Before Wade could reply, the sounds of multiple women screaming rose up from below. Both men sprang into action immediately, forgetting any attempts at stealth. They bolted from the room and hurried down the stairs, where they found a scene straight out of one of the more lurid pulp magazines.

  A large box was in the center of the foyer, its lid lying on the floor. A card written in Mobius’ recognizable hand was turned upwards, revealing the words OPEN ME, followed by a specific time. Lazarus glanced quickly at a clock on the wall and saw that the appropriate hour had been reached.

  From within the box emerged a strange creature: milky white and octopoid in appearance, its dark eyes traveled hungrily over the maids and other servants in the room.

  A tentacle shot out and grabbed one of the women, slamming her into the wall. Her head cracked under the blow, spilling blood down her maid’s uniform.

  Lazarus immediately recognized what this was: Leviathan was bolting from his hiding hole and his policy was of the scorched-earth variety. He was planning for this beast to kill all those who might lead his enemies to him.

  Gray took aim and opened fire, his bullet expelling leaden death. The bullets ripped into the monster’s side and attracted its full attention. Another tentacle extended toward Lazarus, snatching him up by the ankle and yanking him off his feet.

  Thunder Jim Wade leaped forward, landing atop the tentacle that was roped around his ally’s appendage. Yanking free a knife from around his waist, Wade raised it high and buried it into the monster’s flesh. It was thick and Wade had to grunt with effort to pierce it. But once the creature’s thick green blood began to flow, the beast went wild. It released its grip on Lazarus but began attacking with all of its tentacles at Thunder Jim Wade.

  A tentacle closed around Wade’s throat and lifted him into the air, squeezing so hard that he felt like his eyes were about to pop out of his head.

  More gunshots began to ring out now as the forces of Assistance Unlimited and Thunder Jim Wade’s team began forcing their way into the house, drawn by the sounds of violence. To their credit, one and all recovered from their shock quickly and began attacking the monstrous beast.

  Samantha, Morgan and Red all unloaded their weapons at the monster’s head while Dirk and Eun bravely moved close enough to engage it in physical combat, peppering its body with blows.

  Wade, still gasping for air, was suddenly tossed aside. His body hurtled through the air, headed toward a potentially fatal impact with the wall.

  Lazarus, ignoring the pain in his injured leg, sprinted after him. He threw himself up, using his body to halt Wade’s movement. The two men slammed together and fell to the floor in a tangled heap.

  Shaking his head to clear it, Lazarus looked up to see that the monster was thrashing about wildly now, nearly insane with pain. The thing’s tentacles were slamming here and there, breaking the spines of several of the house’s servants and knocking Eun over onto his back.

  As Lazarus struggled to his feet, he saw Morgan edging closer to the creature, dodging its flailing limbs. The group’s oldest member jumped, grabbing hold of the thing’s head. He plugged the barrel of his gun directly into one of its eyes and fired, emptying the last of his bullets straight into its brain.

  Morgan slid to the floor as the monster died. He was panting loudly but when Samantha ran up to him, concern etched on her face, he grinned roguishly and pulled her into his arms. They embraced for a moment and when they pulled apart, he was laughing.

  “Did you see that?” he asked, looking about. He mimed putting the gun to the creature’s head. “Bam!”

  Samantha grinned. “You’re insane.”

  “I feel more alive than I have in years.”

  Eun was pulled to his feet with the help of Dirk. “What the hell was that thing?”

  “A last ditch effort to cover Leviathan’s tracks,” Lazarus answered. “Scour the house and look for anyone who hasn’t fled. It’s possible one of them might have useful information.”

  The team dispersed quickly, leaving Thunder Jim Wade and Lazarus Gray alone.

  Wade was rubbing his throat, which was scraped raw. “This isn’t good, you know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “If he left something like this behind, it’s because he isn’t planning to come back.”

  Lazarus nodded, a grim smile fleeting across his stoic features. “True. But now I know where he’s headed.”

  The confusion that passed over Wade’s face was undeniable. “How in the hell…?”

  Kneeling, Lazarus pushed through the dead creature’s tentacles until he found the card that had accompanied the white box. On one side were Leviathan’s directions about when to open the parcel but on the other was a woman’s handwriting, a flowing script that contained the words “Bachelor’s Grove.”

  Wade took the card from Lazarus and studied it. “Bachelor’s Grove… that sounds familiar.”

  “It’s an area located about twenty miles south of Chicago. It was established in the 1840s. The cemetery there is a hub of supernatural energy. I’ve never visited it myself but during my time with The Illuminati, I heard several stories about it.”

  “This card doesn’t mean that’s where they’ve gone.”

  “I think it does. I think it was left here for us to find.”

  “Why would Mobius want us to track him?”

  “I’m not sure that he does. The tone of the card I found – about how Alexa was going to destroy him. Maybe she intends to.”

  “Doesn’t seem like much to go on,” Wade murmured. “But it’s not like we’ve got anything else going for us.”

  Lazarus said nothing as Wade wandered away. He knew that Thunder Jim felt that they were running in circles. Lazarus, however, felt like his prey was coming ever closer.

  Perhaps Bachelor’s Grove would be the place where Leviathan’s run finally came to an end.

  Chapter XI

  The Transformation of Man

  Bachelor’s Grove had an ambience to it that made Leviathan smile beneath his mask. The air spoke of ancient rituals and broken hearts, of dreams shattered beyond repair and the life’s blood of those who had lived in vain to achieve them.

  “How old is this place?” he asked, wandering through the tombstones and inhaling deeply. A full moon hung fat and bloated in the sky above him, illuminating everything in a soft, milky white glow.

  Alexa watched him, an enigmatic smile on her lips. Despite the chilly weather, she wore a seductive red dress that bared more of her legs and cleavage than would have been acceptable in polite company. “Officially, it dates back to 1844 as a burial ground but you’ll note that some of the tombstones are older.”

  Leviathan stopped in the very center of the cemetery and turned slowly in place. “Dark things have been done here.”

  “Very. Even before the white man had come here, the Indians considered this ground tainted. They tried to talk the settlers out of burying their dead here, for fear that the angry dead would rise again.”

  “And did they?”

  “There are stories,” Alexa said with a laugh. “But then, there always are, aren’t there?”

  Leviathan caught sight of an unusual monument and he approached it slowly, reaching out with the fingers of his right hand to touch it. It was a life-sized sculpture of an angel, one of her breasts exposed. Her wings were half curled around her and one arm was outstretched, as if she were reaching toward something unseen. A perfectly sculpted tear was frozen forever on her cheek. “This is lovely.”

  “No one in the area knows who built it,” Alexa responded, moving closer. “It literally appeared one day. Some say that God himself put it here, to symbolize his sadness at what has become of Man.”

  Leviathan turned to look at her. “No more games. Why are we here? What am I to do?”

  “You’re prepared for ultimate power?”

  “I am.”

  “I like it when you’re bold like this.”

  “Stop teasing me,” he warned. “Let’s just get on with it.”

  Alexa jumped up on the pedestal that held the angel’s statue. She clung to its wings and her face grew serious. “There’s a man named Grover Jackson who tends the cemetery. He’ll be along soon. When he does, you need to kill him and spill his blood on the oldest grave in this field – that one right there.” She pointed toward a black marker, so worn with age that Leviathan could scarcely make out the words on its surface.

  Leviathan nodded. Murder was hardly something that would give him pause. He started to ask about the significance of the marker and who was buried beneath it, but in the end, it didn’t matter. All that mattered was the power he’d receive.

  “I think I hear him coming now,” Alexa said breathlessly. She seemed keenly excited about the entire affair, which intrigued Leviathan, since she so rarely displayed interest in his affairs. It always seemed like his troubles were a source of amusement to her.

  Leviathan moved behind the black marker and knelt down, knowing that Alexa would also find a hiding place. It was time for Grover Jackson’s life to come to an end.

  ***

  Grover whistled to himself as he walked through the cemetery. He wore frayed pants and a dingy gray shirt. A jacket that was too large for him covered his thin shoulders and shielded him from the chill. At seventy-two years of age, he had outlived two wives. He was the father of six children and four grandchildren.

  All in all, things had been good for Grover, despite the fact that he’d never had much in the way of money.

  For nearly 35 years, he had worked as the graveyard’s keeper, tending to the flowers and making sure that vandals didn’t wreak havoc at night. He’d heard all the stories about ghostly visitations and more than once, he’d seen things that were hard to explain – but he felt like the cemetery’s residents regarded him as a natural part of things and not an interloper. As such, he’d never felt threatened.

  Until tonight.

  Grover stopped near the crying angel and his whistling ended abruptly. Something wasn’t right, though he couldn’t quite put his finger on what. He looked around and finally yelled, “Is anybody out there? Don’t play with me, now! Nobody’s supposed to be out here except me and the dead!”

  “How appropriate,” Leviathan said, rising from behind the black marker.

  Grover stared through the gloom at the masked man and he quickly blinked his eyes to clear them. It almost looked like the figure was shifting, changing, into something inhuman. Wormlike things extended from the man’s mouth, wiggling in the air. “What the hell are you?” he asked.

  “Some call me the Devil,” Leviathan replied, pleased to see that the hallucinogenic gas he’d released into the air was working. He always carried several capsules of the stuff, which could be broken easily between his fingers. “But that’s not true. The real devil is inside each and every man.” He tapped his chest. “The real Satan is right in here. Can’t you feel it? Straining to get out? To run free?”

  Grover realized that he could feel it. His heart was hammering so hard in his chest that it felt like someone was banging a drum. He clutched his chest, suddenly short of breath. “I’ve been a good Christian,” he whispered.

  “I’m sure you have.” Leviathan moved toward him, his hands suddenly bursting into flame. Grover could feel the heat from them. “But there comes a time of final judgment for all men. If you’ve been a good and just man, you have nothing to fear.”

  Grover closed his eyes, unable to look at the horror before him. His feet seemed rooted to the ground. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

  Leviathan laughed mockingly. “Do you really feel comforted, Mr. Jackson? Truly?”

  Before Grover could answer, Leviathan had grabbed him by the throat, squeezing with an almost inhuman strength. He lifted the old man off his feet and literally carried him over to the black marker. He could sense Alexa watching him but he never took his eyes off of Grover’s face. The old man was kicking and punching but his blows were ineffectual.

  “It’s time to walk through that valley, Mr. Jackson.”

  ***

  Alexa ran her fingers through the gore, spreading the blood over the recessed letters on the marker. As Leviathan watched, the liquid filled in the gaps, allowing the letters to be read at last. They glowed with a malevolence that shocked even the jaded former leader of The Illuminati.

  The words HERE LIES CALVIN MEEKS, MAY HIS BLACK HEART ROT IN HELL were now clearly defined.

  “Who was he?” Leviathan asked.

  “An ardent follower of evil,” Alexa replied. “His descendant lives in Sovereign City, still following the dark path laid down by Calvin11.”

  Leviathan continued to watch, his eyes and ears memorizing every little detail of Alexa’s actions. The lovely woman stood up and began undressing, revealing her lovely form to his hungry gaze. The moonlight seemed to enhance the redness of her hair and the milky whiteness of her body. Her nipples hardened in the cold air and Leviathan’s mouth suddenly felt dry.

  “Calvin Meeks,” she said, raising her voice. “Long have you lain in this grave, awaiting the hour of your summoning! Now is the time when you can repay the debts that you owe! Come forth! Arise!”

  The ground began to rumble, nearly dislodging Leviathan’s footing. Shadows lengthened and clouds overtook the moon, plunging the cemetery into an almost stygian darkness.

  A hand burst forth from the grave of Calvin Meeks, tatters of skin wrapped loosely around bone. Earth was dislodged as the undead creature clambered forth, rising unsteadily. The corpse swayed on its heels, its skull rolling about before finally coming to a halt. The stench of death was nearly palpable and the worm-eaten flesh and clothing of Meeks were enough to drive Leviathan back a few steps.

  “Beautiful Alexa,” Meeks hissed, his voice issuing forth from a mouth that had long ago lost its tongue. When it came to the supernatural, Mobius had long ago learned that the ways of the flesh no longer applied.

  The true shock took a moment to register with Mobius, however. Meeks knew Alexa… and he now wondered if the price for his own power would be something similar: centuries of rotting consciously under the soil, waiting for her to come and give him new bidding?

  “How may I serve you?” Meeks asked. He seemed fixated on the nude woman before him, having not even glanced in Leviathan’s direction.

  “That gift I gave you so long ago must now be returned.” Alexa reached out and took the monstrous face in her hands.

  Meeks shifted uneasily. “I love you, still….”

  “I know and it will always be appreciated.” As Leviathan watched with a mixture of jealousy and disgust, Alexa leaned in and kissed the corpse, her tongue pushing between its rotting teeth. The glow that emanated from deep within the dead man’s sunken eye sockets grew brighter, swelling in intensity until Leviathan could no longer look at it.

  When Leviathan noticed that the light was gone, he saw that Alexa stood there smiling at him. Meeks was gone, his remains reduced to dust lying at her feet.

  The beauty lay down on the soft earth, spreading her legs for him. “Now, my Leviathan. Take what you want from me… and receive my gift into your very soul.”

  Mobius hesitated for only a moment before his lust overcame him. He had desired this woman for what seemed like such a long time… and now she was offering her body to him. He threw himself on top of her, hurriedly getting half undressed. As he plunged into her, he felt something peculiar – as if a part of her was simultaneously working itself into him. He shuddered and shook as pain became pleasure, all twisting together into something earth shattering. He howled like a wolf as his mind and body seemed to explode.

  When the deed was over, he lay panting atop her, only dimly aware of her indulgent laughter. Then he rolled off, landing on his back. He stared up at the stars in amazement, realizing that he was seeing between them, into the regions of space that normal man couldn’t comprehend. There were dimensions tucked away in the mathematical corners of our universe, hidden lairs for beings far older and far more dangerous than anything born of Earth.

  “What did you do to me?” he asked and his voice rolled like thunder.

  “I gave you what you wanted, in more ways than one.” Alexa stood up and began dressing, her facial expression quite serious. “You need to test your power.”

  Leviathan rose to his feet and adjusted his clothing. He saw the sway of her breasts as she pulled her dress down over her head. His desire was muted now, not just because he had climaxed so recently, but because he no longer viewed her in the same way. He could see her true form now and though it did not disgust him, it was far from appealing. She was like some sort of human spider, her body covered by a fine trail of coarse hair and her face distorted by multiple eyes and a strange, inhuman mouth.

  Without speaking, Leviathan raised both hands and channeled his power into the very earth. Within seconds, the ground was writhing from beneath, as all those buried here were called forth. The shambling dead rose up, staggering toward their new lord and master. “Satisfied?” he asked.

  “Somewhat.” Alexa crossed her arms and stared at him. “Now that you’re no longer just a showman, what are your plans? How are you going to use all this amazing power?”

  Leviathan paused, considering the matter. His first inclination was to simply hunt down Lazarus Gray and Thunder Jim – and then utterly destroy the both of them. But now that his body seethed with eldritch energy, he realized that while such a path might momentarily satisfy him, he now had the capability of thinking in much grander terms.

  “Bachelor’s Grove… that sounds familiar.”

  Leviathan grunted in surprise. He’d heard Thunder Jim Wade’s voice in his head and gotten a quick visual to accompany it – somehow, Wade and Gray had found a card with the words Bachelor’s Grove on it. They knew where Mobius had gone!

 

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