Chapter 5

The Nymph who had blocked Amyntas had a pair of eyes so yellow they seemed fake, as if they were forged from small rough nuggets, she wore braids for hair that were all gathered in a large bun hidden under a camouflage hat and her skin was the same color as thè. She wore the typical military uniform but on her chest there was no name to declare her identity or even just the tag typically used by those people, she didn't even have a gun with her to protect herself.

From under the sleeve of her shirt he glimpsed small cactus flowers and small black thorns arranged all around like freckles, the same ones that were stinging him. Amyntas felt his arm burn too hard, on her hand the Nymph had grown much longer thorns and they entered his flesh like the needles of syringes. He freed himself from her grip and took a step back, amazed and frightened by that creature which, unlike her kind, transmitted a much more ferocious air.

> she said in a big voice, putting herself between him and Nadia.

> replied the demon.

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Amyntas would have done it if he could, but instinct, felt like a shiver down his spine, held him.

That Nymph was not a simple "virgin" of any nature, she was a predator in the guise of a beautiful desert flower. So with wounded pride, he lowered his head and walked away at a safe distance.

The soldier turned to Nadia and hugged her in the warmest embrace in the world.

Nadia was… surprised. She didn't know that girl, her face was unfamiliar to her. But all this took a back seat when she told her that she had come to save her and that it was her community that had sent her on a mission. Her family! Her friends! The Nymph Sisters! Who knows how much they had all suffered when she disappeared! She was almost embarrassed to know how much effort they had made for her despite having spent so little time from home, never thought that the affection towards her was so great.

As soon as she told her she would bring her home right away, The Nightmare reacted again.

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The woman snorted, it made no sense to argue with a creature who only thinks of his own personal gain, now it was more important to take Nadia to safety.

They started to leave and Amyntas blocked their way. He had not yet given up on his plan and even if he feared that Nymph, he would not let her go away with his special article. Amyntas had always been a stubborn guy, the kind that doesn't give up when faced with the evidence of having failed something. Confident of his own demonic identity; he often took unnecessary risks to get what he wanted, regardless of the consequences it might cause. In that respect he was no different from a spoiled child, but only because no one had ever put him in line. The false soldier had the honor of being able to teach him a lesson. At the umpteenth insult about her race and about being called a slut, she thought "Now I'll teach you a lesson."

She took him by the ear as mothers do with insolent children - pressing with an unenviable force compared to that of a man - and spoke some particular words:

"Whoever does not restrain his will with beasts should accompany him."

For a brief moment the demon's eyes went blank of will, a shudder ran through him from head to toe, and his mouth remained wide open.

She let it go, so much so that it remained dangling like a puppet. While he was in that state a trickle of blood came out of his nose and from that one drop the woman obtained a fake little jewel that she set in a fresh amber ring. The Nymph gazed at the newly packaged object with great pride.

The demon recovered shortly thereafter, blinking repeatedly.

Realizing what had just happened to him, he jumped on the woman's neck, but she promptly replied with a "sit" that blocked him. From his eyes she deciphered confusion and fear, you could see that he wanted to move but could not, blocked by a will that was not his.

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Shit! Shit! Shit!

The Nightmare was furious! Who expected there to be someone who knew the secret formula for gaining control of a demon !? Is it shoulde be with a Nymph, a race that he considered only whores to be deflowered, did it have to happen?! He was so wounded in pride that he felt like screaming and banging his head. It had been centuries since he had felt that sense of inferiority and it burned inside like a fire.

Fixed that, the woman could now concentrate on Nadia.

She asked her if she was okay and if she needed a doctor, if she was hungry or if she had any special needs. Nadia replied that she was fine, all she wanted was to go home and leave that bad experience behind.

Suddenly the words were stuck in the soldier's throat, a spear pierces her chest.

The weapon had flown over Amyntas' head and it had barely caught Nadia, her fellow savior had moved in time to be centered in her place.

The perpetrator of the gesture was perched on the fire escape of the building behind them, clinging to the rusty rungs like a monkey and wearing a horse's skull for helmet.

What the hell was that? He couldn't identify it.

He - like dogs and other beasts - could count on a developed sense of smell to analyze the world around him, and no less important to understand if something or someone represented a danger. Now, that being gave off a strange smell. It was not human, much less animal, and not even a demon, even if it could look like it…. it was unrecognizable, in short; and this was a very bad sign for him.

His fears were confirmed when others appeared, also in beautiful minimalist attire adorned with bones and skulls.

He felt himself grabbed by the shoulder: the Nymph made Nadia fall on him who was screaming in horror, wrapping his arms around her so that he could not let her go.

By now her chest was a dark orange stain of liquid amber dripping like an open tap, before giving in to death he grabbed him by a horn and shouted in his face what would be her last words.

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And then, knowing that she would not get out of there in any way, she ran towards those monsters who fell on her like ravenous condors, only to be dismembered by a shower of swords and axes.

No organs or blood came out of the body, the organic-like “remains” that scattered on the ground, wet and dripping, were just a complex tangle of vegetable fibers soaked in water and resin. Nonetheless, their appearance gave the same grotesque effect as the human remains, especially as they exhaled the last impulses of life.

The humans began to scream, Amyntas could not tell if it was for him that he could no longer maintain the human appearance or for those pursuing him.

He held Nadia close and ran, behind him an angry mob of armed madmen.

Monsters? Demons? At the time it didn't matter who they were, it was so clear that now they just wanted to kill. Whoever they were did not hesitate to overwhelm anyone who stood in the way, some poor people ended up either crushed under their feet or badly crippled under the furious shaking of sharp weapons that emulated the effect of a mower cutting the grass.

That spurred him to run faster.

A police patrol stopped right in front of him blocking the road, their presence was a stroke of luck. He threw himself into the car and left by pressing the accelerator, the policemen behind him were so surprised by that lightning action that they started chasing him only a few seconds later.

He squeezed the steering wheel and pressed heavily on the accelerator, Nadia next to him was holding on to the seat sobbing. A car was much faster than a biped, so seeing no one running after it, he thought positively that it had sown them. He smiled, he had escaped it again.

But surprise, here they are again. Galloping elephants, rhinos and even fucking ostriches.

The Incubus could not believe his eyes, in his millennial life he had never seen anything that came close to what was happening at that moment: the rhinos gave him horns to make him skid, the elephants threw ammunition in the form of large balls steel and the ostriches - albeit ridiculous as mounts - allowed their steeds to compete the vehicle in speed and thus be able to flank them to try to stab them, beat them and so on.

> Nadia yelled at him.

> he retorted exasperated.

> she answered in tears.

He was about to give her a rude reply when at that moment he realized that the road ahead was blocked: a line of archers were aiming at them with flaming-tipped arrows. As soon as the car was within range, the darts split the air and burned it, the bodywork was pierced like butter and the already cracked glass of the hood exploded, precluding any possible defense for the occupants. Skidding, the "carousel" ended the race only after having broken through the interior of a clothing store, the whole hood folded into segments like the bellows of an accordion hit innocent mannequins and high fashion clothes. The car, before coming to a definitive stop; let out a last clumsy honk. The creatures approached to retrieve the bodies, relishing the idea of ​​displaying them as hunting trophies, and what a hunt it had been! They would have spoken of it for centuries as the greatest of feats, more important than the exploits of King Arthur or King Oberon, lord of the fairies.

Their surprise was more than justified when they realized that there was no one on board.

****

Cassandra had loosen her hair, the soft brown waves had golden highlights.

She was tired and had back pain, she had left her desk a few times during the day.

All the operators of the organizations were working on a single case by now: that of Nadia Lowe. Her was no longer just a missing person case, something much bigger revolved around her figure. The "what" was the mystery that everyone in there wanted to solve.

But she will be the only one to take all the credit in the end, she had an important assignment to complete and she could get in trouble if she failed. From the result she would have achieved, perhaps she would have been able to save the world.

Notifications from her undercover agents kept coming to her laptop; camouflaged among the troops of the sects to steal their secrets and information that could be useful to the Amazons. Cassandra did not consider the other groups efficient, their way of working was imprecise, hasty and anything else that could be negative from an organizational point of view, not to mention the enormous waste of time and expense only for unnecessary meetings. So taking advantage of their best resources - as ignored or undervalued as they should be - was a good advantage for her organization. She had to admit, however, that not everyone was incapable, Hawk for example was a good Captain: intelligent, professional ... perhaps impetuous at times; a good man who knew how to do his job well.

He was smart, if she hadn't been forced to keep the secret of her mission, she would have gladly worked alongside him.

She glanced at the landscape of clouds that stood out from the cockpit of the small military jet bound for Las Vegas, the moon highlighting the changing contours of the clouds beneath which peeked the earth illuminated by the lights of distant, indistinguishable cities. Hawk had invited her to board his plane, she had politely refused on the pretext of being able to bring her small team with her, in case it was necessary to intervene.

Suddenly the computer signaled a video call from Skype, quickly pressed the green start button.

Honestly, on the one hand, she would have preferred to avoid the call.

She knew who was looking for her, she knew what they wanted… and she had nothing adequate to offer.

On the screen appeared a conference room occupied by at least thirty individuals, in the foreground the half-length of a woman was revealed. All the people wore an elongated African mask, painted black with subtle shades of bronze from the head down, carved with a deadpan human expression with small eyes and a horizontally clamped mouth. The woman in the foreground instead had a more colorful and "expressive" red and orange mask like fire, the face that gave the impression of being angry about something. Through the slits for the eyes could be seen a pair of blue irises, dazzling like the gold ring necklace she wore around her neck.

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The woman and the other people showed contentment at that news, someone let slip a prayer of thanks to a divinity who was not God.

> the woman asked Cassandra.

She clenched his fists, she was terribly embarrassed.

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Cassandra felt the weight of the annoyed gaze of the interlocutor, of all the people she knew that was the only one who did not want to anger.

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Cassandra kept herself as serious as possible, but the reproach had embittered her very much.

She just wanted to do a good job, she had been trained to be the best and she didn't want to disappoint the expectations of those who had spent their resources to take her to the top of the Amazons.

She could do it, she was the best.

The conversation continued with exchanges of information and orders to be carried out. Cassandra listened carefully, she didn't need to take notes thanks to her good memory. After an hour and a half they closed the communication, only then she take a deep liberating breath and finally allow herself a break.

As she drank the second cup of coffee in a row she wondered: why did we get to this point?

She had often asked herself that question during her training, it tormented her above all because she knew that this situation, the one that was currently happening towards Nadia; she had an easy solution.

It had always been close at hand, even all that noise could have been prevented.

When she had had the courage to ask one of her superiors, when she was still a simple recruit, she had replied that it was not something that depended on them.

And by whom? she asked again.

That question had been answered by her Majesty in person, when they had introduced her to an Oasis ceremony after noticing her amazing abilities. The answer had been as short as it was confused: from the earth.

The pilot announced the imminent landing, soon it would be time to get to work.

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Nadia woke with a heat stroke.

A pleasant warmth at first that made her dream with a smile after a long time… and then became more suffocating and ardent. It took her a few minutes to realize that a small area of ​​her hand was burning. She put out the little flame by slapping it, after all the effort to stay alive the previous night it would have been ridiculous to die from a fire caused by a car lighter.

She threw that damn thing away, she had had enough of hot stuff.

She vigorously rubbed her face, in the short time she had slept she had not rested at all.

She stepped out of the cabin of the battered van that looked like a perfect reproduction of those used by hippies in movies, the Nevada desert was still too vast for her, as wide as the sea she had admired once in her life, but hot, dry and bleak instead of wet cauldron of primeval life and with waves of red dust instead of blue waves with white crests. The absence of plant life meant death for a nymph like her.

Death. What a bad word. She never thought she could fully understand its meaning so early in her young life. The previous evening she had been hallucinating, only by a miracle she had come out more or less unscathed. As they were about to collide in that shop she had thought it was the end, but The Incubus had caught her and they were bolted out of that steel trap before the big bang. Fortunately none of those monsters had seen them, and luck had continued until the discovery of that van with which they had left the city and traveled all night, at least as long as their forces had allowed them. Nadia had driven, it was the first time she had done so. She would even have considered it funny in a different situation. The demon had passed out immediately upon entering the rear compartment, he had a deep cut on his head from which bled profusely and had assumed he was dead. Instead he was still alive, lying motionless on the filthy ash-stained floor, breathing faintly. The van smelled more now than when they had boarded it, as if the warming sun it had released the disgusting remnants of whatever had been inside.

She sat in the shade of the vehicle, constantly wiping away the sweat.

She was trying to think what to do now but nothing came to her mind except that she was hungry, thirsty and sleepy.

She heard the sound of running water. She walked around the vehicle, worried about a possible loss of the latter. Instead it was Amyntas releasing the bladder.

> he asked her while he carried out the last drops of urine.

What kind of question was that?

> Nadia answered embarrassed.

He took a step toward her staggering like drunk. He was not in good shape, his clothes were torn and his fur stained with dried blood, the cut slightly touched the third eye which was ajar. He tried to get back on board but fell to his knees in pain, at least in that state he could not harm her.

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The Incubus broke into a big laugh.

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Amyntas stopped laughing when the girl showed him the ring with the red stone. The other Nymph had given it to her just before she died, closing it in her hand so that she wouldn't lose it. She had held it tight all the time, the shape of the false gem was imprinted inside the palm like a kind of scar.

> he exclaimed irritably.

> she said satisfied.

Nadia promised to free him only after he helped her, then their paths would divided and they would never hear from each other. Considering that the deal was good enough, the demon agreed.

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****

Hawk had a devil for a hair; they had arrived too late.

He couldn't be blamed, not only had he missed the chance to save a girl but the demons had again committed a misfortune. Even this time they had not held back to damage and kill victims, only this time they had had the fantasy of exploiting animals, Las Vegas was already a zoo in itself but now it was exaggerating. Most of the animals had been killed, it was the only option to stop the wild frenzy that had overwhelmed them even after they had been abandoned by their monstrous masters, free to tear or injure any civilian.

He took a deep breath to stay professional as inquiries continued to come in about what to do with the carcasses and the wounded, whether they should continue the search for demons or move in new directions. He wanted to scream and screw it all up, but instead he had to try to stay lucid to prove he was a really good Captain.

He collapsed in his wheelchair - which he still had to carry with him - when his legs began to give up again for the pain. He could only walk thanks to stamina and stubbornness, but his limbs were still weak.

> Hawk glanced at a video, the short sequence of scenes showed Amyntas with Nadia running away.

He was amazed that a creature as delicate as a Nymph was still alive having a Incubus for "company", but above all that he protected her. This, at least, was the first impression he got, but he could be wrong.

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Hawk was not surprised, after all, it was from the day they had given him the case that things were not going right. Was there at least something useful in that investigation?

An agent passed him a call, Hawk took his cell phone resignedly expecting yet another "good" news. He listened only to nod a couple of times and then jumped to his feet, staggering just enough.

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> he ordered, as he got into the car.

Agents who had worked with him for years hoped it was something to translate into good news. Indeed for Hawk it was.

He drove regardless of whether he respected the highway code or not and his legs screamed for mercy, he had to get to the bus station as soon as possible. The last-minute warning from the headquarters had been a real bomb: in other words it was the arrival of reinforcements.

It was a single person, one of those so-called "special agents" whose capacity was required only in situations of extreme emergency and only if the board of directors (as in the case of the TDE) reached unanimous agreement. If Hawk's Secret Organization summoned one of these people, then it meant either that they were in trouble or that they had a chance to repair the damage. In his case, it was the second option.

He reached the bus station at the same time as a silver bus came in. The few passengers got out neatly looking tired and bored, unaware of the show that took place last night.

Hawk called the only one he recognized, it stopped with a startle of surprise that almost made him fall as he got off the last step of the bus. They greeted each other with a vigorous handshake.

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The Captain's guest was a young boy with small ice-blue eyes hidden behind a pair of round glasses with red plastic frames, sunken into a thin, elongated face with a square jaw with still boyish features. His black marble hair was short and neatly combed, his skin was a bright, healthy pink and his eyebrows were well-groomed, and he had the smell of an expensive perfume. Even in the clothing there was something expensive and elegant, the clothing itself consisted of a beige shirt and trousers, the sporty shoes shined as if they were made of leather and at the neck he wore a gold chain with a small plate attached .

So to see him, no one would have thought that Ewan Atwood Barclay was one of the most important agents of the TDE and surroundings, he looked more like a model.

Hawk had only worked with him a couple of times, but his skills had stuck in his mind. Like so many others he had been deceived by appearances the first time he met him and did not doubt that he, as soon as he had shown off his skills; had enjoyed making him change his mind. Hawk was athletic, as well as being a good strategist and also a good leader ... but Ewan was head and shoulders above him in one factor: he was capable of wielding true magic. He was a sorcerer, one of the very few still in the world.

> he asked this in an offended tone.

His typical English speech was always unmistakable, unfortunately for him it was very similar to those parodied by comedians and for this he had become the subject of jokes among colleagues.

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The Captain, according to orders, was to take Atwood to the TDE interim base there in Las Vegas, but he boy demanded that to be taken to the disaster zone and when he wanted something he got it. He was smart, but also stubborn. The soldier had to agree reluctantly, not so much because it went against the orders of his bosses, but because he wanted to spare him the spectacle.

Once at his destination, Ewan stopped at the barriers that limited the start of the accident area. He contemplated the landscape of dead animals and people with a face of cold impassivity, but what betrayed his appearance was the slight tremor of the hands that energetically gripped the precious wooden rosary, a long-time traveling companion.

He sang an incomprehensible chant, the way it sounded like a Latin prayer. He almost seemed to sing, who noticed it was listening hypnotized.

After that, he went to do his job.

As soon as he arrived Ewan had immediately closed himself in his office, but not before having - so to speak - prepared the ground.

He had very specific demands: first of all he needed a room just for himself and it had to be filled with flowers of Angelica, Daisies and Alisso; no one could enter unless they first pronounced some sort of password and whoever lived with him had to keep a bell with them. The Captain also had to bring one, but his was out of tune and he hated it. The boy was very paranoid, but he would never admit it.

He had old books and special alchemist tools, as a good sorcerer he spent the time between reading books and doing small experiments. He was very meticulous especially with the reading, he did not continue with other volumes if he did not first read every single line of what he had on hand, noting down whatever was interesting and useful thus filling piles of notebooks.

Hawk was confident in his abilities, even though he didn't understand how his job worked he was well convinced that it would help them.

He remembered the first time they had met: they had crossed paths in England almost nine years ago, at the time Hawk was at a summit with Ewan's uncle - then his superior - now retired.

He had brought Ewan to convince him to join the TDE, not so much to have a relative who could follow in his footsteps, but to protect him from the sect itself. He had discovered the "powers" of his nephew recently at the time, during the summit he had talked about it with some experts and a short test had confirmed it, from which a discussion had started to decide what to do with him: the few individuals endowed with magic had to be taken into custody, which also meant permanently removing him from the family. In a technological world and stingy with emotions, there was no longer any place for those who boasted that gift, magic works in a complex way, you need to have total control of your "self" to handle it without harming yourself or others . The uncle had asked for some time to think about it, to wait before the leaders were informed of the boy's existence. He knew he was going against protocol, but he did not accept that the rules imposed by the sect created problems for his young and shy nephew.

By then Hawk himself had set out to help them, trying to exploit his growing popularity among the top ranks of the federation. One way or another he managed to find a compromise that didn't force Ewan to be forcibly relegated there among them and thus have a fairly normal life, as close to family as possible. Gradually the boy had taken control and confidence in his powers, quickly becoming an important figure in the sect to the point that he no longer had to obey its rules.

He had always been a peculiar boy both before and after the start of his career.

A character like him was difficult to decipher and perhaps for this reason he had been able to circumvent the rules of the sect.

The Captain returned to the present the moment he heard him scream.

He smashed the office door with a shoulder in defiance of the rules, drawing the gun with the dexterity of a cowboy.

The office, apart from the rickety piles of books erected all over the place and the chemical equipment, was in perfect order, but on the table that occupied the center of the room he noticed a strange green, almost spheroidal mass. The "thing" every now and then jumped just enough to move a few centimeters on the table spraying clear liquid around, Hawk did not expect it and we just missed a shot. Ewan was on the opposite side of the table protecting himself with only a pencil, but he was neither injured or life threatening.

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Ewan put on gloves and bravely grabbed the green mass.

His expression was more annoyed than disgusted, the Captain was nauseated. He wasn't completely surprised by his coolness to touch something that had been inside a person, his adoptive father worked as a coroner and his grandfather had been a gravedigger… so he was used to dealing with dead things.

He lifted it and it was immediately a roar of fluids, the room filled with the scent of wet earth and flowers. Upon closer inspection that thing was a heap of grass, it looked like a big green ball in appearance.

Suddenly the plot moved: a woman's face emerged from the tangle with a pained expression. Ewan was surprised but did not let go, the Captain instead barely held back a retching. The eyes and mouth of the corpse began to jerk without synchrony, the impression was that of a broken mechanical toy.

Ewan, very interested in the phenomenon; nodded as if he were really conversing with that… whoever she was.

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Hawk shrugged, he had no idea what he was talking about.

They learned many interesting things: the demons were looking for an artifact called "Heart". It seems that it contained immense power that they intended to destroy rather than take possession of it, it was rumored that anyone who succeeded could shape the world into a new form. That was the reason for that pandemonium, everyone was chasing this object. The possibility of being able to control the Earth was an opportunity that appealed to many.

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The Englishman continued the bizarre ritual. The other information he got was no less interesting: he learned that this Heart have a designated a keeper who must have maniacal care for it, otherwise it power risks flaring up like fire. The unknown woman said that only a few individuals are aware of this secret, as many as the fingers of a hand. But someone had leaked the secret.

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A nymph? Red hair?

Hawk had goosebumps, now that strange story finally made sense.

He picked up old files and almost threw them at the boy, scattering the photos of the victims he had investigated one on top of the other. He showed them to him, briefly recounting past investigations, lastly he mentioned the kidnapping of Nadia Lowe and all the last traces of her.

> said triumphantly for having found the link.

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The head quivered, the eyes rolled like marbles and slowly the wires of grass that made it up withered and gave way in shape. She let out an eerie groan as she became to scrub, losing the last glimmer of life. There was nothing left after that, just a bunch of dry grass and two men who still needed answers.

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