’m not exxageraging.”
She’s pauses. “I think it’s her… Mosphselex.”
“It can’t be!” I replied. “The satellite feed we got from Mona caps her at nine feet!”
“Kenneth!” Another voice enters, much raspier than Carlina s, pirouette with a heavy French accent belonging to Mona. “I assure you mon frere, it is her! She is the only one who resides in the murky depth of this city.”
I drew a breath and replaced the kunai into my garb. Then suddenly, a small light began to flicker in the cold void adjacent from the platform behind us.
“Oh shit!” I murmured to myself.
The light began swaying left to right in the gloom followed by a low, but loud chortling groan. Without reluctance, I hoisted the young woman over my shoulder with haste. At that moment, a pair of large yellowish cat like eyes scowled at me into a near petrified state. Luckily, Carlina had given me a bracelet which was augmented with a rune that warded and dispelled any and almost all forms of magic that threatened it’s wearer. Not to mention that all afflictions will be removed, but at a cost of energy. In my case, chi. I know, pretty cool, right? Or I’d be pretty dead. I’ll never understand why Carlina chose to give up the sword and take up the Arcane arts. She says it was her way to reconnect with her people, the powerful and highly enlightened Maya. Don’t get me wrong, she’s a stellar swordswoman. We trained together as adolescents in The Astral Realm where the infamous Immortal Ninjas reside. She figures since she is the original of her people, her magic will be powerful and potent.
“My love, it would be a waste to allow a vast amount of power to remain dormant within. So, it is vitally imperative that I pursue this.” she conveyed with me one day. I’m not going to lie, I agree and I’m kind of jealous at the same time. Shaking off the hold of Mosphselex petrification spell, I barley managed to evade the horned menacing talons swooping down in a powerful gale followed closely behind it.
I withdrew MOSI once again and began to give instructions to Carlina.
“Xocaja, I may need you to pull Kendra out of here and fast!!”
“I’m working on it babe. I’m trying to get a lock on your locations for immediate extraction.”
“No!” I yelled. “I’ll remain here to fend her off!
She hesitated, let’s out a frustrated sigh, then finally said, “Fine.” I could tell she was pissed, but she’ll get over it. “I got a lock on her position…. Executing Full extraction…now!’
At that moment, something massive came crashing down onto the platform. Luckily, Kendra has already been extracted, but myself and the platform had fallen into the abyss below.
I landed on what seemed to be the ground, which was made primarily of earth, and clutched MOSI firmly in both hands. The remains of the platform continued to fall from above as the radiance from the sword grew more intense. The creature landed with an incredible force before me that I had to time slip to avoid the impact. As I glanced up, I was shocked to discover what she truly was. Mosphselex was a fucking dragon.
She let out a loud menacing roar that began to shake the earth around us and the remains of what was once the platform, fell as I evaded the larger rubble accordingly as it came crashing down. How in the hell am I supposed to take this creature down?
“Kenneth!!” Carlina yells into the headset. “Are you ok?!!! What the hell is happening??? The entire city of Houston is in a state of panic Kenneth!! Everyone is freaking out over the massive tremor!” She says as she turns the radio up.
“Several buildings in the South Houston area are reported to have collapsed entirely. Houston fire and police department have shut down the area within a ten Mile radius. Casualties are rising and many more injured as both fire and police work bravely to save the men, women, and sadly…” The reporter cuts off as sobs began to softly caress through the radio. “…and…and the children.” Carlina shuts off the radio. “Kenneth!! We need to neutralize this bitch now!!”
“Carlina…baby…I need you or Mona to tell me the quickest way possible to dispose of this dragon or Carlina…, you’re going to have to come here and banish this thing?”
“Kill a what??”she replied. I could hear the confusion in her voice as Mona chimes in with her heavy French accent. “Did he say dragon?” I didn’t waste time allowing her to finish as a massive scaled claw came shuttling down from above me. I dodged again as it came crashing down into the earth. Luckily, I had more than enough room to maneuver which allows me to be more agile. So evading her attacks wasn’t too much of a problem. The radio garbled and I could barely decipher what Carlina was saying.
“Will……there……few moments. …..grab……staff.” or at least, I think that was what she was saying.
Mosphselex lets out another roar only with a bit more frustration. I guess she hadn’t anticipated a human moving so swiftly to avoid her deathly attacks. Hell, I don’t blame her. I’d be heavily annoyed as well. Suddenly, a large bright luminescent sparkle zipped into view. The sparkle exploded sending the massive entity back a step… her step, that is The explosion illuminated the darkness as Carlina emerged with staff in hand. Without hesitation, she spun her staff viciously clockwise above her and chanted in her ancient Mayan tongue. “The darkness you lie, the darkness you drift, to the void youve employed, and do so very swift!!! With that, she slammed the staff down as a portal open before her and the Mosphselex.
The massive beast acted without reluctance and spun around swinging her tail towards us. I acted swiftly and time leaped in Carlina s direction. Don’t get me wrong, Carlina is a very tough woman. She can take a blow. I would know due to the intense training we’ve had by Darruk back in the Astral plains under Lord Haax’s leadership. How we’ve managed to survive is still a mystery. No human being should ever have or the desire to endure what we had. After all, we were trained by The Fallen or at least a small portion of them anyway. They had deceived us both. What can I say, we were still practically children when they snatched us up. I mean, they did Carlina, or should say, “Xocaja”, very dirty. Therefore, I feel her pain and frustration towards the Immortals for allowing the Spanish to murder, ransack, and rape her people and claiming it as her own. Apparently, she’s still holding a five hundred year old grudge she can’t seem to let go yet and I’m not going to tell her she should give it up. Especially considering how much stronger she’s become over the centuries.
I extend my arms out to grab her and then suddenly realized I couldn’t. My hands went right through her as though she were a hologram. Well, I’ll be damned. She created a decoy long enough to throw the ancient creature off to perform her banishment spell. Nice one Carlina! Mosphselex tail swung vigorously through the hologram, nearly missing me as I time slipped once again. I have to be cautious of my time slip usage. My recovery may be stellar, due to experience, but the more I use at once may mean instant death. I could tell this was going to be a quick fight for beast. I’ve heard of ancient dragons having Superior power and intelligence that is beyond any human comprehension, but this creature, in particular, isn’t the brightest of them or I’m just overlooking something here. The decoy vanished as the actual Carlina appeared above the ancient being hovering in the exact same spot where the platform once stood and her staff illuminated brilliantly. She continued chanting the exact same words in her ancient Mayan tongue. The portal she had previously conjured was immense. Her eyes glowed with white fury with hands and staff raised. At that moment, she threw her hands downward gesturing the portal towards the dragon yelling, “Consume you!!!”
Mosphselex lets out a ear piercing roar as the portal came crashing down upon her. There was no escaping the spell as it consumed the beast and then suddenly, she had vanished into the abyss and darkness abruptly followed closely behind her. I glanced up as Carlina descended with her staff illuminating the dark cavern. As she landed, she immediately collapsed into my arms. The spell must have exhausted her.
She glances up at me and says, “We did it baby.”
“No babe, you did it. I’m very proud of you.” I replied.
She stands up and kisses me on the lips.
“Thank you amor! Now let’s get out of here.”
“You think you have enough energy to instantly teleport us back?” I asked
“Yeah, It should be enough.” She replied.”But more importantly, I want to get home to our son.”
“Okay….let’s be on our way.”
As we began to depart, I noticed something glistening in the exact same location where Mosphselex once stood.
“Hold on a second. What is that?” I said pointing.
She too looks in the direction of where I was pointing and began to slowly walk towards it. I pulled her back and she yelped.
“Babe….?”
“Let me go first.” I responded. “If anything happens to you, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”
Her dark brown eyes look seductively into mine and says, “You know it turns me on when you say things like that?”
I chuckled “Yes, I know.” With that she pulled me back towards her guiding my left hand into her robes. She lets out a soft moan as my fingers caressed the moistened fabric of her arousal. I caressed her more as she grabbed the back of my head kissing me passionately. I continued to caress her more intensely as her soft moan grew louder. She pushed me down onto the earth removing the bottom half of my garb and mounted me. She guided my rock hard member into her warmth as she engulfed all of me. She leans forward for more passionate kisses and continued moans exit her lips. I lifted her robes revealing her dark beautiful skin and plump succulent breast. She places my hands on each of her dark round breast as she thrusted more intensely. Her dark ravenous hair completely cover her face in the midst of her sexual excitement. She leans forward again biting my lower lip. We look passionately into each other’s eyes as it became more intense.
“Te amo mucho papi. quiero tener otro bebé.” She replies in Spanish.
With that, we both climaxed together and she finally collapsed onto my chest.
Ten minutes pass as we finally gather ourselves and walk towards the glistening object.
“Oh my!” Carlina says as I pick up the object. “It looks like an oversized diamond.”
“Yeah, let’s get it back to Mona and have her examine it.”
(Eight hours later. Back at Carlina mother’s house)
I make my way through the gate and close it behind me. My husband heads towards the door and rings the damn doorbell.
“Kenneth what the are you doing?”
You’re going to wake up the baby you buffoon.”
I’m not going to lie, I love this man with every part of me and sometimes I just want to slap him. Sigh… But he’s mine and I wouldn’t trade him for the universe. I recall a time when he and I first met again. He was in California at the time I had rediscovered my powers. I hadn’t fully grasped my magical ability completely, but was able to regain my skills as an Immortal ninja thanks to Mona. It s been 45 years since myself and Kenneth deuled to the death. My mission at the time was to prevent him from intervening with the war between the Axis and Allied powers during WW2. The bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. He was fed up with the Immortals and wanted to sabotage the plan laid for the humans. Well, he and I are both humans too. I had defeated him in the deul before he had been reincarnated 49 years later. Believe me, it was not easy to cut down the man you love for a ruthless organization from the spirit realm.
(To be continued)
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