To The Nines, Page 2

Kiri ran out of the elevator before it could completely open. Down the hallway she raced, heading directly to Jill's Executive Office. “Excuse me,” the administrative assistant called out.

  “No time Jimmy,” the Techie exclaimed as she barreled through the double doors. She found her boss talking to a woman with black hair. “Boos, we have a-” she stopped once the other woman turned to face her.

  It was Genia Lee.

  “Um, what,” Kiri questioned out loud.

  “Something wrong, Miss Fairchild,” Jill questioned.

  “Yeah...what is she doing here?”

  “There are deals between ZioTech Industries and Professional Heroes Incorporated that can be beneficial to both parties,” she answered curtly.

  “Okay, fine. Anyway, I've gotten some information that doesn't make any sense,” the Techie reported. “These energy spikes popped up overnight, but one was just snuffed out-”

  “Does this require my immediate attention,” Jill asked, cutting her off.

  Kiri was caught off-guard. “Noooo,” she replied slowly. “I just thought...we might need to...look into it...”

  “You can handle it then,” Jill ordered, waving her off.

  Kiri was shocked for a moment, leaving the room. 'What has gotten into her,' she thought. 'A few months ago, she would be up and out the door before I finished explaining.' She was so lost in though that she ended up slamming headfirst into Valkadaidan.

  “Ow,” she squealed, holding her forehead. “It's like hitting a brick wall.” As she rubbed her head, it felt like a fog was lifting. Like something was losing it's grip on her. “Valk, you need to watch where I'm going,” she fussed.

  Valkadaidan just glared at her, then walked off.

  “What's gotten into him?”

  Deadguy ducked from the knife attack. He and Lilith were locked in a fight with a pair of red-headed twins. The necromancer was using the spirits of the dead to hold off her attacker. Our Hero wished he could do the same. Instead, he threw a punch into his opponent's stomach. The blow knocked the wind out of him. He followed it up with a strong left hook, knocking the man out.

  He looked back over to see several ghostly fists hitting the other twin's face and upper body. The twin crumpled to the floor. Two small burgundy spheres floated up from their unconscious bodies. It formed into one and tried to fly away. Lilith whipped out another crystal and captured it before it could get away. “That was a workout,” she stated.

  “That was only the second one,” DG remarked. “Don't tell me you're getting tired already?”

  The necromancer glared at him, then pulled out Gregory. “Where to next?”

  “,” the skull replied.

  “Vanity,” Lilith relayed to Deadguy.

  “Vanity, we celebrate, my favorite of sins,” DG remarked.

  “What?”

  “I seriously need to sit you down to listen to my Kamelot catalog,” he stated.

  Kiri sat in her office, dumbstruck. What was going on? Why was Jill consorting with our enemy? Why was Valk giving everyone the silent treatment? She needed to get to the bottom of this. Her stomach grumbled. “But first, lunch,” she thought to herself.

  Deadguy and Lilith sat patiently as the local news personality Chuck Demut sat in the makeup chair. A makeup artist tried her best to hide all the signs of aging from the man's face. “It's always nice to meet a fellow news maker,” Chuck said to Our Hero.

  “Sometimes it's not by choice,” DG defended. “What with all the fighting and explosions and minotaurs.”

  Chuck turned in his chair, a look of surprised shock on his face. “I reported on that battle,” he announced. “I was right in the middle of it all.”

  Both Deadguy and Lilith raised an eyebrow. “Where,” they asked at the same time.

  The newscaster turned back to the mirror. He looked hurt. “It felt like I was there,” he grumbled.

  “Let's just nab the soul and go,” Our Hero whispered.

  “Not while the makeup artist is here,” she whispered back.

  As if on cue, the makeup artist left in a huff. The three were alone. “So, how long have you been a fan of mine,” Chuck asked.

  “Long enough to get here,” Deadguy replied.

  Lilith pulled out another crystal and began to chant.

  “Huh,” the newscaster questioned. His body suddenly seized. It began to shake and convulse. His mouth began to foam. A violet sphere slowly pulled away from his chest. He collapsed in his chair as the soul was dragged into the crystal.

  “I was expecting at least a little bit of a fight,” Our Hero said.

  A long, loud fart erupted from Chuck.

  The two quickly fled the room.