THE VROL TRILOGY (139 page)

"Okay, I understand. I guess. Let's get back.
We found a nest so this is where the soldiers can train."

Max sat on Dons' private couch, relishing in
the music performed by Lennie's band. They were playing a lush,
rhythmic beat, accompanied by synthesizers and distorted guitars.
Lennie's pregnant wife, Jellie, was using her substantial voice to
add to the arrangement. Once they were done, Lennie made a bee-line
to Max, sitting down next to his friend.

"Heya Maxie! Good ta see ya, mate!"

"Hi Lennie, same here. How's Jellie
doing?"

"Getting big. Little Max will be healthy and
happy."

"I'm sure he will be. Anyway, we're only here
for a short while, but I'll make it so you can send me a message
when he's born. Jen and I'd love to meet the little fellow."

"Max," said the mellow vampire, "I got ahold
of a history book, and there was something called godparents.
Anyway, I was wondering if you and your wife would agree to be
little Max's godparents. It seems like a ceremonial thing, nothing
formal, ya know."

Max smiled and nodded his head. "You bet,
Lennie. It would be our honor."

"
Max, you do
realize that the duty of godparents is to take charge of the child
in case of the death of the parents, right?
" Jennie
thought out to her husband over their shared comm.

"
I know,
sweetie. That's what friends are for
."

Chapter 14 - Raid

Four a.m.

A massive group of lycan soldiers from three
very different worlds stood in formation, their commanding officer,
Luigi Bagatelle inspecting them for any irregularities.
Accompanying the admiral were Max, Jennie, Draagh, Michael and the
newly arrived Gabriel and Jessica, the latter along to assist in
pointing out the weak spots on Vrol necks.

This was to a slaughter-in-training. While
Draagh and his sons were initially reticent to wantonly disrupt the
balance of the local Vrol population, it would soon recover. The
most important part of the exercise was to train soldiers how to
kill Vrol in case they made it to Azul, which in itself was a
waiting game. The side slip drive capabilities on Azul's massive
naval carriers were still inaccessible to the military, thanks to
Len Johnson's tinkering. Although they were making headway in the
project, they were developing contingencies for alternate
scenarios. It was smart, effective planning.

Bagatelle walked out to the troops and
announced the beginning of the exercises.

"Troops, we are here for critical training,
as you all well know. We are slipping out south by southeast, the
location of the nest too far to go on foot. This shall be
facilitated by Michael, Gabriel, Max and Draagh. We'll go in small
groups, so stick together. The termination point is four kilometers
away from the nest, so there will be ample Vrol activity in the
area. Remember your briefings, keep your wits about you and good
hunting." Bagatelle walked off to the side, allowing Max to address
the troops.

"Men, please remember - this is not a
competition to see who can kill the most. Pick a target, freeze it,
and kill it. There is a natural order here and we already run the
risk of misbalancing it, so we're in and out. Understand?"

"Sir! Yes, sir!" the entire mass cried out in
unison. Max got a kick out of being in command, and even though he
was technically beneath Bagatelle this was his world - and he knew
how to kill Vrol.

Draagh and his offspring spread out to four
corners of the regiment, where they split off into four companies,
each going with their Primulus.

The mass of lycan soldiers appeared in what
used to be a large parking area, and they weren't quiet - at all.
In fact, their ruckus attracted a small group of Vrol fliers and
some ground bugs. As they targeted the lycans for attack,
unwittingly sealing their own fates, the men spread out breaking
down into battalions, and then into companies, followed by platoons
of specialized small groups of twenty soldiers each. Two platoons
with shoulder-launched surface to air missiles took a center
position and started to eliminate Fliers. The missiles functioned
flawlessly, decimating the creatures instantly.

"
G, watch the
ground bugs every time one of our missiles takes out a flier -
they're disoriented. They're connected to each other, so we'll need
to use that to our advantage
," informed Max, using his
command comm channel.

"
Max, I can't
see that happening, being on the ground. Dammit - I'm so used to
being on the bridge of a ship. How can I
--"

Before Bagatelle could say another word he
was suspended one hundred meters above the fight, Max at his side.
Looking down he could barely see a transparent sheen - some sort of
force field Max had created for him to stand on.

"Whoa! I don’t want to fall, Max," cautioned
Bagatelle.

"Don't worry, Cuñado. You aren't going
anywhere. You're actually in a bubble."

The troops were working together as effective
units, and both Max and Bagatelle were pleased with their
performance. Max moved them around to see the fight from different
angles, and at the same time making sure no Vrol fliers snuck up on
them.

The two listened to the soldiers communicate
as each one made his kill. They were doing precisely as instructed,
back and base of the neck. Everything was going along swimmingly
until they heard some odd chatter going on over the comm.

"
What was
that?"

"I know! It was small, but… wow! It just
took out a bug!"

"What the hell is it? One of those cat
people?"

"No, it's lycan. I can
smell it. And it… also… smells like… bubble
bath!
"

"Oh crap, she's in
so
much trouble. Come on, G, we're going down,"
said Max, as he slipped himself and the Admiral to ground level.
Max instantly found Jennie, who had been working with a small group
of her special forces from the Rhönen. Pulling her off to the side,
he asked desperately, "Jen, did you leave Lili with my
mom?"

Before Jennie could answer, they both heard
Liliana's small voice howl out in victory, and turning around, saw
her standing on the burnt-out carcass of an ancient automobile,
sword hoisted into the air.

"That's the way you do it, bitches! Three! I
killed three! Yeah!"

"
Who is the
little girl?"

"I dunno! But she kicks ass!"

"That is the Gunnarssons' daughter. She is
one of ours! Of the Rhönen!"

Max shot over, flying to Liliana's position,
and scooping her off the top of the car, disappeared with a light
popping sound.

Standing in the restaurant of the hotel, Max
looked down at his daughter. His precocious, disobedient daughter,
who happened to be a formidable warrior in her own right.

"Liliana, who said you could go on this
training mission?"

"Papi, no one said I could
not
go," she responded, wearing a
face of pure innocence.

Michael slipped Jennie into the hotel and
immediately ported out, leaving the mother to run to her family.
Jennie practically tackled Liliana, grabbing the girl and hugging
her tightly.

"Why? Why did you do that? You were brought
here to visit and get away from the castle, not go into a
potentially deadly situation! Lili! Answer me!"

The little girl gave her mother a meek look,
and then simply said, "I only had one kill and needed to stay ahead
of the troops."

"Max, wherever there's action Liliana's is in
another timeline, another planet - I don't care. Another galaxy.
Leave her in the Hub," yelped Jennie.

"I agree. Liliana, you're grounded."

"What? But why? That sucks! I killed three
Vrol!"

Max looked down at his lovely child and
quietly said, "For making poor choices."

"Max, I'll get her up to your mom. You go
ahead and get the teams back," said Jennie, taking Liliana's hand
and dragging her toward the stairs. Max was gone in a flash, but as
soon as he left she looked down at the little girl.

"Three? You got three?"

Liliana smiled and nodded her head.

Jennie hesitated for a moment, trying
to not show her pride, and then said, "Girl power! But
never
again, understand?"

"Yes, Mami."

The teams extracted Vrol teeth and collected
them in a large bucket before starting to go back in small groups.
Their work was done, and every soldier had at least one kill under
his belt. However, the only one to have killed three was the young
Gunnarsson. Liliana's tally rested at four, counting the one she
had inadvertently killed during her first trip to PAH.

Once everyone was back on Santa Monica Blvd.
in front of Seven Sins the troops lined up for morning chow.
Clarisa had determined that breakfast burritos would be the easiest
meal to serve in the field, as they could only fit a portion of the
soldiers in the hotel's restaurant at a time.

Soldiers sat outside on benches, some
discussing the morning's activities, and more than a few talking
about Liliana and her lightning speed. The Rhönen lycans seemed
especially pleased, and more than willing to recount her tale to
their otherworldly counterparts. Liliana - the young orphan, her
birth parents so tragically taken from her on the full moon. The
disobedient little girl who saved Krynos' castle, then claimed by
Jennie, who proposed to Max to bring the three together as a
family. No one believed Jennie had proposed to Max, choosing to
assume it was the other way around.

Michael brought a burrito up to his
granddaughter, intent on having a talk with her. He had taken to
the young girl, and only wished for her safety and well-being.
Entering the spacious master suite, he saw her sitting on a couch,
looking out of the picture window and watching the crowds
below.

"Liliana, I brought you something to eat. May
I sit with you?"

"Hello, Grandfather. Of course! Did you hear?
I killed three Vrol this morning."

"Yes, I heard. You have skills beyond your
few years."

Liliana's face lit up after hearing that from
her grandfather, but then noticed he maintained a look of
sadness.

"Grandfather, why do you look unhappy?"

"Because you took an unnecessary risk."

"Life is risk, grandfather. It is what makes
it all worth living."

"Necessary risks, child. Not unnecessary
ones. What you did was brave, but foolish."

"Why foolish, Grandfather?"

"Because you did it for pride."

"Pride?"

"Liliana, tell me… what are the seven deadly
sins? I know they have been taught to you."

Liliana thought for a moment, and then
blurted out, "Lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride…
oh… pride."

"Yes. Liliana, none of us are perfect. I have
been alive for eons, and have erred much in the past. However,
while I am here I am making it a point to assure that you grow up
to be a happy, productive adult. You have a long life ahead of you.
Please, do not ever do that again. Can you imagine your parents'
faces if something were to happen to you?"

"They would be sad, I imagine."

"Now, let me ask you… how would you feel if
your mother died?"

"Mami? She is too strong. She will not
die."

Michael waved his hand, conjuring an
infoscreen that displayed a ground-level playback of when Jennie
noticed Liliana was in the middle of the fight. She turned and
looked around frantically for her daughter, and while she did so a
ground Vrol came up behind her. It had nearly used its pinschers to
snap Jennie's neck when it disintegrated and fell into a pile of
ashes. The vid showed Michael, hand outstretched, behind where the
bug was only a second before. He had acted barely in time to save
Jennie's life. Michael froze playback and looked at Liliana, who
continued to stare at the screen in horror.

"Your mother almost died today, and she
knows not. This is
your
fault, Liliana. Your mother nearly died because she was
distracted by
your
irresponsible actions."

Michael stood up, waved off the display and
exited the room without another word. He knew she would never tell
her mother what she had seen. He also knew she would never do
something as stupid as that ever again.

Oh shit, I had better cut it out.

The following morning Draagh called on
Liliana, not only to see how she was doing, but also to let her
know he was going to retrieve her friends who were born and raised
only thousands of miles to the north on that same world. Tommy and
Janie were good children, and could not be punished due to
Liliana's manipulative actions. He was to bring them to their
now-empty village where they could grab whatever they liked.

"Good morning, Grandfather. Would you like to
join me for breakfast?" Liliana asked, her voice completely devoid
of any guilt for her actions the day prior.

"Certainly, my dear. As long as it isn't one
of your famous lycan smoothies."

Liliana giggled softly and shook her head.
Making a blended concoction of rabbits and rats was a stunt she
pulled, months earlier, to see who had the strongest constitution.
Plus, she wanted to razzle Dons, knowing he was a mere normal. Of
course, Draagh knew this, and delighted in her sense of humor,
knowing it would be the one thing that helped her to retain a
tenuous grip on her humanity when things went for the worse.