Depths of Chaos Ch. 08

Depths of Chaos Chapter 8

This story is part of a series. Although it can be read on it's own, parts of the story may make more sense when read in order. I highly recommend reading the story "The Demon" in order to discover the origins of our beloved Kali. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy.

Kali loved this feeling. Everything she did, every little move and whisper, had one of the most confident men she had ever met completely flustered. She knew she was attractive, but there had always been much better looking women around. At least that had been her impression. Of course, her fellow geeks had always lusted after her, but she'd never thought much of it. She was such an unusual commodity in those circles that it was expected.

But Simon was different. Not only was he attractive, but he was well traveled and highly intelligent. Sure, he barely knew how to turn on a computer without a guidebook, but he clearly knew his stuff when it came to the world of the supernatural. He was a field agent for the PIA, which meant that he had to be ready to take on, and sometimes take out, some of the toughest S. O. B. s around.

And yet Kali had the power to turn this calm, collected, Man-in-Black into a quivering puddle of hormones. Now she understood the allure of seduction. She had to remember to apologize for calling Tiffany Parkers a 'skanky ho' in highschool.

Come to think of it, no I don't! The bitch made a game of stealing boyfriends and dumping them after she'd fucked them just enough to ruin their relationships.

Now that Kali knew the truth about demons, she had to wonder if the highschool slut hadn't made some sort of deal herself. Tral'zla'thor's memory held a number of such bargains. Obviously none with Tiffany, but they ran in a similar theme. A man or woman would request unassailable looks and charisma. Not only would their soul be forfeit, but the demon gained a foothold on everyone they convinced to cheat.

The demonic equivalent of a pyramid scheme.

Kali's hands cascaded down Simon's chest. Her eyes dropped away from his as something occurred to her. They had never finished the discussion about what had happened to the man that had tried to... that she had drained.

"Kali, what is it?"

"I'm afraid." Gentle fingers cupped her chin and lifted her head until her eyes met his. The fire in them had been replaced by concern. "I drained a man, killed him! I don't know if I'm going to do that again. I don't want to... I'm afraid... How..."

She couldn't finish the thought. She didn't want to think about the fact that she could utterly destroy Simon.

Simon nodded slowly. "You're afraid that you could do that any time you have sex." Kali tried to drop her head as she nodded. He allowed her just enough leeway to nod, but when she tried to look away he pulled her chin back to face him. Her eyes dropped instead. He ducked so quickly that she couldn't help but meet his brown eyes. He held no accusations or contempt. There was no scorn or pity in his expression, just honesty.

"Nothing happened. I'm still here." He straightened up and her eyes instinctively followed his. It brought a slight smile to his lips. "I can think of a number of reasons why you would have absorbed the man, but the most important fact is that you feel remorse for it. Even more, you feel guilt over the fact that it felt good."

Simon pulled Kali into a hug. As he held her close, it occurred to her that, for once, he didn't want her to see his eyes with his next admission. His voice was quiet, and laden with emotion.

"There's a rush that you can't explain when you take someone's life. It makes you feel powerful."

He pulled back and held her shoulders to turn her fully towards him. Kali adjusted. She brought her leg up and over his so that she straddled his knees. Her skirt rode up very high in order to accomplish this. She then shifted forward until her legs were pressed between his and the arms of the comfortable chair. The position would make for very intimate sex, but she brushed the thought aside with ease. Although that was the topic of conversation, the mood was far from erotic.

"The most important thing, though, is that you don't want it. To some people it becomes a drug. They need more. They become addicted."

He sighed, and his hands dropped to caress her arms absently. She'd taken her demi-jacket off, before she came over to help him, and the feel as his hands ran across her skin sent slight trembles throughout her body. It reminded her exactly how the conversation had started.

Kali glanced down and noticed that the bulge in his pants had returned. He felt her shivers, and knew exactly what his hands did to her. The knowledge excited him. His reaction excited her even more. Her hips ached in a way that had nothing to do with her position. Her core began to heat. She wanted him. She wanted to feel him inside of her. She wanted to feel it without the drug-like haze of the spell that she had cast on the both of them.

Simon's hands slid over her arms and onto her chest. Her body shook with faint delight as he pressed against her breasts, even through two layers of fabric. But his fingers continued on and began to meticulously work the buttons on her blouse.

"But what if I..."

The fabric tugged against her as he used his grip on her shirt to pull her forward. At the same time he met her halfway. His lips found hers and silenced the half formed query.

The warmth between her legs flared into an inferno. Passion flowed from his lips in heady waves. The sensation seemed to pour into her, like syrup as it ran down the walls of the bottle. The viscous lust began to pool directly between her hips and seemed to add to the fire that blazed within. She felt her legs begin to moisten slightly, as she began to soak her underwear.

Simon's fingers continued to fiddle, even trapped between their bodies. The weight of their bodies transformed the simple act of unfastening her buttons into a sensual experience. The fabric pulled and shifted, to rub across her hardened nipples. Even through the bra, it caused her breath to shorten. The ripple of his fingers in action acted as a gentle massage. She moaned in appreciation. He noticed and divined the cause. When his pinkies branched out and began to flick against her nipples, she would have collapsed if not already on his lap.

In gloriously timeless moments, he began to peel the blouse free. As his hands glided outward, he lavished attention on her inflamed nipples. She broke from the kiss when her head flew backward with a scream. Lightning arced from his touch to every point of Kali's body. Simon's hands brushed past briefly, but the moment gravity stole the blouse his hands moved to cup her breasts.

Kali's nerves tingled with anticipation. She wanted him so badly! But he hadn't moved forward. It had only been seconds since his hands stopped, but it seemed interminable. Her eyes snapped forward in accusation. Her gaze softened and an amused smiled crept across her face. She had completely forgotten the meticulous care she'd placed on the selection of her underwear. The stunned desire, as he stared at the diaphanous material that barely covered her breasts, granted another thrill of control.

Thoughts of sexual dominance flew from her head a moment later. She had shifted forward and back enough times that the tight skirt rode all the way up. She was fairly certain he couldn't actually see beneath it yet, but that was mostly because her hips were so close to his. He certainly understood how exposed she was when he rocked his hips back and forth. Only the thin fabric of her thong transformed the hard, rough, form of the zipper into something maddeningly erotic.

Simon's hands hadn't been idle. Instead of attention to her breasts, they moved down to the hidden zipper on the side of her skirt. Once loosened, he brought it up over her head. She gladly raised her arms to accommodate him. Once more her heart fluttered as he stopped in disbelief. Kali could read it in his eyes; he couldn't understand how he had become so lucky. She couldn't help but laugh. She felt the same way about him.

Her laughter caused Simon to blush and look away. His hips had stopped, but the damage was already done. An inferno blazed within her and pressed outward. All at once she understood why orgasms were described as a release. She needed to explode. She needed to get rid of the unbearable, yet intoxicating, tension. The true irony was that this time his mouth of fingers wouldn't be enough. She needed to feel him inside of her in order to vent the pressure that had already built up.

Kali hadn't missed a beat, even as she contemplated the sensations that were still so new to her. Her hands already reached for his shirt. From the corner of her eyes she noticed that the position of her arms pressed her breasts even tighter together, to form even greater cleavage. She took advantage of Simon's mesmerized state and quickly opened his shirt. Unfortunately the effect ended when she reached down for his pants.

A quick glance told Kali that her hands had led Simon's gaze down. To judge by the sudden jump in his pants, one that didn't shrink immediately, he was even more effected by the sheer material that made up her thong. The attention his eyes lavished on her increased the dampness of that very article of clothing and spurred her to hurry with his pants. It wasn't until she tugged that the, purely feminine, spell broke.

His hips lifted, to grant her the ability to strip them off. Meanwhile, he slipped out of the shirt and tossed it aside. Kali grabbed his boxers and pulled them free at the same time as his pants. His manhood sprung free and stood very firm. The sight made her depths moisten even more quickly. His hips dropped and she held herself up, kneeling now more than sitting, so that she could work his pants off entirely. His hands had moved to the curve of her waist and rubbed absently as she stripped him. He kicked out of them while she turned back to see the effect.

Now it was Kali's turn to be mesmerized by Simon. His firm, strong, body made her blood race and her breath catch. His every movement commanded attention, even without awareness of the implications. So when his mouth closed on her breast her head jerked back in surprise. She moaned when the sensation roared through her body. Her body tried to escape the delight by falling backwards, but strong hands held her waist. She was trapped in a vice.

Kali's hands began to scratch at his back and pull him tighter, but his arms were equal to his hands. She couldn't move. The only thought was to move closer and impale herself on the hard shaft that taunted her. It pointed at her, accused her, from inches away and yet she was powerless to satisfy it, or herself.

Meanwhile, Simon's teeth grazed across the thin material of her bra. Kali cursed the treacherous fabric when she realized it allowed him to instantly see her areola and nipple and torment her accordingly. He gripped her nipple and tugged slightly. Her depths flared with fresh need and her legs lost all strength. Her head and back arched bonelessly and her moan traversed into a scream.

"Please," Kali whimpered, "please, pleasepleasepleasepleasePLEASE!" Her mind could form no word more articulate than the plea. Weakly, she tried to roll her hips towards him in further explanation, but Simon already knew what she wanted and denied it to her.

Simon leaned back in the chair, but the strong hands carried her forward to match him. Locked teeth led her as they tugged at her captive nipple. The strange mixture of pleasure and pain flowed from the spot and settled between her legs. Suddenly she realized the true extent of his fiendish ploy. The tip of the solid length began to rub back and forth between her legs. With her thong firmly in place, all he accomplished was to bring her to the very edge of the abyss. Tears of frustrated bliss began to trickle from the corners of her eyes.

He settled her to his lap, the hard form trapped beneath her. Her own weight pushed it aggressively against her. Her whimpered demand continued and she finally had some hope of salvation as one of his hand moved from her waist to the thong. The infuriating need intensified as it tightened against her lust. It softened almost instantly, and hope flooded her veins, as he pulled the fabric aside.

His head pressed mercifully against the overzealous nerves at the entrance to her depths. His teeth pulled quickly back. Her skin stretched taut, along with the fabric of the bra, and suddenly snapped back when he let go. Her breath caught at the fresh delicious agony.

Kali struggled to breath. She managed to gulp the slightest bit of air, but then his hips crashed forward. Her lungs emptied as she screamed her triumph. She hadn't truly felt him inside of her the first time, with the haze of spell induced lust. This time, he touched her entire being as he buried the glorious, hot, length within her. The weight of the world seemed to fill her and push against every cell in her body. All at once it exploded from her very pores.

There was a sense of rhythm, but no more than that. Kali tried to find those techniques, those little secrets that the demon-memory taught her body, that would hasten and expand Simon's climax. They eluded her. She heard herself groan and felt the breath fly from her. It was a wonderful vent for the sheer power that coursed through her veins, but every scream, every tight grip, every claw across his arms, accompanied a wave of fresh ecstasy. She felt him push within her more by the euphoria that rushed ahead; a sonic boom or orgasmic pressure.

Again, Kali sensed more than felt the change of his rhythm. The force of her climax shifted. Without the slightest deterioration, it quickly built towards something more. Her hands dropped to gouge the arms of the chair. Simon's hands held her waist once more as his hips thrust and retreated. A small part of Kali quailed that something was about to invade, but it wasn't until she realized the nature of the invasion that her eyes flew wide.

Simon pierced deep. Greater euphoria washed over Kali as the solid length, that already seemed to touch every cell within her, began to pulse ever larger. Her entire body snapped backward, held to him only by the vicelike grip, as a chain reaction of orgasm cascaded through her. Instead of retreat, he pushed deeper and somehow managed to fill her even more.

Slowly the hands about her waist, Simon's hands, carried her forward once more before he wrapped his arms around her. The immediacy began to fade, even as she felt him begin to shrink within her, but the power and bliss remained. She felt his shortened breath heave against her breasts. She felt his body shake with the slight aftershocks, even as hers did, and understood the true allure of it all.

Kali nuzzled into the curve of his neck. "We should clean up, then get some sleep. We can figure out the Sorcerer info in the morning." She squeaked when he effortlessly lifted her as he stood. Her arms and legs instinctively wrapped about him, only to let go as he set her down on the bed.

Kali shuddered as his limp form finally slid from her. Simon carefully peeled off her thong. She thought it likely a waste, but he took it with him as he left. While she removed her bra, he retreated into the bathroom and quickly returned with a wet washcloth and a couple of dry ones. Once more he meticulously cleaned her, and even remembered to use one of them to catch the seed that leaked from her. Once sufficiently clean, he pulled the covers back and guided her beside him. Although she'd never slept naked before, it seemed only natural with him warmth pressed at her back.

As she began to drift away, Simon's voice crossed into her half-formed dreams.

"I love you."

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Simon drifted awake slowly. Although the weight on the bed was unfamiliar, it couldn't have felt more right. The weight shifted, an arm draped across his chest, and his arm was suddenly smothered between Kali's delightful breasts. A quick glance at the clock and he gently began to shake her. A slight groan and a leg thrown across him were the only responses. He shook a little harder and murmured her name.

Green eyes fluttered open. Her eyes drifted to his and a content smile slid across her lips. After a moment the smile faded to confusion, and then finally a playful glare. "How long have we been asleep? A few hours?" The hand draped over Simon slapped his chest lightly.

Simon simply smiled innocently back. "Well, I figured if you hadn't had classes yesterday, you most likely have them today. And since I don't know when they are, I figured I should wake you early just in case, and then set an alarm accordingly."

Kali's eyes widened. She rolled away from him and dragged her demi-jacket from beside the bed. One glance at the cell-phone in her pocket and her shoulders slumped. "You're right. I got Machine Language in an hour." Wide, round, eyes stared over at Simon and he felt himself drown in their depths. "Is the offer to drive me still good?"

Simon laughed. "Of course! If you need to take a shower feel free. I'll have time to after I drop you off."

"We could always shower together." Soft hands found their way to Simon's chest and began a light caress down the slight trail of hair.

His body shuddered in response. "If we share a shower, you are not going to get to your class!" Kali joined in Simon's laughter this time. "Besides, we'd probably need a shower to clean up after our shower!"

Kali disappeared into the bathroom and Simon sat back down in front of the laptop. He'd watched Kali with the thing, so he knew he'd successfully divined the button to turn it on. This time, when pushed, the monitor sprang to life. He didn't have more than seconds to wait as the series of unintelligible words sprang across the dark screen and a colorful one jumped to replace it.

Simon shook his head as he recognized the image. Some researcher had programmed the thing to show a memorable scene from a vampire movie; where one prettyboy actor bit and turned another.

Who says the PIA doesn't have a sense of humor?

Then again, he probably would have put the promotional poster from one of the Man-in-Black movies. Hopefully Kali would know how to do that.

Suddenly a program sprang to life and covered the vampires. This Simon recognized. It was the database that he used when at headquarters. He was glad someone had thought to have it automatically load. Once, he'd accidentally shut the program down and needed one of the younger field agents to reboot it for him. He knew he was not only computer illiterate, but took the phrase to a whole new level. It would be good for Kali to teach him a little about the infernal machines.

That is, if we can keep the lessons from devolving as they did last night.

Of course, he didn't exactly mind the distraction, but it meant he'd learned nothing beyond how to turn the machine on.

Simon quickly typed in the word 'sorcerer' and a few key names he remembered for cross reference. A moment later the screen went blank. He didn't panic. This only meant he'd been too specific. He tried again with just the key word. The seconds ticked by. This search would take quite a bit longer, given the amount of information in the computer's data regarding the topic. He shifted his concentration and heard the water running and hitting the tub after ricocheting off of Kali. Simon smiled at the thought of the young woman in the shower.

A quick glance down showed a laundry list of references. Perfect! Until he realized there was a problem. The computer didn't have a mouse. Or at least if it did, he didn't recognize it. There was a small rectangle that looked like it might be a touch pad, so he pulled out his pen, still capped, and tried to use it as a stylus. No effect. His finger worked, though the cursor wobbled and he barely managed to move it due to large fingers. He shrugged and used the buttons beneath to click on the scroll bar. After a few seconds trying to coordinate dragging the bar down he swore he would find a way to attach a legitimate mouse to the dastardly contraption.

There were a few Sorcerers alive in the world, according to the files, but none of them ranked at more than a low classification. It had always frustrated Simon that the PIA tried to classify a mystic's skill and power. Not only were they very subjective, arbitrary, distinctions but too often people simply kept the full extend of their abilities a secret. The other side was that many simply didn't know the true extent of their abilities.

Kali was a perfect example of that. He would be expected to rate her, like everyone else, and he simply didn't know how he could. She had all of the capabilities of a Demon, most likely, but she had only accessed such a negligible diversity that she currently only qualified as low. Unless, of course, the speed and ease of her transformations was taken into consideration. Even changelings could not match her in that ability, so would that catapult her back up to medium, or even high? And that didn't account for her complete lack of control.

See? Completely subjective!

The other problem he had with such classifications dealt with the Field Agents. A number of times Simon had been sent after someone who the PIA knew the complete extent of their abilities. He'd gone into situations knowing, from the target's teacher or even lover, exactly what they were capable of, only to discover that they had learned a number of tricks. Intelligence and creativity did a lot to balance the disparity of 'power levels.'

But the key information was that there hadn't been what the PIA considered a serious Sorcerer in at least twenty years. In fact, the most recent 'medium' died about twenty-five years before and the last report of a 'high' caliber one was unconfirmed and around sixty years old. Then again, that didn't surprise Simon. There were a lot of unconfirmed paranormal reports both during and after the second World War.

"I see you figured some of it out." Simon jumped straight up as Kali's voice drifted from right next to his ear. Even if he hadn't stopped breathing from the initial surprise, the sight that greeted him would surely have stolen it. Wrapped in a towel, she leaned so far forward that her hair was all that distracted from a perfect vantage down her ample cleavage. He missed the twinkle in her eyes when she reached up and pulled her hair tight and began to fuss over it with a towel. All he saw was the unobstructed view of her body.

Simon shook his head and reminded himself, forcefully, that Kali had to rush off to class. Well, and there was still the matter of a sorcerer powerful enough to nearly summon a demon that no longer existed, right out of the body that now held its powers. His head jerked up at that thought and he quickly reached for his notebook and jotted down a research reminder.

"Those the most recent Sorcerers, or simply your prime suspects?" Kali was busy drying her hair, but she stared at the computer. A moment later she looked back at Simon, but he knew she had already read the entire screen. Awkwardly, he scrolled down further. Her eyes swept over the next screen.

"Next time, try the space bar. It looks like it's browser based so that will probably jump down the screen. I'll pick you up an optical, wireless, mouse for you as well so you don't have to fumble like that."

Kali had already moved across the room and tossed the towel into the bathroom. Simon was a little shocked. Since the two had returned to his room the previous night, she was almost an entirely different person. Gone was the terrified girl, and in her place was a confident, intelligent woman. A part of him instantly suggested that the fearful and naive person had simply been an act designed to trap the PIA Field Agent she had found herself confronted with.

Simon quickly shoved the thought aside. He was a fairly good judge of character and her lack of control would be very difficult to impersonate. No, the difference resided in the fact that she had discovered a situation she could help him with. Not only would it prove he wasn't perfect, but it gave her something to focus on besides her powers. Besides, it was clear her supreme confidence was well justified. He might even be able to convince the PIA to let her upgrade the system. While there were a few research assistants who dabbled in programming, it was at best a secondary skill.

"Are you going out dressed like that?" Kali spun back to face Simon, fully dressed. He hadn't seen her get dressed. It wasn't magic, simply that he'd been so engrossed by her, that he hadn't noticed. He blushed as he looked down at himself. Yup, still naked. After a few minutes, as he scurried around, for jeans, a t-shirt, his watch, and any other random paraphernalia he might need, they were ready to go.

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Kali jerked awake for the billionth time and asked the professor to repeat the question, only to discover her fellow classmates poured from the room. "Ms. Donnoly, is everything all right? You were practically comatose in class today." Professor Marcone paused as he gathered his equipment to watch her for a response.

Kali smiled sleepily. Like all of her programming professors, the man had taken in instant, special, interest in her. Of course, it was in part due to the fact that she was an attractive female in a department full of socially awkward men, professors included, but it was also her natural talent with the subject. Pete also earned a fair amount of concern and attention from the staff. She suspected that the university knew these top students were the most likely in their graduating class to make it big and be able to donate buildings.

So what if the university did recognize their potential? Yes, Pete Calliope could someday be spoken with the same reverent, jealous, hatred that's used with Bill Gates. But the professors' attitudes were fawning, they were genuinely concerned.

"I'm sorry professor, I didn't get much sleep last night."

Marcone smiled and held up the flash drive that contained her mid-term program assignment. "I don't need to ask if you were working on this because you had it in a week ago. And I know you didn't have any other assignments today. So I can only hope that whatever kept you up was worth it." She knew the twinkle in his eye meant that he actually had guessed her nocturnal activities. It also told her he approved. She couldn't help but smile and blush. His smile grew. "Well, I hope he realizes he's a very lucky man."

Kali was already up and towards the door when she waved to him. It occurred to her that he could get in serious trouble for the last comment. It was too bad really, it was meant as nothing more than an honest compliment, but some women might take it wrong. A single suggestion that it had been sexual in nature and his job would be forfeit, tenure be damned. And while some men might still be lewd enough to make passes at her under these circumstances, she knew all of her professors were at least a little intimidated by her as a woman, if not as a skilled programmer as well.

She sighed as she wandered back to her dorm. Kali wondered if she should call Simon and let him know that she was out of class already. She didn't want it to seem like he had to come pick her up already. She desperately wanted to be back with him, in fact. The problem was, she also wanted to make sure that he had plenty of time to concentrate on his serial killer case. Sure, it made sense that the Sorcerer who sought her, or rather Tral'zla'thor's, powers was responsible. The problem was that she had nothing to offer the investigation other than as bait.

Besides all that, everyone needed some time to themselves. Aside from the brief stint at the crime scenes, which Kali was sure were unsettling for him, she and Simon hadn't been apart for the past thirty six hours.

She stopped in her tracks and ended up jostled by fellow pedestrians, upset at the unexpected obstruction.

Had it really only been a day and a half? It felt as if Kali had known Simon for so much longer than that. And that didn't even take into account how strongly she felt for him. Simon obviously felt just as strongly to have said what he had. It could have been entirely for her benefit, but she didn't think he was that kind of guy. Besides, would he have waited until he thought she was asleep to say it? Of course the timing could have been designed to lead her on, imply that he had meant it to be unheard when he actually knew she was still awake.

Kali forced herself to move. She quickly found a place to sit, on the same planter in front of her dorm as on the previous night, and took a deep breath. She had never been this suspicious before. First the realization that she could take professor Marcone's comment offensively, and then trying to second guess the motivation behind Simon's profession of love? She found herself wondering if the counselor's caution that she might develop a fear of intimacy, or even general trust issues, might have merit.

"Ms. Donnoly?" Kali almost jumped. A quick look up showed the speaker and she relaxed slightly. It was hard to judge how tall he really was, but the police officer was probably about average height. Although amazingly average in appearance, brown, slightly receding, hair and blue eyes, he looked remarkably familiar. It only took her a moment to realize it was the driver from the night before.

Kali simply nodded to the man. "I thought so. Look, miss, Agent Pie asked me to come get you. He's at another crime scene and he thought you might be able to help out with the investigation. So if you would come with me, I can bring you right there."

Confused, Kali stood. "Uh, sure, I guess. Give me a few minutes. I just need to run upstairs and grab a few things." The officer's eyebrows raised a fraction before he quickly schooled his expression. Kali mentally kicked herself. If she and Simon had led them to believe she was his assistant, then why would she need to get something from the university dorm? She quickly tried to cover her mistake. "I'm still a student, but was lucky enough to score an internship with him."

The officer seemed to accept the explanation with a nod. "I understand. Unfortunately, time is something of an issue. I'm sure I'll be able to bring you back here afterwards to collect anything you need, assuming there is nothing critical to the case?"

Kali shook her head. She couldn't think of anything critical enough to run in and grab. She would prefer to have her computer, but likely it wasn't truly important. She could collect it, along with some spare clothing, when they returned later.

"I'm ready."

The policeman nodded and waved her towards the police car waiting at the curb.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Simon punch a final key and sat back with a glance at his watch. After he scanned through some of the more relevant notes on Sorcerers, it had taken him over an hour to fill out just the simple form. He knew most of the other agents, researchers and field agents alike, could type much faster than he. Hopefully Kali would be able to help him figure it out. Which led him to think of her once more.

In truth, Simon had been thinking about her constantly from the time he dropped her off at the university. A relatively short, twenty minute drive through city traffic and he was home and ready to take on the ultimate challenge; a brief report for the agency. He'd tried to use the Sorcerer research to take his mind off of the real challenge, but had failed miserably. Although strictly professional, and leaving out the less respectable parts of the situation, it allowed him to continue to think about her. After all, if it would continue to consume his concentration he might as well use it to his advantage.

In fact, Kali should have gotten out of class by now. Simon had expected a call almost the moment she got out of class. Then again, he was fairly certain she didn't have a cell phone. She probably had to get back to her room before she could call. He tried to contain his disappointment, and reminded himself that the class might be a couple hours long. After all, he'd forgotten to ask. She might even have a number of classes today. After all, she had only mentioned that one because she would have been late if not for a little forethought.

Simon's cell rang with the generic tone of an unknown caller. The number that flashed across the ID proved equally fruitless. Undeterred, he flipped it open and answered. "Simon Pie speaking." Although only people who knew of the PIA should have the phone number, he didn't recognize the number and protected his cover with simply his name.

The voice that responded was male. Beyond that simple identification, there was no way to be certain of anything. The man's voice was too average to really strike any mental chords. "Agent Pie, I will not bore you with details, like my name, but I thought you might like to know that your supernatural killer has struck again. In fact, it might very well begin a rampage."

"Do you know what is doing the killing? Where is it? How can I get in touch with you?" Simon pulled the phone from his ear. A glance at the display confirmed his fears, the man had hung up as soon as he delivered the warning. Simon wrote down the number, for the researchers to track down, but he expected to find it was a payphone, or possibly a prepaid cell-phone. At least, if it was a payphone, he could assume that it was a mystic of some sort. Many in the supernatural world were as in the dark as Simon himself about modern technology. At least he was only a decade or so behind the times. The longer lived races were often a century, or more, out of touch.

Almost immediately, the phone rang again. This time the ring tone told him exactly who it was. "Lieutenant Michaels, there's been another murder." Since he'd learned the primary contact's number Simon had reset the lieutenant's ring tone to the theme for a police reality show.

There was a pause at the other end of the line long enough for Simon to glance at the screen and make sure that the call hadn't been disconnected. Finally the lieutenant spoke. "Caller ID isn't new to me, but do you mind letting me know how you knew about the murder? Or was it just an educated guess?"

"I wish I could. I just got a call from an unknown source that informed me there had been one, and further that there would likely be more."

There was another brief pause as the lieutenant processed the bad news. "I gather you weren't able to get any information about this anonymous caller? A name, a phone number, gender even?"

"Actually, it was a male, unless the person used some kind of voice alteration I haven't heard of. There was nothing electronic about his voice. And no spell that we're aware of can alter perceptions over a phone." The lieutenant merely grunted a noncommittal understanding. "I also have the phone number on my caller ID. Either he doesn't know how to block that, or he simply didn't care if I knew where he called from."

"It's also possible to bounce calls." At Simon's confused sound, Lieutenant Michaels explained. "With computers, it's possible to redirect a call through various different numbers. Someone skilled could stand right next to you and the ID would say Thailand." Simon understood the principal, if not the specifics. "If you give me the number, I'm sure we'll be able to track it down fairly quickly, though I don't have much hope that it will lead anywhere."

Simon quickly rattled off the number he'd written down. Although it was possible the researchers had other means at their disposal to track down the number, more than likely they would call on a police contact somewhere. Besides, this would give Michaels a greater sense of accomplishment if anything panned out. After all, the lieutenant would likely be unable to assist when Simon confronted the, well, whatever-it-was that killed these people. Most civilians stood very little chance when confronted with a supernatural killer, and their presence provided a literal 'human shield' for the monsters to use against him.

In truth, Simon realized Kali would need to be kept well away from the scenes. Not only did she lack the training, despite her incredible powers, to fight off most beings, but it was clear there was a Sorcerer after her. He was going to have enough of a challenge when he fought the killer that he couldn't afford to worry about Kali and the Sorcerer. Unfortunately, he suspected that the two were connected, which meant he would have to take them on at once anyway. The best bet would be to insist she hole herself in her dorm and call in sick from her classes for a few days.

Lieutenant Michaels gave Simon the address of the recent scene. Simon had to ask him to repeat it. He mumbled a confirmation and numbly hung up. That the latest scene was almost all the way across town lent disturbing credence to the anonymous caller's suggestion of a rampage in the making. Because the details of the murders were not only kept from the media, but impossible for a mere human to replicate, it meant that there was no way a copycat could already have sprung up. And a change in the killer's M. O. hearkened further changes, which made it harder to find, more difficult to stop.

Simon called Kali on his way to his car. As expected, her machine picked up. "Kali, this is Simon. If you could call me as soon as you get this. I'm not going to be able to pick you up until this afternoon, or even evening, and in light of the problem we had last night I'd suggest you hole up in your room until then. I know it's a lot to ask, but I'm afraid our friend will show up again and I'll be busy and worry about you. I'll make sure to show up in time for dinner."

The machine cut him off before he could embarrass one or both of them. He'd meant what he'd said after she'd fallen back asleep, but to say it where he knew she would hear it tested even his courage. Besides, this way she was not burdened by the need to decide, too quickly, how to respond.

As he got in his car, he realized that it would be a simple matter to stop by the university on his way to the crime scene. He brushed the thought aside. It might not be a great diversion, but he had made his decision; she was safer out of the way until he could at least deal with one aspect of the two pronged threat.

Forty minutes in a car, in city traffic, can feel like an eternity. It was mid-day and a lot of people were out and about on lunch breaks. Unfortunately, police sirens wouldn't have done much to get Simon to the scene any more quickly. Drivers didn't react to the flashing blue lights like they once had. By the time he reached the alley in question, Lieutenant Michaels stood at the mouth and waved him aside, rather than into the scene. The man seemed even more agitated than at the other scenes.

"Forensics is in there at the moment. I can bring you in when they're done if you need." The lieutenant sighed heavily. "Unfortunately, it looks like you were right. The killer was most likely interrupted in all three of the first attacks. This one was even more brutal. It looks like every major joint was pulled apart. Oh, the little things, like spine, hands and feet, are all still in one piece. But otherwise there are a lot more parts."

There was something more he was not told, but Simon figured he would discover it in time.

Simon nodded. "Don't worry about taking me in. I can get all the information I need from out here. Trade secrets and all that." Michaels smiled slightly. "If you need me, I'll just be over by my car."

Simon had only just turned when Lieutenant Michaels' voice rose behind him. "Agent Pie." The lieutenant hurried over. Fortunately no one had heard the man aside from Simon. "The coroner has decided to go with the weapon angle, but I took the liberty of asking a biologist friend about the claws, even providing the sketch the coroner drew to explain it to me, and he came up with something. Apparently, it's consistent with any number of arboreal reptiles. I don't know if that helps, but that's what it seems; a giant chameleon."

An ironic snort of laughter leaked through Simon's composed facade. If only the lieutenant knew. A chameleon would be easier to find than this creature, the Sorcerer made sure of that.

Simon stopped, his hand held the passenger door halfway open, as the true impact of the revelation hit him. He quickly slid into the car and tried to think of any other possible explanation. Arboreal reptiles were generally relatively small. The larger, generally land-based, ones most often attacked with powerful jaws and deadly teeth. If a lycan, or even a shapeshifter, were responsible they would attack as their natural counterparts did. And while many arboreal reptiles did indeed have opposable digits, they couldn't use them to this level of precision.

Simon could only think of a single creature that had the intelligence for this level of precision, the power to transform and the sheer strength to do what had been done. The only problem was that it was such a preposterous idea that there weren't even myths about it. There simply was no such thing as a were-dragon.

Lycanthropes were nothing more than a very serious case of spirit possession. An enraged spirit 'cursed' a mortal for some offense and took over. They rarely had the power to maintain the possession for more than a couple of nights a month, which led to the myths about being controlled by the lunar cycle. Unfortunately, their own rage bound them to the mortal permanently. Generally the imprisonment only enraged them further. Eventually the unfortunate host died, but by then there was often little left of the spirit but pure rage.

Dragons, however, were far too intelligent for that scenario. At least, that was the running theory. While these mythical creatures were also spirits, they avoided virtually all contact with the physical plane. Case in point, Simon had only seen a single dragon in all of his time with the PIA. Most agents hadn't even seen one. Dragons never held the motivation for possession, much less the rage to trap them there.

Simon's fist hit the dash hard enough for the glove box to pop open. Somehow, when the Sorcerer failed to get Tral'zla'thor he had forced a dragon into a mortal shell. At least, Simon hoped it had only been a shell and not a living person. Six months of such imprisonment, and likely slavery, would anger almost anyone.

And now, if the damage was what the lieutenant had claimed, it was becoming even more enraged. It was time to get Kali and get her as far from this fight as possible.

Copywrite June 2007, by Deathlynx