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This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to real persons is only a figment of your imaginations. Let's face it, we all wish these babes were real! Anyway, they're not, so go take a nice cold shower.

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BABES IN SPYLAND XVII:

VICE GIRLS FINISH LAST

Part III

 

ã 2002 Autolycus

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Here's the deal: This is a scene from a work-in-progress about a genetically altered female who is not only a perfect physical specimen, but also has psychic abilities. She was created by the US government to be the ultimate espionage agent, although her creator/father, the late Dr. Smitrovich, didn't know that at the time. She was seized by an ultra-secret anti-terrorist government agency, the Aegis Group, and (ultimately, but against her will) trained in the martial arts and other forms of combat, although she refuses to kill anybody. The new head of the AG, Major General Margaret Holm, basically approves of her methods, and certainly has no complaints about her record, but is determined to make her part of the team nonetheless. By the way, her name is Jessica Chance and this is her encounter with a fabulously popular all-girl band called The Vice Girls and its rather infamous manager, not to mention some of Sun City’s luminaries.

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What has gone before:

 

Jessica and Kallista Blackhart have gone to LA to track down Dr. Koyuki Takagashi and take her into custody, hopefully before the arrival of Japanese law enforcement agents. After a visit to Lilith Kahira’s house, Jessica is convinced that Koyuki is being kept somewhere on the grounds of the mansion because the multi-billionaire’s estate is saturated with the frequency that negates her psychic abilities. But the redhead is unwilling to simply grab the doctor before discovering the details of whatever Takagashi has planned and putting a stop to it.

 

Lilith Kahira has problems of her own since her patron Goddess, the evil Sakhmet, has also brought a rival to her home in the form of Farrah Yahtariq, a divorce lawyer who serves as one of Sakhmet’s Priestesses, second only in favor to Lilith herself, for the time being. Also, the evil Goddess is displeased with her High Priestess’ insatiable greed and has plans of her own for the frequency that hypnotizes adolescents that Koyuki discovered; plans that Lilith is hesitant to go along with.

 

A new player in our little drama, Jackson Hill, known as J-Dog in his role as the leader of the gang called The Dires, is investigating the mysterious murders of two of his female gang members. Thus far, he has learned that Yumi’s car was used to kidnap them and that a limousine was used to return their dead bodies, along with two members who, in fact, killed them, but have no memory of the entire incident thanks to the fact that they were under the influence of Koyuki’s frequency at the time.

 

Meanwhile, the two detectives responsible for bringing the majority of Takagashi’s fujinjas to justice, Asami Komatsu and Reiko Miyazawa, confronted Isako and Chiasa, the final pair of deadly mercenaries, only to discover that they had been surgically altered to look exactly like the two inspectors. In the ensuing battle, two of the women died, but neither of the survivors is sure of the other’s identity. So, two women who might be colleagues or deadly adversaries are currently on a plane bound for America.

 

And finally, NightFox and Raven have learned the details of the transmitters from Vastiff’s head of Research and Development, Dr. Quirinus, and, having no other leads, decide to track down Erishkigal’s rival, Sakhmet, and learn her reason for manifesting herself on this plane of reality and then put a stop to her plans.

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For Giordano

 

The two women who may or may not have been Asami Komatsu and Reiko Miyazawa were met at Ronald Reagan International Airport by Major General Margaret Holm and Kenji Ichiyama, an Aegis operative fluent in Japanese, just in case the inspectors’ command of the English language wasn’t quite as polished as their supervisor had claimed. And to help make them feel at ease on their first trip to a strange country.

 

But, strangely enough, the pair of women seemed far more ill at ease with each other than with their surroundings. Both were attractive women with Reiko having short hair that she constantly streaked with a dizzying variety of colors, in stark contrast to Asami’s traditional long straight raven tresses; her color of choice for the moment was a rather ominous blood red. Asami was a bit taller than Reiko, standing at 5’6” to her partner’s 5’4”, but both had alluring curves and Komatsu’s legs in particular were shapely pillars. Despite repeated attempts by both Margaret and Kenji to draw them into a conversation over a delicious dinner at one of DC’s finest restaurants they barely said two words. When the Major General asked about the ‘loose ends’ they’d had to tie up, she was told only that the business had been seen to and that was all either would say on the matter. On top of their taciturn conduct, neither seemed willing to take her eyes off the other, and the two women regarded each other all through the meal like a pair of suspicious lovers.

 

By the time she and Kenji dropped them off at the Watergate Hotel so they could get some much-needed rest before continuing on to California the next day, Margaret had determined that something more was going on than she’d been told and decided to call Chief Inspector Daikato in the hope that he could shed some light on their odd behavior.

 

“Well, that was an odd evening, Ma’am,” Kenji remarked as they rode in the limo on its way to the Aegis building. Agent Ichiyama was in his late thirties and quite attractive, with the dark eyes and dark hair of his people, and a body that looked quite capable of holding its own against a legion of killer ninjas. He was wearing a dark suit that bordered on casual, but was just chic enough to pull off a formal occasion without raising any eyebrows.

 

“You noticed it, too, eh, Agent Ichiyama,” Margaret replied. Major General Holm was a robust woman in her fifties with short, light hair and dark, piercing eyes. Her usual outfit was a military uniform, but tonight she was dressed in what would be considered a conservative blue evening gown on anyone else, but on Margaret it looked almost scandalous.

 

“Hard not to, Ma’am. It was almost like they didn’t trust each other. But that doesn’t make any sense.”

 

“I know. According to their supervisor they’ve been the best of friends ever since they graduated from the police academy,” the older woman said.

 

“They sure didn’t act like best friends tonight, Ma’am. I don’t know what happened, but it must have been pretty bad,” Kenji said thoughtfully as the limousine pulled to a stop in the underground garage of the Aegis building.

 

Margaret nodded. “Thanks for coming along tonight, Agent Ichiyama. Even though I didn’t really need your translation skills, your company proved to be a real blessing,” she said with a smile as she exited the limo.

 

“It was my pleasure, Ma’am,” Kenji said cheerfully, heading for his car. “I’ll see you tomorrow, unless there’s something else you need tonight.”

 

The older woman paused on her way to the elevator, unsure whether she’d just been propositioned or not, and then chuckled softly to herself and shook her head bemusedly. “No, thank you, Agent Ichiyama. I’m just going to tie up a loose end of my own and then I’m heading home, too,” she said, glancing over her shoulder at the attractive younger man. “You have a good evening and thanks again.” Kenji nodded and waved and then turned and continued on to his car.

 

“Either you had too much wine tonight,” she said to herself as the elevator doors closed, “or he did.”

 

Upon reaching her office she immediately phoned Chief Inspector Daikato and was grateful that he was still in his office. “A pleasure to hear from you, Major General Holm. I trust that my inspectors arrived without any complications,” he said conversationally.

 

“Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about, Chief Inspector. Did something happen before they left for the states?” Margaret asked.

 

“Indeed it did. During the course of an operation one of their close friends, Special Agent Shimada of the Office of Domestic Security, was killed, along with close to a dozen officers under their command. They both took it rather hard, I’m afraid, but still insisted on being the ones who returned Dr. Takagashi to fulfill her debt to society. They are very dedicated officers,” he added with might have been a boastful tone, or an annoyed one.

 

“I see. Well, that certainly explains their odd behavior. I’m sorry to have troubled you for something so-“

 

“Odd behavior, Major General? Please elaborate,” Daikato said somewhat more urgently than Holm thought the comment had warranted.

 

“Oh, it’s nothing, really. They just seemed so distant at dinner tonight, but, given what they recently went through, I can see that it was nothing out of the ordinary, after all.”

 

“Indeed, I would pay no attention to any peculiar mannerisms on their part if I were you. And don’t forget that this is their first trip out of Japan,” he reminded her smoothly.

 

“Of course. It was just my old military instincts acting overtime,” she said with a polite laugh. “I really shouldn’t have bothered you about it, Chief Inspector.”

 

“Nonsense, it was no trouble at all. I would have done the same in your position had two American agents shown up acting oddly. Now then, let us not mention it any further, agreed?”

 

“Agreed.”

 

“As long as I have you on the phone, Major General, I should like to inquire as to how your agents are faring in the capture of Dr. Takagashi. Do they have her in custody yet?”

 

“Not yet, Chief Inspector, but they will. And soon.”

 

“Before my officers arrive in Los Angeles?”

 

“If all goes well,” Margaret said offhandedly.

 

“Of course. A pleasure to speak with you again, Major General Holm.”

 

“And with you, Chief Inspector Daikato,” she replied. After hanging up the phone she sat with her hands rubbing lightly against her temples for several minutes before finally sighing deeply and heading for home.

 

* * * * *

 

Dr. Koyuki Takagashi paused uncertainly outside the room that Sakhmet had established as her personal temple and cautiously knocked on the door. She wasn’t thrilled to have been summoned by the evil Goddess, who scared her more than she was willing to admit, but to have refused the command would have taken more bravery than obeying it had. Still, she would have at least liked to have had breakfast before facing the Goddess.

 

“Come in, my child,” called out Sakhmet as the double doors opened of their own accord. “Don’t be afraid, doctor. You’re among friends.”

 

Koyuki forced her feet to move forward and she entered the enormous room, and suddenly felt as if she’d somehow been transported back to ancient Egypt. The room was dark, being lit only by a dozen flickering torches set in holders attached to granite pillars that created a walkway which lead to a magnificent golden throne, upon which was seated Sakhmet. Also lining the walkway were the robed figures who had accompanied Priestess Farrah, who, Koyuki noticed as she approached the Goddess, was standing at her left side while Lilith was at her right hand. Both of the priestesses were attractive Egyptians in their mid-thirties with dark hair and dark eyes. Farrah’s hair was a bit longer and wilder than Lilith’s more or less straight black locks and she was a bit more rounded than her hostess. They were both wearing white ceremonial robes embroidered with golden designs that looked to be ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, although Lilith’s outfit was a bit more extravagant.

 

“That’s it, my child, all the way up to me. Now then, Lilith tells me that you know one of the women who were here yesterday. Is that so?” Sakhmet asked, her eyes narrowing. She had a solid body the color of ancient dust that looked as if it had been carved from granite, except for the way she moved, lithe and supple, like the lioness whose head she normally sported. Today she was wearing a bikini made of red leather with a lace wrap around skirt and a pair of high-laced sandals.

 

“I had a run-in with the one called Jessica Chance,” Koyuki nodded. She was a very stunning woman with long, jet-black hair that framed a light-skinned face. Her eyes were slanted and a deep shade of mahogany, and her lips were thin but exquisitely shaped. Her frame was equally fashioned, as was clearly visible from her shirt and shorts combination that revealed the taut abdominals and the round, alert breasts, which were larger than those of the typical Asian woman. “She was responsible for my recent imprisonment.”

 

“Oh? Tell me about the redhead,” the Goddess commanded, her orange eyes glowing with excitement as she beckoned the doctor to be seated on the stairs at her feet.

 

“She’s the product of genetic alteration by the United States government,” began the Asian, lowering herself to the stone steps that led up to the throne. “She can read minds and is capable of powerful, but limited, telekinetics. Her body also heals much more quickly than usual—Although, I’m given to understand that this is also due to time spent in the company of Tibetan monks.”

 

“You’ve witnessed these telekinetic displays you spoke of personally?” inquired Sakhmet.

 

Koyuki gave out a grunting sort of laugh. “All too personally, I assure you, Goddess,” she replied, recalling watching with horror as the redhead destroyed her first two robots without even touching them. “But, fortunately for her enemies, there is a specific radio frequency which is able to block her ability to use those, or any of her other powers. In fact, this entire estate has been blanketed in that frequency since shortly after my arrival, just as a precaution.”

 

“I will assume that Miss Chance is aware when she’s in the frequency’s field of effect and that she therefore has reason to believe, even more strongly than she did before, that you are somewhere on the premises,” Sakhmet said slowly, her tongue rolling across her upper teeth as she paused for a breath. Koyuki’s face went even more pale but the evil Goddess just laughed and said, “Of course, if the frequency hadn’t been active, then she would have read Lilith’s mind and learned the details of our plan. So, my child, all in all it was a good thing the signal was functioning.” The doctor breathed a sigh of relief and Sakhmet continued, “The problem now is to keep her out of our way until the damage is done at the concert tomorrow night…” Her voice trailed off when Yumi excitedly entered the room, bowing repeatedly.

 

“Goddess, Mistress, forgive me for this interruption but I thought you should know that a van has just crashed through the front gate,” the maid related breathlessly.

 

“What!?!” Lilith cried out.

 

“I saw it on the monitors when the alarm went off,” Yumi explained, absently wondering why she couldn’t hear the ringing in this room when it was loud and clear in the rest of the enormous house.

 

“Bloody hell!” Lilith cursed, heading for the door. She suddenly stopped and turned and bowed to Sakhmet. “My apologies for this, Goddess. I shall see to these intruders at once.”

 

“I shall accompany you, favored daughter,” the Goddess said. “I’m curious to see who is brazen enough to storm your residence, and whether this has anything to do with tomorrow night.”

 

“Of course, Goddess,” Lil said, inwardly kicking herself, and knowing that Farrah was enjoying her discomfort only made it worse.

 

“My, my, my, this certainly is a busy place, isn’t it, Goddess?” Farrah commented with a devious chuckle.

 

“Indeed, daughter, too busy,” Sakhmet snarled, rising and heading for the door, followed by Farrah and her robed minions.

 

By the time the procession had reached the front doors, the van had already skidded to a halt next to Lilith’s limousine and a dozen heavily-armed black youths had scrambled out and were holding their weapons on Zaynah.

 

“Well, this is a real bonus,” grinned a young man, gesturing with his gun at the blonde chauffeur. “I never expected to find you here, blondie. But now it’s all beginning to make sense.”

 

“They’re just children,” Sakhmet purred wickedly. “Doctor?” She looked over at Koyuki and the Asian nodded and smiled and scampered off as the gang confronted Lilith.

 

“You own this place, sister?” J-Dog asked Lilith as she stood imperiously at the top of the steps leading into her mansion.

 

“This is my home, yes, and you’d better get out of here before security arrives or I guarantee you’ll regret it,” she replied.

 

Jackson looked around him at his gang members, each of whom was packing a gun and a knife, club, or other deadly weapon, and just laughed. “If those rent-a-cops show up before we finish our business, they’re the ones who are going to be sorry, babe.”

 

“And just what business do you have with my chauffeur?” Lilith demanded, even though she had recognized two of the young women and could easily guess what they were here for.

 

“Well, it’s like this, sister,” Jackson began, casually rubbing his chin with the barrel of his automatic, “a couple of my ladies got whacked the other night and we’re here to settle that score by taking out this blonde tank and a tasty piece of sushi named Yumiko Kobyashi. Seems her car was used to snatch my girls and this shiny new limo was used to dump the bodies. You wouldn’t know anything about any of this, would you, mama?”

 

Lilith ground her teeth in frustration and said in measured tones, “Your informants must be mistaken. Zaynah and Yumi had nothing to do with what happened to your associates, and neither did either of these vehicles. So, why don’t you clear out of here before-“

 

Jackson suddenly fired a shot at Lil’s feet, but, to her credit, she didn’t so much as flinch when the bullet struck the step inches from her foot. “You’re not listening, bitch! Somebody is gonna pay for taking out two of my ladies and if it’s not the Amazon and the rice-eater, then it’s gonna have to be you. It doesn’t make that much difference to me. Still say they had nothing to do with it?”

 

“I do,” Lilith replied, staring directly into the mirrored shades that covered his eyes. She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and saw Zaynah reaching into her jacket for the side-arm she wore and hoped none of the gang members had noticed it.

 

“Okay, people, you heard the lady. First, we take out Godzilla here and then we find that yellow-skinned bitch and waste her.” He unceremoniously raised his gun so that it was pointing right between the blonde chauffeur’s eyes…and then all of them froze.

 

Zaynah, meanwhile, whipped her own gun out and was about to shoot Jackson when Sakhmet’s commanding voice ordered her to stop. “No, Zaynah! Wait, I’ve a much better idea. And one that will leave us conveniently out of any police investigations,” the Goddess said with a wicked smile as she strutted down the steps until she was standing directly in front of Jackson…and his gun’s barrel. She laughed when she saw him straining to pull the trigger and reached out and patted his cheek affectionately. “You’ll get a chance to fire your little gun, boy, but not just yet. First, I want you to turn around so you can see what your friends are going to do.” Despite his every effort not to obey, the frequency Koyuki was bathing he and his gang members with forced him to do as he’d been instructed. “Good boy. Now, as for the rest of you, I want you to shoot each other. And, please, try to make these clean kills. One or two shots at the most, okay?”

 

When the others hesitated, Sakhmet’s head suddenly became that of a snarling lioness and her voice roared out, “I said to shoot each other. Now!”

 

The morning air was immediately filled with the sound of gunfire and a few seconds later all of the Dires lay dead in Lilith’s driveway. The only noise in the following stillness was the booming laughter of the evil Goddess. She turned to Jackson, whose face and neck were coated with sweat as the result of his trying to break free of the frequency’s hold, and leaned in close and licked some of the moisture off his chin. “Mmm, I love the taste of fear first thing in the morning. Now then, my rebellious friend, tell me how you tracked down this address and got Yumi’s name,” she said pleasantly, moving so that the barrel of the gun was resting next to her cheek. “Such willpower,” she said after a moment. “Would you really like to shoot me that badly? Let’s see how strong you really are.” Her head resumed its human aspect and she took the end of the gun into her mouth and sensually licked the glistening barrel. “You’ll never get a better shot,” she chuckled, reaching up and removing his glasses so she could enjoy the terror and anger in his eyes. “But you can’t, can you? You can’t do anything on your own. So you might as well tell me what I want to know, before I find other, less pleasant methods, to make you talk. Talk, boy. Now!” she growled, assuming her lioness form again.

 

“Someone got …the car’s license plate …and my …nephew …hacked …into the DMV records,” he finished, panting and gasping for breath.

 

“My, what an enterprising little fellow. I simply must meet him,” Sakhmet purred. “His name and address, please.”

 

Jackson’s dark eyes filled with dread and he grit his teeth together so hard that his gums started to bleed. But even this proved a fruitless gesture. “Floyd Lewis …408 …Grandview …Circle,” he said through crimson-stained teeth. “Please…” he added with so much effort that he nearly collapsed from the strain.

 

“And what school does he attend?” Sakhmet asked, ignoring the appeal.

 

Jackson bit his lower lip until it bled but couldn’t help but answer. “George…W. Carver…Prep,” he stammered through a mouthful of blood. “He’s just…a kid…an innocent.”

 

“None of us are innocent, my friend.” Sakhmet then turned and called to Koyuki, who had rejoined the others on the front steps, “I think your machine might need some fine-tuning before tomorrow night, my child.” She then turned back to face Jackson, a terrible expression on her leonine face. “As for you, my strong-willed friend, put your gun to your head and pull the trigger. Now!”

 

Tears streaming freely from his eyes, Jackson’s arm rose and placed the gun’s barrel to his temple, despite how badly his hand was shaking, and, after one final defiant, yet pleading, look in the cold, orange eyes of the Goddess, squeezed the trigger and then dropped at her feet, half of his brains splattered over the ground behind him.

 

“That was fun!” Sakhmet grinned, her head becoming human once more. She turned and practically skipped up the stairs and back into the mansion just as several security cars skidded to a halt in the body-littered driveway.

 

* * * * *

 

Jessica heard the phone ringing from the shower and raced to answer it before it woke up Kallista. She needn’t have bothered since the blonde agent was sleeping like a log, despite the noise. “Chance here,” she said into the receiver, as she looked down fondly at her partner who was lying sprawled naked on top of the sheets.

 

“Good morning, Agent Chance,” said Margaret Holm. “I trust I didn’t wake you.”

 

“No, Ma’am, you didn’t.”

 

“Good. I was just calling to inform you that the two Japanese inspectors are on their way to LAX.” She gave her the flight information and then said, “I want you and Agent Blackhart to pick them up and assist them in any way you can. That is, assuming you don’t already have Dr. Takagashi in custody—Which I’m assuming you don’t, since I haven’t received any reports confirming that.”

 

“Yes, Ma’am. That is to say, no, Ma’am, we don’t have the doctor in our custody yet, but we do have a pretty good idea where she is and we’re just waiting to see what she has planned before we-“ Jessica started to explain.

 

“No, you’re not. Let me make this perfectly clear, Agent Chance: I don’t give a powdered pony’s ass what Takagashi might or might not have planned. If you know where she is, I order you to take her into custody ASAP. Is that understood?” The Major General asked the question in such a manner as to suggest that if she received the wrong answer it would be very bad indeed.

 

“Yes, Ma’am, perfectly. Dr. Takagashi will be bagged and ready by the time the Japanese officers arrive,” Jessi said, frowning.

 

“Excellent. I’ll expect a full report once the matter is concluded.”

 

“Of course, Ma’am. You’ll get an e-mail later today with all the details.”

 

“Good, I’m looking forward to reading it. Goodbye, Agent Chance.”

 

“Goodbye, Ma’am.” Jessica had barely hung up the phone when it rang again. “Chance here,” she said into the receiver, noting that Kallista was still sound asleep and had begun snoring slightly.

 

“Agent Chance, this is Commissioner Yates.”

 

“Good morning, commissioner. Did you get a lead on Dr. Takagashi’s whereabouts?” Jessi asked, smirking to herself. But she got suddenly serious as she listened to Yates’ response.

 

“I’m not sure. One of our officers brought in a strange electronic device that he got from a sort of local celebrity who told him that it, and others like it, were responsible for all the trouble we had with the area’s teens a couple of days ago. I recalled from the file your superior sent me that Dr. Takagashi was involved with experimental electronics research and I thought she might have something to do with this,” Miranda explained. “I’m not sure how this thing might help you locate her, but if you’d like to take a look at it I’ll be in my office all morning.”

 

“Thanks, Commissioner Yates. I’ll be down to see this thing as soon as I can.”

 

“Fine. I’ll see you a bit later, Agent Chance.”

 

Jessica hung up the phone and stared thoughtfully into space until Kallista stirred and opened her brown eyes. “Now that’s a sight I could get used to waking up to,” the blonde said with a mischievous grin.

 

Jessi bent down and kissed her. “And I could definitely get used to that,” she smiled. “But, much as I’d like to spend the day alone with you in this bed, I just got a call from Holm and she ordered us to go pick up Takagashi before the Japanese officers arrive this afternoon.”

 

“Which, if you’ll recall, is what I wanted to do in the first place,” said with blonde with a triumphant smirk.

 

“Gloating becomes you, dear,” Jessica said with a chuckle. “Oh, and Commissioner Yates also called and it seems she has something she thinks might have been made by Takagashi; something that caused the kids in the city to go crazy.”

 

“Oh, yeah, I remember seeing a news report about that. Weird stuff, Jess. For about two days over half the city’s population of teenagers became regular little anarchists, burning and destroying whatever they could. But then, just as suddenly as they started, they stopped. The police officially chalked the whole incident up to a particularly bad occurrence of lunacy, since there was a full moon while it was happening,” Kall said with a shrug, sitting up and stretching her lithe frame to its limit.

 

“You make it very difficult to concentrate when you do that,” Jessica said.

 

“When I do what?” Kall asked with mocking innocence, batting her thick eyelashes fetchingly. The fact that she was thrusting out her chest, causing her small, but pert, breasts to stand out, seemingly pointing right at the redhead, didn’t help.

 

“Forget it, Kallista,” Jessica said, heading towards the bathroom. “We’ve got to get ready.” She got back in the shower and had just turned on the water when the blonde joined her. “I’m serious, Kall!”

 

“What?” Kallista asked with wide eyes. “I’m just trying to save some time and some water by showering together.”

 

Jessica laughed and shook her head. “I give up. I’ll wash your back and you can wash mine, then,” she said, lathering up a washrag.

 

“Actually, I was thinking we could wash each other’s fronts,” the blonde said coyly, beginning to caress the redhead’s tits with her soapy hands.

 

“I figured as much,” Jessica said, melting at the blonde’s touch. She began washing Kall’s breasts just as tenderly. “Okay, so maybe we won’t get to the police station as soon as I’d planned.”

 

“You and your plans,” chuckled Kall. “I keep telling you that the name of the game out here is to go with the flow.” Jessi just laughed and the two women continued to fondle each other under the pretext of washing themselves.

 

*

 

It was close to two hours later that Jessica finally knocked on Commissioner Yates’ door, having left Kallista down in the parking lot since the blonde once again refused to so much as set foot in the building.

 

“Come in, Agent Chance. Coffee?” Miranda asked, rising to shake the agent’s hand as she gestured for her to sit down.

 

“No, thanks. I don’t know how you people on this coast can drink so much coffee,” she said with a smile.

 

“You get used to it,” Yates replied, sitting back down. “I didn’t drink nearly as much when I first got here, but now, it just seems so natural.”

 

“You’re not from here originally?”

 

“Do I look that much like a California girl?” Miranda asked with a slight laugh. She was a somewhat overweight woman in her late-forties or early fifties with salt and pepper hair and blue eyes that commanded respect. Her figure was still good, despite the extra meat, and she had an attractive face.

 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean that the way it came out,” Jessica replied, blushing a bit.

 

“Don’t give it a second thought, Agent Chance. Actually, it might surprise you to know that I hail from your neck of the woods; I was born and raised in Alexandria, Virginia. I didn’t move out to Lala Land until after high school.” She indicated the UCLA pennant on the wall behind her and Jessica nodded. “But I don’t think you came here to get my life’s story. If I’m not mistaken, this is the reason you’re here this morning,” she said, taking a small device from her top drawer and handing it to the redhead.

 

Jessica carefully examined the tiny transmitter, noting the obviously Japanese-made components, but dismissing them as any sort of evidence that Koyuki had built it since the Land of the Rising Sun was the world’s leading manufacturer of miniature electronics. It wasn’t so much the construction of the thing that interested her, as it was its purpose. What could Koyuki hope to gain from turning teens into a crazed mob? Jessica asked herself as she stared at the device in her hand. A diversion for something much bigger, perhaps… She sighed and handed the transmitter back to Yates. “Dr. Takagashi might have made that thing, but I can’t be sure. I also can’t figure out why she would.”

 

Miranda nodded. “Nothing noteworthy went down during the time these things were active either, so the kids weren’t being used as a cover for a robbery or any other major type of crime.”

 

“You said that the officer got this from a local celebrity…” the redhead prompted.

 

“Ah, yes, LA’s dirty little secret. It seems that the City of Angels has a sort of protector, a super heroine, to be blunt. She calls herself NightFox and rides around with her sidekick on a pair of hopped up motorcycles, fighting evil each night,” Yates said without a trace of lightness in her voice.

 

“You’re not kidding, are you?” Jessica gasped.

 

“I only wish I was. Not that this NightFox hasn’t done some genuine good and saved some people and property from some serious harm, but, with a serial killer on the loose, the last thing this city needs is a vigilante. Even one with super powers,” she added with a snort.

 

“That’s the second time you’ve called her super-powered. What kind of abilities does she have?” the redhead asked.

 

“Apart from amazing agility and above-average strength, she’s said to pull glowing weapons from thin air. So far she’s only used them defensively, but it’s only a matter of time before she critically wounds or kills somebody.”

 

Jessica nodded thoughtfully. “What was the name of the officer who got that thing from this NightFox character?”

 

“Ray Parker,” Miranda replied. And then, noticing the shocked expression on the redhead’s face, she inquired, “You know him?”

 

“We’ve met, unofficially,” Jessi replied offhandedly. “I doubt he’ll have any more useful information but I’d like to talk to him all the same.”

 

“Hang on and I’ll see if he’s on duty.” She buzzed her secretary and asked about Officer Parker’s current whereabouts and was told he was taking a statement from some security people out at Bel-Air Estates, but should be back in town shortly.

 

Jessica instantly recognized the name of the community as the one that Lilith Kahira lived in and asked if Yates couldn’t have Parker wait for her where he was. Miranda arranged for him to remain at the Bel-Air Estates security offices and Jessica thanked her and then left to fill Kall in on the latest twist.

 

*

 

Ray Parker was standing beside his patrol car, calmly sipping a cup of coffee, when Kallista’s VW convertible screeched to a halt inches from him. He scowled slightly and rolled his eyes as he did his best not to choke on the dust cloud.

 

“Sorry about that,” Kall said sheepishly as she moved so that she was sitting on the headrest, with her feet resting on the seat itself and her elbows resting on the top of windshield.

 

Jessica gave the blonde a disparaging look and then walked over and shook Ray’s hand. “Nice to see you again, Ray. This blonde troublemaker is Kallista Blackhart, my partner on this particular assignment.”

 

“A pleasure,” he said to Kall, with dubious sincerity, considering that he was patting the dust from his uniform at the same time. “You must have wanted to see me again pretty badly, to go all the way to the Commissioner,” he smiled. When he saw that redhead was blushing, he quickly added, “That’s what we non-government agent types call a joke, Jessica.”

 

“Oh. Sorry, I’ve just got a lot on my mind right now, I guess,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders as the pair walked off a little ways from the VW to talk.

 

“There’s a lot of that going around. Okay, since we’ve definitely established that you didn’t go to all this trouble just to see me again, why did you?” he asked, his blue eyes twinkling in the early morning light. Ray Parker was an older man, past his prime but still handsome enough, with light hair and bright eyes that still attracted younger women. His build was fit, but he was beginning to lose the ‘battle of the bulge’ around his waist.

 

“I want to hear about NightFox,” Jessi replied. “And about why you came up here this morning.”

 

“I see. Well, as for NightFox, there’s not much to tell, I’m afraid. She referred to herself as a Goddess when she showed up a few nights ago and helped us subdue a, well, I guess you’d have to call her a sort of super villain, since she had super-human powers. As you might have guessed from her name, she only shows up after sundown, at least so far. The city’s official position is to let her do her thing, since it’s good for the tourist trade and takes people’s minds off the fact that a sicko is barbecuing hookers, until she crosses the line and either seriously hurts someone or causes someone to get seriously hurt. Personally, I wish she’d decided to set up shop in ‘Frisco or San Diego, but…” He shrugged his shoulders and Jessica laughed. “Now, before I answer your second question, why is Aegis interested in what happened at a Bel-Air estate this morning?”

 

“I’m going to take a wild guess that whatever went down happened at the home of one Lilith Kahira, right?” The redhead could tell from his shocked expression that she’d been right. “I thought as much. Aegis has reason to believe that Ms. Kahira is sheltering an international criminal who recently escaped from a Japanese prison and we’re here to apprehend her and hold her for foreign operatives so she can return to Japan and finish serving the remainder of her sentence. So, just what did happen at Ms. Kahira’s place this morning, Ray?”

 

“Oh, it was your typical Friday morning Beverly Hills massacre,” Parker replied, his tone and expression underscoring the irony of his words. “One of our local gangs apparently decided to shoot it out in Ms. Kahira’s driveway.”

 

“Shoot it out with who? Kahira and her houseguests?”

 

“That’s the odd twist…” he said thoughtfully. “They shot each other and then the leader apparently shot himself. According to the security team that took Ms. Kahira’s statement, she and her guests heard gunfire and rushed outside only to find the shooters all dead. She claims to have no idea why they would choose to kill each other on her estate and denied knowing anything about any of the gang members. I was just on my way up to talk to her myself when I got the order to stay put and wait for you. Do you want to go with me when I question her?”

 

“Actually, I, and Aegis, would prefer that you didn’t have any further contact with Ms. Kahira at this point,” Jessica said, adopting her official voice. “We don’t want to do anything to spook Dr. Takagashi into leaving Ms. Kahira’s place and going into hiding before we have a chance to detain her.”

 

“Okay, if that’s the way you want to play this, fine with me. I doubt we’d be able to make a case against her anyway, since the security people say it’s pretty obvious that the gang members took each other out. Of course, we’ll know for sure once the ballistics and forensics tests are done, but I’ve no reason to doubt that they’ll just confirm her story.”

 

“I’ve no doubt they will,” Jessi agreed. “Just one more thing… Why did NightFox give you the device?”

 

“I guess I’m the only cop she’s on a friendly basis with,” Ray replied with a grin and a shrug of his broad shoulders.

 

“You must be living right, Ray,” Jessica said, smiling and shaking her head. “Thanks for the info and try to stay out of trouble. I’ll let Commissioner Yates know if I need to talk to you again.”

 

“I could just give you my phone number,” he suggested.

 

“Yes, you could,” the redhead said, nodding her head as she turned and walked back over to Kallista’s car. She jumped in the passenger seat and Kall gunned the engine to life and both agents waved as the VW tore off up into the hills.

 

Ray watched them go and then slammed his palm against his forehead and groaned, “I must have sounded like a real idiot.” He got back into his car and finished the paperwork on this incident, and did his best not to think about the redhead for the rest of the morning.

 

“Okay,” said Kallista as the little car went screaming up the winding road, “now what?”

 

“Now we need to figure out some way to put the snatch and run on Koyuki without having to deal with Kahira and her people,” Jessica replied, cringing as the vehicle barely squeezed between an SUV and an oncoming sedan.

 

“And how do we do that?” the blonde asked as the car fishtailed onto the private road that led up to the estates and onto Bel-Air Drive.

 

“I have a plan…” Jessi said with a mischievous grin.

 

* * * * *

 

“Hey! Isn’t that Jessica and Officer Parker?” Vixen asked the blonde behind the wheel as Pandora’s car turned up onto Bel-Air Drive.

 

“I don’t know about Jessica, never met her,” Pandora reminded the brunette, “but, yeah, that’s definitely Parker.”

 

This Jessica is a secret agent? Erishkigal asked in Vixen’s mind.

 

“Yeah,” said Vixen quietly, ignoring Pandora’s giggles.

 

I don’t think it’s just a coincidence that she’s in the same vicinity as Sakhmet. Can we trust her?

 

“Trust her with what? Our secret?” Vixen whispered. Pandora stopped giggling.

 

“Trust who with our secret?” the blonde hissed.

 

Only if we have to. I meant trust her in the general sense of the word, the Goddess inside her clarified.

 

“Oh, sure. She’s one of the good guys, definitely,” Vixen replied. “Don’t worry, Pandy, we won’t tell her anything we don’t absolutely have to.”

 

Pandora hunched down in her seat and said softly, “The whole point of having a secret identity is keeping it a secret.”

 

Vixen would have pursued the conversation, but the car slowed and the pair of young women saw a horde of ambulances in front of the gate to Lilith’s house.

 

Eri said grimly, Well, at least we’ll know where to find Sakhmet tonight.

 

“I wonder what happened there?” Pandora asked as she continued on when a car behind her honked its horn.

 

“Nothing good,” Vixen sighed, glancing back at the parade of emergency vehicles.

 

* * * * *

 

Once more the two women who might or might not have been Inspectors Komatsu and Miyazawa were on a plane. And, although this one was headed for LA instead of Washington, nothing had changed as they silently regarded each other, looking desperately for some sign, some indication, however small, that would categorically identify the other. But both were being careful not to speak about anything other than those things that would have been familiar to either the fujinjas or the SFU officers, i.e., the weather, popular music, current events, etc.

 

It had already been a long flight for both of them and it was only half over.

 

* * * * *

 

Once the security people had taken her statement and left, assuring her that they’d handle things with the LAPD, but warning her that she might have to restate what she’d told them, just for their records, Lilith searched her house until she located Priestess Farrah in the dining hall. She was having breakfast with Koyuki when Lil approached her. “Excuse us, Koyuki. We need to talk. Now, and in private,” she hissed, grabbing the other woman by the arm and dragging her away to a linen closet.

 

“What’s wrong, Lili? Afraid you’re not exactly impressing our Goddess?” Farrah smirked as Lilith shut the door behind them.

 

“Okay, this has gone way beyond the point of infighting between us, Farrah. Did you see what she did to those kids out there? She killed them!” Lilith exclaimed in a hushed voice.

 

“Duh, Lili. I was there, too. Remember? So what’s the big deal? She made some little thugs take each other out. Okay with me. So long and don’t let the door to Hell hit your ass on the way in, I say.”

 

“That’s all well and good for murderous little sociopaths,” Lilith agreed, “but tomorrow night she’s going to be in control of millions of kids, Farrah. Innocent kids. And she’s going to get them killed, just like she killed those gang members this morning.”

 

“Yeah, that seems to be her plan. What about it?”

 

“It’s monstrous!” Lilith gasped. “Don’t you think so?”

 

“Well, I suppose, if I really take the time to stop and think about it… yeah, it’s monstrous. What did you expect when you started worshiping her? I mean, she is an evil Goddess, you know? Did you think she’d just mix up people’s mail or crash their computers or something?”

 

“I never really stopped to think about it,” Lilith confessed. “I was just using her influence and power to advance myself and amass my fortune. I figured that I’d have to pay her back some day, some how, but I never considered that she’d actually show up in the flesh and try to take over the world using an army of children!”

 

“Me neither,” nodded Farrah. “But at least we’re on the winning side. Who knows, we might get to be queens of our own countries when this is all over, you know?”

 

“When this is all over, you idiot, there won’t be any world or countries to rule. Just a bunch of homicidal kids and a whole lot of dead adults. Besides,” Lil added darkly, “I seriously doubt if either you or I will be around, whatever happens. Once we’ve outlived our usefulness…”

 

“Maybe she plans to get rid of you, Lili—And who can blame her, the way you’ve bungled all your opportunities to advance her cause—but I know I’ll be around to enjoy her victory,” Farrah said forcefully.

 

“Look, I don’t want to argue with you about this.”

 

“Yeah, then what do you want from me?” Farrah asked suspiciously.

 

“I want your help in stopping her. I can’t do it alone, but maybe together we can send her back to her own dimension,” Lilith said desperately.

 

“Stop her? No way, Lili. If we failed she’d take us out faster than a dot com stock takes to bottom out,” Farrah said, reaching for the door. But she paused and turned to stare into Lilith’s dark eyes. “Look, I know we don’t exactly like each other, you know? But I’m warning you not to do anything to cross her. I want to earn your position fair and square, not get it by default after she rips your soul to shreds, you know?”

 

Lilith just sighed and shook her head. “You’re making a mistake by trusting her, Farrah. I know,” she said, recalling the beating she’d received at the hands of Erishkigal and Inanna when Sakhmet left her to the two Goddess’ mercy. “She’ll betray you, too. She’ll betray us all unless we stop her.”

 

“Seems to me you’re the only one ready to betray someone, you know?” Farrah said.

 

“Only because I know her better than you do, and, trust me, loyalty isn’t one of her strong suits,” Lilith replied.

 

Farrah scowled and opened her mouth to reply, but then just shook her head and walked out of the closet, leaving Lilith alone…and very worried.

 

* * * * *

 

Floyd Lewis was running late, as usual. The problem wasn’t that he was a procrastinator, quite the opposite, in fact. No, the problem was that he had too many things going on at once and tended to get so absorbed in any two or three at any given time that he forgot all about things like eating, bathing, and going to school. Fortunately, the school bus he rode stopped right outside his house and it had a very loud horn. The young man practically jumped out of his skin when it sounded this morning, disrupting some research he was doing on quantum chaos theory via the internet.

 

As he scrambled to get dressed before the horn sounded a second time, deciding on his usual polo shirt and slacks, the young man with short hair and dark eyes that shone with an inner light that were partially obscured behind a pair of thick glasses looked up and rubbed his eyes, not sure if believed what he was seeing or not. He stood in stunned silence as what can only be described as tear in the very fabric of reality closed behind a stunningly beautiful woman dressed in a daring gown of deep purple that displayed her ample bosom prominently. “Hello, Floyd,” she said with a voice that resembled the contented purring of a cat.

 

The horn of the bus down in the street started to honk again but suddenly stopped before it had finished. In fact, Floyd realized with a start that his room had become deathly quiet and he saw with alarm that the seconds’ indicator on his computer had ceased flashing.

 

“I thought we should have some private time together, child,” the beautiful, but somehow sinister, stranger said, opening her hand and revealing a small device. She used one of her long, painted fingernails to flip a switch on the tiny gadget and the next thing Floyd knew he was standing alone in his room.

 

He looked for some sign of the woman, but she was gone, if she’d truly been there at all. He jumped when the horn sounded again and saw from the time on his computer clock that only a few seconds had elapsed. He shook his head with annoyance and grabbed his jacket and book bag and rushed out to the bus.

 

As the bus made its way to his school after picking up the last child on the route, Floyd inexplicably reached into his book bag and pulled out a gun. He had no idea how it had got into his bag or why he was taking it out now. When one of the boys sitting nearby saw it and exclaimed, “Cool! Where’d you get that, Floyd?” he calmly pulled the trigger and shot the youth between the eyes.

 

The bus driver, an overweight woman in her forties, screamed and inadvertently stomped on the brake. As she fought to retain control of the bus, Floyd began shooting the other children on the bus with methodical coldness, walking up and down the aisle and picking them off wherever he found them cowering with paralyzing fear between the seats. Finally, the driver managed to bring the vehicle to a stop, but, before she could even turn around, Floyd had shot her in the back of the head. The bullet passed clear through her skull and shattered the windshield, scattering glass and brains on the street in front of the bus.

 

Meanwhile, several kids had tried to rush Floyd only to drop at his feet when a single bullet pierced all of their bodies, right through their hearts. Some of the others had reached the front of the bus and were trying desperately to work the mechanism that opened the door, but with little success, owing to their mind-numbing terror. They pleaded with Floyd as he calmly approached, begging him not to kill them. He shot them dead without so much as blinking.

 

Alone on the bus at last, he placed the gun to his head and, after a slight hesitation, during which something human, something childlike and innocent shone in his eyes like a prisoner peering through the bars of his cell, his finger tightened and his life ended in the same manner that those of his classmates had: bewildered and terrified at something beyond his control or comprehension.

 

* * * * *

 

Lilith Kahira was sitting in her study, worrying about her decision to confront Farrah and take her into her confidence, but ultimately deciding that she’d really had no choice if she was to stop Sakhmet from carrying out her monstrous plan. As she sat in her favorite chair, enjoying the cool breeze from the open window that soothed the back of her neck, a hand suddenly snaked around her throat and another clapped itself over her mouth. She tried to scream but the hand covering her mouth prevented any sound from coming out of her, other than a muffled grunting.

 

“Shhh,” warned a somewhat familiar voice. When Kallista walked around in front of her, the strange bracelets she was wearing glowing with a fiery intensity, Lilith realized that the person holding her had to be Jessica. The blonde went to each of the room’s doors and listened and then walked over to the TV and turned it on and increased the volume until it would have been difficult for anyone outside the room to hear anything other than the set. She then positioned herself near the center of the room and nodded to the woman holding Lil.

 

“No screaming, right?” Jessica asked, tightening the grip on her neck a bit. Lilith nodded her head and the redhead released her hold and walked around in front of her. “Look, I don’t care why you took Koyuki in in the first place and, as far as Aegis is concerned, you’re still a model citizen, but only if you give her up to us right now. If we have to get a search warrant and make this an official action…” Jessi’s voice trailed off when she saw that Lilith was no longer listening to her, but that her attention was instead focused on a news broadcast on the TV. A reporter with tears running down her face was standing near a school bus with the words George Washington Carver Preparatory School on it and reporting that twenty-eight kids and a forty-four year-old woman had been killed by a young man, who apparently then took his own life by shooting himself in the head. No further details were available and the broadcast cut to interviews with people who had witnessed the tragedy. “Sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t it?” Jessica asked, her hands forming tight balls as she turned back to face Kahira.

 

But to her surprise, the Egyptian was actually weeping. “Yes, it does, Agent Chance. And I fear this is only the beginning of the terror. Far worse is yet to come, believe me, unless she’s stopped,” Lilith said bitterly.

 

“Who? Koyuki?” Kallista asked, puzzled.

 

“No, not Koyuki. Although she’s just as responsible for putting such power in the hands of one such as myself in the first place. No, I’m talking about the woman who called herself my Aunt Samantha yesterday. In reality she is the Goddess Sakhmet, second in evil only to Set, the Devourer of Souls himself,” she said, and this time there was no hesitation, no second thoughts about betraying the Goddess.

 

“That’s crazy! Are you setting yourself up for an insanity plea, Lilith?” Kallista asked derisively.

 

“No, Kall. Believe it or not, she’s telling the truth,” Jessica said, staring into Lil’s dark eyes. “I knew there was something odd about that woman…”

 

“Are you listening to yourself, Jessica? This is just a ploy, I tell you,” Kall insisted.

 

“Why is it so hard to accept that an Egyptian Goddess could be alive and well when you’ve just fought an Indian half-demon?” Jessi reminded her. Not waiting for a reply from the blonde, she asked Lilith, “How does she do it? How does she make kids do her bidding? It has something to do with Koyuki, you said.”

 

“Yes, Koyuki has discovered a frequency that compels adolescents to obey her commands, but not to do anything they wouldn’t do ordinarily. You know, like forcing an honest kid to break the law or a gentle one to hurt someone. But, somehow, when Sakhmet uses the frequency she can actually make them do anything she tells them to. Anything,” she repeated, glancing at the TV screen.

 

“Okay, let’s just say that she’s telling truth,” Kall said, clearly not buying the wily Egyptian’s story, “what does Sakhmet hope to gain from controlling a handful of kids?”

 

“You don’t understand, Kallista. Tomorrow night she’ll control millions--Maybe even billions, if my initial figures about the worldwide audience were right, “ Lilith explained. “By Sunday morning, there probably won’t be anyone over the age of nineteen left alive on the entire planet.”

 

“Audience…?” Kall said slowly. Then recognition seemed to dawn in her brown eyes. “Those kids in your office, The Vice Girls, they have a concert tomorrow night, don’t they?”

 

Lilith nodded. “One that will be broadcast all over the globe,” she said.

 

“Giving Sakhmet the perfect opportunity to seize control of the minds of the children of the world,” Jessica said, clearly stunned by the monstrous implications.

 

“So, you see, simply taking Koyuki into custody won’t really make any difference. Somehow, we have to stop Sakhmet herself,” Lili said.

 

“Okay, but how do we stop a Goddess?” asked Kallista.

 

“Maybe with another Goddess,” Jessica said thoughtfully. “But that will have to wait for tonight. Right now, we have to take Koyuki into custody and then get out to the airport to meet the officers from Japan.”

 

“That might be a problem,” Lilith said slowly. “Sakhmet and Koyuki are downstairs making sure the equipment is all ready for the concert tomorrow night.” Her dark eyes snapped open. “Oh! I just remembered that Sakhmet was questioning Koyuki about you this morning,” she said, looking up at the redhead. “She seemed particularly interested in your telekinetic abilities.”

 

“Well, I won’t be using those here, not as long as that damn frequency is smothering this house,” the redhead groused.

 

“And the controls for that are downstairs, too,” Lilith said with an annoyed sigh.

 

“Do you think you could lure Koyuki up here on some pretext?” Kall suggested. “We could knock her out and be out of here before Sakhmet had a chance to miss her.”

 

“And then Sakhmet would kill me and still go through with her plans,” Lilith said with a snort. “No thank you, Kallista. I may be helping you to stop her, but not at the expense of my own life. She can’t know anything about my assisting you or I’m as good as dead. Is that clear?”

 

“You could tell her we forced you. We could even rough you up a bit to make it more convincing,” the blonde said with a smirk, rubbing her knuckles.

 

“I don’t think so,” the Egyptian said. “But thanks for the offer.”

 

“This is getting us nowhere! And we have to be at LAX in less than an hour,” Jessica reminded them.

 

“I’m doing my best! And I haven’t heard any suggestions from you, Jessi,” Kall said petulantly. “Don’t you have one of your famous plans for this situation?”

 

“As a matter of fact, I just might,” the redhead said with a smirk. “Tell me about those people in the robes we saw downstairs…”

 

*

 

Two robed figures made their way through the mansion and down to the secret laboratory without causing anyone who encountered them to give them a second glance. They approached the room where the Asian and the Goddess were talking quietly while Koyuki made some adjustments to a wireless microphone and then stood silently, waiting to be acknowledged.

 

“Yes, what do you want?” Dr. Takagashi finally snapped after a few minutes.

 

“Our Priestess wishes to speak with you, doctor. If you will kindly accompany us,” Jessica said, disguising her voice and keeping her head lowered so as to prevent either of them from spotting her features in the shadows of the cowl.

 

But at the sound of the redhead’s voice, Sakhmet suddenly looked straight at her, her eyes glowing with golden malevolence. She placed a hand on the Asian’s shoulder and walked over to the two robed figures. “After all Koyuki told me about you, I really did expect something better than this pathetic effort,” she purred, throwing the hood back and revealing the scowling face of the agent. “And, of course, this must be your blonde friend.” She likewise revealed Kall’s annoyed features. “Now, isn’t this better? We can finally be properly introduced to one another. I am Sakhmet, Goddess of Ancient Egypt, and Future Queen of the Earth. And you are?”

 

“You know who we are, Sakhmet. We met you yesterday. What’s the matter? Problem with your short-term memory?” Jessica asked snidely.

 

“You know, Jessi, she didn’t meet everyone yesterday,” Kall said with a slight smile. “In all the confusion we forgot to introduce her to my partners.”

 

“What pitiable ploy is this?” Sakhmet growled. “What partners? You two were alone yesterday.”

 

“Not exactly…Meet Inferno and Blaze!” the blonde cried, launching a double-barreled assault from her bracelets right into the startled Goddess’ face.

 

Sakhmet shrieked and clawed at her burning features while Jessica grabbed Koyuki by the arm and dragged her back to the hidden elevator. After another full-force discharge for good measure, Kallista joined them. “You really are insane, Jessica,” Koyuki said with a disturbing giggle. “She’s a Goddess, an immortal being from another dimension, if I understand correctly. All you’ve done with your little pyrotechnics display is make her angry. You’re fooling yourselves if you think you’ve seriously hurt her.”

 

As if to confirm the truth of the doctor’s words, they heard the sound of metal grating against metal and then the elevator lurched violently before coming to a stop. Jessica and Kallista looked at each other curiously and then both agents almost jumped out of their skin when the floor beneath their feet started to tear away to the accompaniment of ear-shattering roaring. The two agents glanced down at the new opening and saw a hideously burned Sakhmet ripping away the floor with her bare hands. The evil Goddess’ face was a smoking mask, with the flesh clinging to it in smoldering strips for the most part, revealing the blackened skull beneath in more than a few places, and her eyes now burned with a crimson light so bright it caused all three women to shield their eyes.

 

Jessica looked around in desperation and spotted the trap door in the roof of the elevator. She jumped up and opened it. “Out you go, Kall,” she insisted, giving the blonde a leg up as the Goddess slowly clawed her way into the small space. “Now you, Koyuki,” Jessi said, grabbing the Asian’s arm.

 

“NO! The doctor stays with me,” Sakhmet snarled, reaching out and latching onto Koyuki’s ankle. She continued to pull herself inside and Kall screamed from the roof of the elevator, “Just leave her and come on, Jessi! Before it’s too late.”

 

The blonde reached down and Jessica reluctantly exited the elevator just as Sakhmet climbed all the way in. “This is far from over, Sakhmet!” the redhead shouted as the blonde started to shimmy up the cable.

 

“You’re right about that, Jessica,” the Goddess agreed, glaring up at her. She started to climb up onto the roof. “Now I’ll do what I should have done yesterday and eliminate you and the blonde once and for all.”

 

“We’ll see about that,” Jessica said, reaching down and pulling the lever that released the elevator from the cable. Sakhmet screamed in frustration while Koyuki cried out in fear as the elevator went into free-fall. Jessi watched it strike the bottom of the shaft before following Kall up the thick line.

 

When they reached the ground floor, the two agents were able to pry open the door and exit the shaft. As they discarded their costumes, they looked up and saw a pair of robed figures rushing at them. Jessica ducked under a looping swing and drove her fist deep into the cultist’s gut, causing the concealed person to gasp for breath and drop to its knees. The redhead quickly fired a hard jab into the hood and the figure topped over onto its back.

 

Meanwhile, Kall had opted to go high, jumping up and kicking the figure attacking her squarely in the head. She then used her momentum from the first kick to bring her other leg around and deliver a second kick to the other side of the hood. The cultist dropped soundlessly to the ground while Kall landed lightly on her feet, looking for other opponents.

 

“Come on, Kall!” Jessica urged, standing near an open window. “Let’s get out of here before more of those thugs show up.”

 

“I was just getting warmed up, Jessi,” Kall said, smirking as she joined the redhead at the window. “You really can take all the fun out of this business sometimes.”

 

Suddenly, an impossibly loud roar shook the house to its foundations and the two agents looked over in horror as Sakhmet’s clawed hands appeared at the base of the shaft’s opening and the evil Goddess began to pull herself into the room.

 

“Still want to stick around and play?” Jessica asked from outside the window.

 

“Not today!” Kall exclaimed, diving outside. She hit the ground running and didn’t stop until she and Jessica reached the wall of Lilith’s estate. “Okay, that was possibly the scariest thing I’ve ever seen,” the blonde panted as she pulled herself up and over the barrier.

 

“Still think Lilith was just going for an insanity plea?” Jessi smirked as she landed on the ground next to Kall after having cleared the ten-foot wall with a single leap.

 

“Fine, she wasn’t, but the question still remains: How do we stop that bitch?” Kallista asked, climbing into her VW and gunning the engine to life.

 

“I already told you: With another Goddess. But right now we have to get to the airport and pick up those two Japanese agents, and try to explain to Holm why we don’t have Koyuki in our custody yet,” Jessica sighed as the little car threw up a thick cloud of dust as it sped down the hill, towards the city.

 

Back at the mansion, Sakhmet glared angrily out the window, her fists clenched furiously.

 

“Goddess!” cried Farrah, rushing into the room and seeing Sakhmet looking like she’d been barbecued. “Are you all right?”

 

“I will be fine, once I’ve had a chance to bathe my ruined flesh in the rays of my beloved sun,” she replied, turning and heading for a set of French doors. “But I fear the doctor might need some medical attention. See to it, favored daughter,” she said to Lilith, who had just entered the room. “And then tell me how those two agents managed to sneak onto your grounds and into the very bowels of your home without tripping any of the alarms.”

 

“Of course, Goddess,” the startled Egyptian replied, kneeling as the Goddess walked past her and out into the sunshine.

 

“Is there anything I can do for you, Goddess?” inquired Farrah, following her out onto the deck and gasping as she saw the ravaged flesh heal itself as soon as the sun washed over it.

 

“Find out where those two meddlers are staying… and see that they don’t interfere with tomorrow night’s operation,” Sakhmet instructed, turning to face Farrah, looking as beautiful, and evil, as ever. “Do you think you can handle that, daughter?”

 

“You’ll never see either the blonde or the redhead again, Goddess. I give you my word.”

 

“No, daughter, you’ve given me your soul; there’s no need for your word. If you should fail me in this, the torments you will endure will make what I have planned for the rest of this world seem like a pleasant party. Do I make myself clear, daughter?” she asked, her eyes shining like highly polished golden coins.

 

“Perfectly clear, Goddess.” Farrah gulped and backed away, knowing she didn’t have much time.

 

A little while later Lilith came out of the French doors and knelt at the Goddess’ feet. “Koyuki will be fine, Goddess, just a few bumps and bruises and maybe a mild concussion. As for how Jessica and Kallista were able to get into my estate, I confess that I don’t know, but you can rest assured that I am having my security measures upgraded as we speak and it will not happen again.”

 

Sakhmet scowled and ran her tongue across her upper teeth as she regarded the Egyptian. “It had better not, favored daughter, for your sake.”

 

“It won’t, Goddess, upon my soul.”

 

“How right you are, my dear,” the evil Goddess chuckled. “How right you are.”

 

* * * * *

 

Thanks to Kall’s driving, Jessica and the blonde agent made it to the airport with time to spare and were there to greet the two Japanese women when they got off the plane. “They’re cute,” the blonde whispered to Jessica as they approached the pair of Asians. “I might have to visit Japan again.”

 

The redhead stifled a giggle and extended her hand to the taller of the two women. “Welcome to Los Angeles. I’m Jessica and this is Kallista,” she said, noticing a slight relaxation in the other’s grip when she said her name.

 

“I am Asami Komatsu and this is Reiko Miyazawa, but please call us Sam and Rei,” she replied with a slight smile.

 

“Hey! Sam and Rei. I like that,” grinned Kallista, shaking their hands warmly. “What do you say we grab a bite to eat and get to know each other?”

 

“Or would you like to go to the hotel and rest after your flight?” Jessica asked, sensing definite tension from the two Asians.

 

“We were told you’d have Dr. Takagashi in custody by the time we arrived,” Rei said bluntly. “We’d like to speak with her first, if you don’t mind.”

 

“Um, yeah, about that…” Jessi began, her mouth twisting into an annoyed scowl. “You see, we know where she is, but we haven’t been able to apprehend her yet.”

 

“If you’d kindly take us to where she is, we will be more than happy to complete the mission,” Sam offered, sounding both smug and relieved at the same time.

 

“Look, it’s not that easy. She’s being protected by an honest-to-goodness Goddess!” Kall hissed as the quartet made their way to Baggage Claim.

 

Sam and Rei both held their hands to their mouths and snickered softly.

 

“If you can’t do the job, just say so,” Rei said quietly. “No need to make up outrageous stories.”

 

Kallista’s bracelets began to glow and her eyes sparked angrily. “Listen, you arrogant little-“ she began.

 

“What Kallista means,” Jessica said quickly, interrupting the enraged blonde before she started an international incident, “is that we have reason to believe Dr. Takagashi is the guest of a very powerful citizen, but we can’t just barge in and remove her without positive proof.”

 

“Then she should have said so,” Sam said matter-of-factly as the blonde silently seethed and shot angry glances at the redhead.

 

“So, how about that dinner?” Jessica asked brightly, grabbing Kall by the arm and squeezing it slightly.

 

“That would be nice,” Sam said, retrieving her bag from the carousel.

 

“Yeah, just so long as it’s not a sushi bar,” Rei added, grabbing her own bag from the revolving platform. “I’m in the mood for some real American cuisine.”

 

Kallista smiled. “I know just the place.”

 

*

 

“Patina, Kall?” Jessica asked, looking up at the sign over the door of the odd-looking establishment on Melrose Avenue. The façade looked almost unfinished and the redhead wondered if this place deserved its long-standing reputation as LA’s best “damn the budget” restaurant. “This place is insanely expensive. And we’ll never get a table just walking in off the street.”

 

Kallista just smiled as they got out of her VW and approached the front door.

 

Once inside, a handsome man in his mid-forties rushed up and threw his arms around Kallista. “Ah, Kallista, my dear, it’s been too long,” he said, pulling back and looking into her brown eyes. “I thought maybe you’d forgotten your old friend, or found some other restaurant to trash,” he added with a wink.

 

“Now, Paul, I only trashed this place once, and I didn’t start it!” the blonde laughed.

 

“It was twice, Kall, and you might not have started either of the fights, but you most definitely finished both of them,” he said with a deep chuckle. Paul was of average height, standing around 6’ tall, with gray-blue eyes and a thin mustache above his smiling mouth. He wasn’t in terrific physical shape, as the way his suit fit just a bit too snugly around his middle evidenced, but he was far from unattractive. It’s just that in Hollywood, surrounded by the best and the brightest, he didn’t stand out at all. “Oh, I’m being rude. You and your lovely companions obviously came here to eat and here I am chattering away like an old hen. Please, come this way.” He led them through the restaurant’s interior, which was nothing at all what one would have expected from the half-finished appearance of its exterior, and sat them at a table next to a wall upon which hung a beautiful painting depicting a classic English country house. “Enjoy your meal, ladies, and don’t worry about the bill.”

 

“Oh, Paul! You don’t have to do that. I can put this on my government expense account,” Kallista added with a mischievous wink.

 

“Well, all right. I suppose my taxes are high enough,” he mused, walking away and laughing.

 

“Fights?” Jessi asked, arching her right eyebrow questioningly.

 

“It was a long time ago and has nothing to do with Aegis or anything else of importance,” the blonde said abruptly. “So, how are things in Japan? Still enjoying your market dominance in electronics and computer technology?”

 

Jessica groaned and rolled her green eyes skyward, wondering what it would be like to work just once with someone who at least knew the meaning of the word tact. “What Kallista meant to say was she is glad that Japan is still enjoying its economic prosperity, after the lean years of the last decade of the 20th century,” she said quickly.

 

“She really should learn to say what she means,” Sam said with a slight glare at the fuming blonde.

 

“Yes, she should,” agreed Jessica, nudging Kall sharply in the ribs.

 

“I haven’t been to Japan for many years, is Origami still head of the SFU?” Kall asked, glancing at the menu.

 

“His name was Okouchi,” Rei said, clearly annoyed. “And, no, he retired several years ago.”

 

The blonde shrugged and continued to peruse the menu.

 

“Have you ladies decided yet?” asked a perky blonde with a large chest and blue eyes. She smiled and held her pen at the ready.

 

“I’ll start off with the endive salad with Asian pears, Maytag blue cheese, duck proscuttio and hazelnuts,” Kall said. “Then I’ll have the salmon tournedo with a fennel tart and port wine glaze. And let’s finish things off with slice of crunchy chocolate cake with praline sauce and coffee ice cream. A small slice,” the blonde emphasized, handing the menu back to the waitress.

 

Excellent choices,” nodded the young woman. She turned to the others and they quickly made their own selections, but none of them did it with half the style and obvious familiarity with this type of cuisine that the blonde had demonstrated.

 

“Wow,” Jessica whispered once the waitress had left. “You really do know your way around the good life, don’t you?”

 

“Just wait until we’ve eaten and I’ll show you that this is just the tip of iceberg,” she grinned.

 

The meal was delicious, even if the conversation was stilted and peppered with more than its fair share of catty comments and anything-but-subtle innuendo, but when Kall suggested going to a well-known club that was frequented by Hollywood’s shining stars, the two Asians said they were too tired and Jessica reminded her that they still had some work to do tonight. “Spoilsports,” Kall huffed, punching the gas and causing her passengers to hold on to whatever they could as the little car skidded out into traffic, did a 180, and then raced off towards the Hilton as the sun set over the Pacific Ocean.

 

“Uh oh,” Jessi said when they pulled into the Hilton’s parking lot and saw that it was packed full of cars and buses. “I don’t like the looks of this. You did remember to book a room for our Japanese guests, didn’t you, Kall?” The blonde just grinned sheepishly and handed the valet a twenty before racing to the front desk. Jessica groaned as she and the two SFU inspectors followed her into the hotel.

 

“Oh,” said Rei as she entered the amazingly crowded lobby. “What’s going on this weekend?”

 

Realization dawned in the redhead’s green eyes as she surveyed the dozens of adolescent girls and she said quietly, “A Vice Girls concert.”

 

Kall approached them a few minutes later and informed them, “No go on another room. I guess you two will have to share my room and I’ll bunk with Jessica.”

 

The two Japanese women glanced at each other and then nodded in a resigned fashion. “If we must,” Sam said simply.

 

The four women made their way up to the pair of suites and quickly transferred the blonde’s things to the redhead’s room. “Okay, if you need anything, just order it from room service and they’ll put it on my tab,” Kallista said as she watched the two Asians slowly unpack their bags. “And here’s my cell phone number if you need to get in touch with either me or Jessica tonight.”

 

“You’re going out? To that club you mentioned?” Rei asked suspiciously, accepting the piece of paper with the telephone number on it.

 

“I wish!” replied Kall.

 

“No, Kallista and I have a lead to follow up on Koyuki’s whereabouts,” Jessi said quickly. “Hopefully, we will be able to take her into custody tomorrow.”

 

Sam grunted and Rei said nothing, but nodded her head dismissively.

 

“Well, good night,” Jessica said awkwardly.

 

“Yoru,” mumbled the two officers without looking up from their unpacking.

 

Jessica looked at Kallista and shrugged and then closed the door to their suite.

 

“Well, aren’t they fun?” Kallista said sarcastically after she and the redhead were back in their room.

 

“Something’s not right,” Jessi said, opening her laptop and frowning as she typed. “And it’s not just being in America for the first time.”

 

“What are you doing?” Kall asked, peering over her shoulder. Then, seeing the report she was composing for Major General Holm, she said softly, “She’s definitely not gonna like that.”

 

“Nope,” agreed the redhead, finishing the e-mail and sending it on its way. She then reached over for the phone and dialed an outside line. After a few transfers she was talking to the night duty officer at the LAPD and had arranged to be notified via Kall’s cell phone the minute any officer saw NightFox.

 

“You really think that flake can help us with Sakhmet?” Kallista asked skeptically.

 

“At this point, I’m willing to try anything,” Jessi shrugged. “Besides, it can’t hurt to make the acquaintance of a real live super heroine.”

 

Kall giggled and playfully slapped Jessica’s ass. “Yeah, right. So, what’s the plan? Wait here until we hear from the cops or go out and look for her ourselves?” she asked.

 

“I’m too wired to just sit here and wait for a call. What say we do a little sight-seeing?” she suggested with a grin.

 

“Sounds good to me,” smiled the blonde, getting up and heading for the door.

 

The two agents made their way down to the parking area and drove off in Kallista’s VW just as a dark van pulled into the hotel and parked in the back, near the service entrance. Two robed figures got out and one of them pushed the buzzer near the door that read “For Deliveries Only.”

 

A middle-aged man stuck his head out and got out as much as, “What do-Urk!” before he was struck in the throat and then dropped with an overhand blow to his face. The two figures dragged him into the van and one of the pair quickly stripped him out of his black slacks and white dress shirt while the other removed her robe to reveal a woman with a body like sculpted marble, but with a deep tan and muscles that were so tight and firm they seemed about to burst right through the flesh. Her blonde hair was quite long, but tied behind her head in a single pony tail, and her dark eyes were both alluring and malevolent She silently slipped into the unconscious man’s clothing and then exited the van and entered the service door only to return a few minutes later with the unconscious body of another man draped over her shoulder. The blonde casually tossed him into the van and her partner disrobed, revealing an equally ripped black woman who likewise removed the clothes of the second man and put them on.

 

The two women then entered the hotel’s delivery area and, ignoring the other workers, made their way to the computer that was used to coordinate the room service orders and looked up Chance’s and Blackhart’s room numbers. Luckily, it was located in a partially hidden cubicle, but, unfortunately, a man had seen the pair enter the area where the computer terminal was kept and he knew they had no business being there.

 

“Hey! What do you two think you’re doing?” demanded the angry man who was wearing a tag that identified him as a manager.

 

“Just confirming an order,” replied the blonde easily, straightening up to reveal that she towered over the man. The black woman also stood up and after a quick glance to see if anyone was paying attention, smiled and nodded and then looped one arm around his neck while her other hand pressed itself tightly over his mouth. The blonde grinned evilly and then tore into his belly with gut-ripping punches until he went limp in her partner’s arms. The black woman laughed softly and gently sat him in the chair in front of the computer, carefully lowering his head onto the table next to the mouse pad. The blonde removed the universal key from his pocket and then they each grabbed a full tray of food off of a counter and headed for the service elevator.

 

As they made their way down the hallway, they set the trays down in front of randomly selected doors and quietly approached the room assigned to Jessica Chance. The blonde carefully and quietly slid the key into the slot and then cautiously opened the door. Squinting to see in the pitch-black room, both cultists could make out that the bed was empty. Frowning, they closed her door and moved down to Agent Blackhart’s room. Though this room, too, was dark, there were clearly two figures in the large bed.

 

Grinning malevolently, the pair made their way into the darkened room and quietly shut the door behind them. They each pulled a semi-automatic with a silencer attached to the barrel from the waistband of their stolen pants and fired several shots into the human-shaped mounds beneath the covers. But, to their surprise, the room was instantly filled with feathers as the pillows they shot exploded.

 

Before the two would-be assassins could do anything more than register shock on their lovely faces, the closet door burst open and the two Japanese women jumped out and deftly kicked the guns from their hands and then jumped backwards, landing lightly on the bed and staring grimly at the intruders, their arms raised in a defensive stance. “Who are you?” demanded Rei.

 

In response, the two women began to flex their impressive muscles, expanding them until the material of their stolen clothes gave way with a loud ripping sound, leaving both women wearing nothing but skimpy thong-bottomed bikinis.

 

“Cool,” grinned Sam, bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet. Both of the Japanese babes were wearing half-shirts and silk panties; Rei in blue and Sam in red. “I guess that answers the only question worth asking.”

 

The two cultists lunged forward, wrapping their massive arms around the two Asians and driving them to their backs on the bed. Both women squeezed their smaller prey tightly, until their ribs threatened to snap from the incredible pressure, and the two Japanese babes grunted in agony and gasped as the air was driven from their bodies. Then, as if on cue, Rei and Sam rammed their heads forward, smacking their tormentresses in the face with their foreheads with enough force to cause them to loosen their crushing holds somewhat, freeing the Asians’ arms. A second headbutt, combined with a hard thrust to the underside of the two assassins’ jaws, was enough to free Sam and Rei, who both kicked out, catching the cultists in the chest and sending them flying backwards off the bed.

 

“Let’s try that again,” Rei said, diving off the bed and kicking the blonde in the face while Sam did likewise to the black woman. They landed next to the stunned women, but before they could continue their assaults, the two assassins reached out and grabbed each by the ankle and then swung them up and over their bodies. Rei and Sam slammed into each other, with the smaller woman’s head burying itself in her partner’s gut, and then dropped to the floor in a groaning heap. The two cultists laughed and stood up, dragging the Asians to their knees by their hair in the process, and then very deliberately placed their heads between their powerful thighs. They then clamped down, standing up on their tiptoes and squashing the two Asians’ heads so tightly that the smaller women nearly blacked out from the intense pain.

 

Rei and Sam struggled to pull their heads free but to no avail. Finally, in desperation, they looped their arms around the statuesque, but deadly, pillars and heaved upwards, standing and causing the two cultists to strike their heads on the ceiling. The two Japanese babes then turned towards each other and bowed, resulting in the blonde and the black smacking their heads together. Grinning, Rei and Sam casually tossed the dazed pair of assassins on the bed and then dove on top of them, delivering sharp karate blows to their bellies, breasts, necks, and faces until the deadly duo was barely conscious.

 

“Now, bitch, I want some answers,” Rei said, grabbing the black woman by the hair with her left hand and holding her right fist threateningly near her face. “And if I don’t get them you’re going to lose more than a few teeth.” Sam sighed and instead of simply copying her partner, she scooted up so that she was sitting atop the blonde’s face with her legs dangling over the side of the bed; a firm grip on the assassin’s hair kept the woman’s nose and mouth pressed tightly against her crotch. Rei grinned but quickly returned her attention to the woman she was straddling. “Who sent you and who was your intended target?” she demanded, tightening her grip on the black woman’s hair until she grimaced.

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. My friend and I came back from dinner and found you two in our room and acted accordingly,” the black woman replied with a mocking smile.

 

“I might be a first-time visitor to America, but even I know that shooting people in their sleep isn’t regarded as self-defense,” Rei responded, shaking the woman’s head a bit. Next to her, Sam had nearly smothered the blonde cultist out and showed no signs of letting up until she was completely unconscious…or dead. “Try again, before my partner finishes off your friend and starts on you,” she said, going for the classic ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine.

 

“You’re wasting your time, Miyazawa,” the woman who looked like Asami said as she abruptly twisted her torso, snapping the blonde’s neck with a loud, sickening crack. “You know perfectly well that these two dogs were sent by whoever is providing shelter to my former mistress to eliminate Chance and Blackhart.” She glared over at the black woman, who returned her gaze with dark eyes that betrayed the fear she felt. “Now, either you tell us the name of that person or where Dr. Takagashi is located, or I will kill you as I killed your partner and get the information from Chance or Blackhart.”

 

“Isako…” Rei said softly, her eyes growing cold and hard as her lovely mouth twisted into an ugly snarl. “So it is you, after all. I suspected as much, but-“

 

“But you foolishly hoped you were wrong and that Inspector Komatsu was still alive. Bad news, Reiko, she’s with her ancestors. But the good news is that you’ll soon be joining her and your own ancestors,” Isako said, rising up off the corpse of the blonde and flexing her fingers menacingly.

 

Rei scrambled off the black woman and adopted a defensive stance. “Listen, your only chance is to help me kill her,” she hissed to the confused cultist. “Even if you tell her what she wants to know, she’ll kill you. She has to. Just as she has to kill me now.”

 

“Ah, Rei, you wound me. I thought we had become so close these past few days,” Isako said mockingly as she calmly waited for the smaller woman to make her move.

 

Meanwhile, the black woman had moved so that her back was against the headboard and she was carefully studying the two women. “And why should I believe that you won’t kill me after we’ve taken care of her?” she asked Rei. “Maybe I should help her kill you instead?”

 

Reiko’s face flushed slightly as she snarled, “Because Isako is the better, more deadly fighter and I’m not sure I can take her by myself.”

 

Isako chuckled malevolently. “She’s right. But what she failed to take into account is that you and I are on the same side, my ebony-skinned friend. I have no quarrel with you, providing you tell me where Dr. Takagashi is. The best you can hope for her from her is arrest and imprisonment,” the fujinja added.

 

“You might be right, bitch, but you just killed one of my friends, not to mention one of the Goddess’ most loyal servants, so, if it’s all the same to you, I think I’ll pass on your generous offer and help Rei take you out. She and I can figure out what to do once your ass is eliminated,” the black woman said, glancing at Rei and then diving for Isako when the inspector nodded slightly.

 

As the cultist lunged for Isako and wrapped her powerful arms around the slight waist of the Japanese woman, Rei charged forward and drove the first two fingers of her right hand into Isako’s throat. The fujinja gagged but had enough presence of mind to block the right hand as it sped for her eyes, fingers extended. She was about to deliver a strike of her own when she suddenly gasped in pain as the cultist tightened her grip and crushed her middle, threatening to break more than rib. In desperation, Isako drove the point of her right elbow into the base of the black woman’s neck while fending off attacks from Rei with her left arm.

 

The black woman grunted and loosened her grip so she could rub the back of her neck. Isako reached down with her right hand and grabbed a handful of her hair and then rammed her knee into the cultist’s face, crushing her nose. Rei grimaced and kept looking for an opening, but the fujinja was careful to never take her eyes off of the inspector, even while she delivered a sharp blow with the flat of her hand to the choking cultist’s ear, bringing a fresh cry from the battered black.

 

Seeing that the cultist was going to be little help at best, Rei decided she had to act fast, while it was still two against one. So she jumped at the wall and used the momentum as she sprang off it to deliver a spinning kick to Isako’s face. The fujinja was only able to partially block it and stumbled backwards until her back hit the wall. She wiped the blood from her lip and looked at Rei with hungry eyes.

 

“I must congratulate you, Miyazawa, I never thought you’d draw first blood,” Isako said haughtily.

 

Reiko ignored her and knelt next to the cultist. “Are you all right?” she asked, and then grimaced when the black woman raised her head and revealed that her nose had been broken and blood was gushing from it, practically choking her.

 

“I’ve been better, sweetheart, but I’ve still got enough kick to take that bitch down. Let’s finish this!” she growled, standing up and flexing her impressive musculature.

 

“You go low, I’ll go high, and make every blow count. Killing her quickly is our only hope,” Rei said grimly.

 

“You always were too dramatic for your own good, Miyazawa,” Isako said mockingly, nevertheless tensing in preparation for the coming assault.

 

Rei’s response was to leap feet-first at the fujinja while the cultist charged in and thundered her fists into Isako’s belly. Meanwhile, Rei’s legs parted slightly and instead of kicking Isako, she grabbed her by the neck with her legs and, twisting in mid-air, flipped her off her feet and onto her back at the feet of the black woman, who was only to happy to stomp on her chest and stomach, causing the muscles on her thighs and calves to bulge with the effort. Rei, for her part, landed ass-first on Isako’s face and immediately secured a handful of hair to force her face tightly against her crotch.

 

The black woman nodded approvingly as she continued to trample the fujinja.

 

But Isako wasn’t down for the count just yet. Despite the terrible punishment and the handicap of not being able to see or breathe, she still managed to grab the cultist’s leg as it crashed into her belly and, giving it a savage twist, toppled the Amazon forward and into a startled Reiko, knocking her from atop the fujinja’s face. While the two women struggled to untangle themselves, Isako scrambled to her feet and quickly grabbed the black woman by the head and with one swift motion, snapped her neck. She stepped back and let the lifeless body of the cultist fall back onto Reiko while she caught her breath and assessed her injuries.

 

“I suppose it was inevitable that it come down to the two of us,” Rei sighed, pushing the cultist off of her and rising to her feet. She was clearly in the better shape of the two, and hoped that advantage would be enough to finish the fujinja.

 

“Was it? Unlike you, I choose to make my own destiny, so I can’t be sure,” Isako replied, a definite wheezing sound punctuating her speech, indicating that her internal injuries might be more severe than even they appeared. She had moved so that the bed was between them.

 

“Save the bravado, bitch, and let’s just do this,” Rei growled.

 

“As you wish. You never were one for conversation anyway,” Isako said, gasping between words.

 

Reiko jumped over the bed and her foot crashed into the fujinja’s jaw, knocking her to her back. The inspector reached down and hauled her panting foe to her feet by the front of her shirt and let loose with a solid right to her cheek that snapped her head around. A blow to her mouth and blood spattered against the wall as her head was snapped in the opposite direction. Then another shot, this one to her nose, which landed so hard not only did it shatter the fujinja’s nose, but it also tore her half-shirt. Isako stumbled backwards and finally collapsed near the door and the body of the black cultist.

 

“It’s over, Isako, but your life doesn’t have to end. As much as I’d enjoy beating you to death, if you surrender, this can stop right now,” Rei said, advancing towards the heaving fujinja.

 

“You’re right about it being over, Miyazawa,” Isako grunted, the words having to practically force themselves from her heaving mouth. “But I’m not the one who will be dying tonight.” She looked back at Reiko and then shifted her body slightly to reveal that she had grabbed one of the cultist’s fallen guns and placed it in the lifeless hand of the Amazonian black. Before Reiko could so much as blink in shock, she had forced the dead cultist’s finger to tighten on the trigger and fired off a quick burst that tore into the lovely inspector’s body.

 

Reiko danced like a drunken marionette as the bullets ripped into her flesh, tearing through her internal organs like hot knives through butter, finally piercing her heart and ending her torment. Isako released her grip on the dead woman’s hand and crawled over to her enemy’s body, to make sure she was well and truly dead. When she saw close up the extensive damage and observed the destroyed heart through the gaping hole in Reiko’s chest, she sat back on her haunches and laughed, despite the incredible pain that caused her.

 

Then she struggled to her feet and retrieved the number for Blackhart’s cellular phone.

 

* * * * *

 

Shortly after leaving their hotel Jessica and Kallista were notified by the LAPD that NightFox and Vixen had been seen on Bel-Air Drive. Kall immediately shifted her VW into high gear and within minutes the little car was screaming up the winding road that led to Lilith’s house.

 

“That must be them!” shouted Jessica, pointing at two oddly-dressed (even for LA) women on motorcycles up ahead of them.

 

“You think?” Kall said with a sardonic grin as she slowed down, obviously content to follow them and see where they were going.

 

It hardly surprised either agent when the motorcycles pulled to a stop next to the wall that surrounded Lilith’s mansion, careful to stay away from the surveillance cameras mounted near the front gate. To say that the two heroines weren’t surprised when the VW pulled up next to them and the two Aegis agents got out, however, would be a gross understatement.

 

“NightFox, I presume,” Jessica said, approaching the taller of the pair and extending her hand. Erishkigal and Vixen both hoped that the redhead wouldn’t recognize her in her current form as they shook her hand. “And Raven.” Jessi indicated the other woman and held out her hand.

 

“And you are…?” NightFox asked, even though she knew perfectly well whom the woman standing before her was.

 

“Jessica Chance, and this is my partner Kallista Blackhart. We’re with Aegis, a government agency that-“ she began.

 

“I’m aware of Aegis and what its function is,” NightFox said abruptly, hoping to throw Jessica and Kallista off their game a bit. “What business does Aegis have with Raven and I. We’ve broken no laws of which I’m aware.”

 

“We’re on the same side,” Raven added. “Sort of.”

 

“Perhaps we could go someplace less conspicuous and talk?” Jessica suggested smoothly.

 

“Another time, perhaps. Tonight we have important business in this vicinity,” NightFox said, turning toward the wall.

 

Jessica laid a hand on her shoulder. “Actually, that’s what we want to talk to you about,” she said, removing her hand when NightFox turned and fixed her brightly glowing blue eyes on her.

 

“I’m sorry, but my business really can’t wait. Once we’ve dealt with… what we came for, then, and only then, will we have time to talk,” NightFox said, once more turning to the wall.

 

“We tried it your way, Jessica, now it’s time to do things my way,” Kallista snarled, raising her bracelets, which were glowing as brightly as the super heroine’s eyes. “Sorry, ladies, but same side or not, we can’t let you go in there.”

 

What’s up with those things on her wrist? Vixen demanded inside Eri’s head. Be careful, Eri, they look dangerous to me.

 

“No, Agent Blackhart, I’m the one who is sorry if you think your gadgets will prevent me from doing what I must,” NightFox replied. Then, before either of the agents realized what was happening, NightFox struck out and tagged Jessica with a looping right cross that hit her in the cheek and sent her sprawling while Raven jumped up and wrapped her legs around Kallista’s neck, burying her face in her crotch at the same time, and effectively preventing her from using her bracelets.

 

“Get off of me, you crazy little bitch!” screamed Kall as she clawed at the sidekick’s back.

 

But Raven just tightened her grip and used both hands to push the agent’s face deep into her groin, cutting off her oxygen. “Quiet, blondie. We tried to be nice,” she snickered.

 

Eri! What are you doing?! I told you earlier that Jessica was a friend! Why are you attacking her?

 

But NightFox’s only reply was to walk over and kick the redhead in the ribs as she was getting to her feet. The force of the kick sent her tumbling into the street. “We don’t have to fight. Just get back in your car and leave me to do what I must. What only I can do,” NightFox said, walking over to where the redhead was gasping for breath on all fours.

 

“Oh, sure, now that I’ve got the upper hand you want to quit,” Jessica said with a wolfish grin.

 

“Upper hand? You’re delusional, Agent Chance,” NightFox said, launching another kick at the redhead’s exposed ribs.

 

“Am I?” Jessi asked, rolling beneath the kick and delivering a kick of her own up and into NightFox’s exposed gut. The super heroine was hurled backwards, her momentum halted only by crashing into the security wall. The redhead scrambled to her feet and ran at the brunette, ramming her squarely in the stomach with the top of her head at full speed. NightFox grunted and probably would have slid to her ass, had Jessi not backed up slightly and then repeated the move, this time crushing the taller woman’s luscious breasts while she powered both fists into her belly. “I thought you were a big bad super heroine?” Jessica mocked, stepping back and allowing NightFox to collapse to her rear end.

 

Meanwhile, Kallista had reached up and slid one hand into each armpit of the woman straddling her. She then began to wickedly wiggle her fingers.

 

“Hey! What kind of move is that?” Raven choked out between uncontrollable giggles. “Tickling?! Oh, please, for the love of the Goddess, stop! Stop!”

 

Since the unexpected tickle-attack had caused Raven to loosen her hold, Kallista gulped in a big breath of air and then said, “Anything you say, babe.” She then reared back on her heels and immediately threw herself forward, slamming Raven’s back into the ground with enough force to cause her legs to completely unwind from around the blonde’s neck. As the sidekick lay on the ground both moaning and giggling Kallista dropped onto her stomach and began pounding lefts and rights into her tits.

 

“Now, seeing as how both you and your sidekick have had it, are you going to listen to reason?” Jessica asked, standing a few feet away with her hands on her hips but ready for any moves the downed woman might make.

 

Or so she thought…

 

NightFox suddenly held up her right hand and the redhead could just barely make out some weird letters that glowed with a golden glow in her palm. Then, before she realized that it had happened, NightFox had pulled a golden sword from the ether and was holding it at Jessica’s throat. “Tell your partner to get off of Raven,” NightFox hissed, moving around behind the redhead, careful to keep the razor-sharp blade against her skin as she did so.

 

“Kall, better do as she says,” Jessica said, still trying to figure out what had just happened.

 

Kallista reluctantly stood up and then suddenly doubled over in agony when Raven’s fist shot up and nailed her in the pussy. “Those are for the tit shots, bitch!” the furious sidekick said as she got to her feet and walked over to NightFox.

 

Hello? What the fuck is happening here? Don’t you idiots realize that these women are on our side? At least hear them out now that you’ve got the advantage, Vixen pleaded, disturbed at the turn of events this encounter had taken. What can that hurt?

 

NightFox let the blade slide away from Jessica’s throat, realizing with no small amount of guilt that her actions and attitude had been more out of jealousy than any real need to urgently confront Sakhmet. As much as she hated to admit it, she resented the fact that Vixen looked up to the agent so much. “Forgive me, Agent Chance. I fear I’ve become too much like the stereotypical comic book super heroine a friend has tried to turn me into for my own good,” she said with a grim smile.

 

Jessica laughed. “I know what you mean. Despite my best intentions, I usually seem to end up playing the part of your typical cinema secret agent.”

 

Kallista and Raven exchanged confused glances and then shrugged their shoulders simultaneously while mumbling “Sorry.”

 

“What is the government’s interest in this residence?” NightFox asked, ignoring Vixen’s giggling in her head.

 

“We believe that the owner is shielding an international fugitive,” the redhead replied.

 

“I wouldn’t put that past Kahira,” NightFox said grimly.

 

“You’re acquainted with Ms. Kahira?” Kallista inquired, rubbing her sex gently.

 

“We’ve never met, but I know enough of her to know that she’s not exactly an upright member of society,” NightFox replied, recalling how the Egyptian had tried to have Vixen killed shortly after they had bonded. “Who is this international fugitive you spoke of?”

 

“A woman named Dr. Koyuki Takagashi who escaped from a Japanese prison,” Jessica replied. “It’s very important that we take her into custody. Alive,” the redhead added, glancing meaningfully at the super heroine’s glowing sword.

 

“We’ve no business with this doctor. Our interest is in another of Kahira’s guests,” NightFox said, causing the sword to vanish with a slight gesture.

 

“That crazy bitch who thinks she’s the Goddess Sakhmet?” Kallista asked.

 

“That crazy bitch is the Goddess Sakhmet, Agent Blackhart, one of the most evil beings who ever lived. Tell me, does this doctor you seek have any expertise with electronics?” NightFox suddenly asked.

 

“I know where this is going, and, yes, I think Koyuki designed those transmitters, even though there’s no way I can prove it,” Jessica said. “But I do know that it ties into what she plans to do at the Vice Girls concert tomorrow night.”

 

“Oh? And what might that be?” NightFox asked, doing her best to ignore the excited squealing inside her head at the mention of the internationally famous singing group.

 

“Somehow, and probably because Sakhmet is a Goddess, she can make children do anything she tells them to once they’re under the influence of the frequency emitted by those transmitters. According to Kahira herself, Sakhmet plans to use tomorrow night’s concert to enslave the children of the world-“ Jessica began.

 

“And turn them into an unstoppable army of destruction,” NightFox finished for her. “Very typical of her, I might add. Clearly, however, she needs to be stopped before the concert, so the question remains: Why did you prevent Raven and I from doing so?”

 

“We couldn’t have you go in there and scare off Koyuki. She and that frequency are still dangerous, with or without Sakhmet, and if you’d barged in and taken down Sakhmet, chances are Koyuki would have gone into hiding and the only way we would have located her was to follow the trail of chaos and devastation she would be sure to leave in her wake,” Jessica explained.

 

NightFox nodded as Vixen proclaimed, See, Eri? I told you she was one of the good guys. “So, Agent Chance, what do you propose?” the super heroine asked.

 

“That you call me Jessica, for starters,” the redhead smiled. “And that you try to leave enough of Kahira’s place in tact for Kallista and I to find and apprehend Koyuki before she can get away. I read the police report on you and, to put it bluntly, things have a nasty habit of getting blown up when you’re around.”

 

“Hey! That’s not our fault!” Raven protested. “It’s the damn super villains we fight. They’re the ones who blow everything up.”

 

“And Sakhmet is the most powerful foe we’ve ever faced, Raven, so Jessica’s fears are well-founded that the structure might not survive our coming battle,” NightFox said. “Again, what is it exactly that you propose, Jessica?”

 

“Let Kall and I go in first and try to locate Koyuki, then, while you and Raven are fighting Sakhmet, we can use the commotion to make our escape with her in custody,” the redhead suggested.

 

“Damn, girl, you really do have a plan for everything, don’t you?” Kall asked with a seductive wink.

 

“I’ve been trying to tell you that for days, Kallista,” Jessica grinned. “So, how does that sound to you two?”

 

“You and blondie are gonna waltz in and spirit away this Japanese bitch and leave NightFox and I to face an honest-to-goodness Goddess on our own?” Raven questioned. “That’s your plan?”

 

“Yes, Raven. In the first place, our primary mission is to secure custody of the fugitive. And in the second place, you and NightFox were all ready to go in there alone before Kall and I showed up anyway, so I don’t see how this changes anything,” Jessi pointed out.

 

Raven’s shoulders slumped a bit. “Yeah, okay, but it still sounds kind of raw to me,” the sidekick mumbled.

 

“Listen, even though Kallista and I are aware how dangerous Sakhmet is-“ Jessica began.

 

“Boy, are we ever!” Kallista interjected.

 

“-the United States government has no official position concerning her that we are aware of, so she’s strictly off-limits as far as our involvement goes.” Of course, Jessica thought to herself, I do know of one agency that might be interested in Sakhmet and her plans… I wonder what Danielle is doing?

 

“I understand, Jessica, and so does Raven,” NightFox said, glancing reprovingly at her sidekick. “Sakhmet is our problem. We will do our duty and stop her and leave you two to do yours and apprehend the fugitive.”

 

Raven nodded and then grabbed a headset from the storage bin of her motorcycle and handed it to Kallista. “Just tell us when you need that distraction and we’ll come charging in,” she said.

 

“Perhaps when this is all over, we can sit down and compare notes?” Jessica suggested, giving the beautiful crime fighter a winning smile.

 

“Perhaps,” said NightFox non-commitally. As much as I like Jessica, I really think it best if we spend as little time with her as possible, Eri, or she might figure out who we really are, Vixen cautioned inside her head.

 

“You ready, Jessica? The sooner we get in there, the sooner we can ship Koyuki back to Japan with her decidedly unfun friends and the sooner we can start to really enjoy the LA nightlife,” Kall said, eager to get this mission over with. She was used to going in and taking out enemy agents and blowing up their headquarters and all this pussyfooting around and dealing with the law and its strangling limitations was getting on her nerves. To put it plainly: She was more than ready to kick some serious ass!

 

“Right with you, Kall,” the redhead replied. “Before we go, though, I just have to ask… How did you pull that sword out of thin air?”

 

NightFox smirked and said simply, “It’s a Goddess thing. Good luck, Jessica and Kallista.”

 

Jessica slightly scowled and then she and Kall made their way over the wall. Just as they approached the front of the mansion, Kallista’s cell phone rang, nearly scaring the life out of both agents.

 

“What?” hissed the blonde as she and Jessica crouched down behind the silver limousine.

 

“Agent Blackhart? Is that you?”

 

“It’s me, Kahira,” Kall whispered, recognizing the Egyptian’s voice. “What do you want?”

 

“To warn you that you’re walking into a trap,” Lilith said as the front doors of her home opened and out of it poured dozens of kids, ranging in age from thirteen to nineteen, and all armed with either knives, chains, or pipes. Then the two agents noticed that two of them were actually holding submachine guns.

 

“Better late than never, I suppose,” Kall grunted. “Where’s Takagashi?”

 

“Not here. She and Sakhmet left earlier, before sundown, and they didn’t tell anyone where they were going,” the Egyptian explained.

 

“Great,” the blonde snarled, closing the connection. “Did you two catch that?” she asked into the headset.

 

“We sure did. But NightFox says she’s lying about Sakhmet not being there,” Raven replied.

 

“How could she possibly know that?” Kallista demanded.

 

“She said to tell you that it’s a Goddess thing,” Raven said with a slight giggle. “You gonna need help in there?” she asked, a bit smugly.

 

“Yeah, I think we could definitely use a hand in here,” Kall replied as the kids slowly closed in on them, except for the pair with the machine guns who kept their distance.

 

“We’ll be right there,” Raven said.

 

“Okay, time to take these kids to school,” Kall said as her bracelets began to glow.

 

“Kall! They’re just children,” Jessica reminded her.

 

A hail of bullets suddenly thudded into the car they were hiding behind, sending the two agents scurrying for cover.

 

“Okay, so they’re heavily armed children,” Jessica conceded as she and the blonde found themselves facing a horde of weapon-wielding youth. “But they’re still children.”

 

“Tell that to them!” Kall growled as she fired off a twin blast that struck the ground in front of the kids who had shot at them, causing them to fall back and erecting a wall of flame between them and the agents.

 

Before Jessica could say a word, the kids with the hand weapons were on them and both she and Kall were fighting for their lives, with the blonde, who wasn’t used to holding back, being at a definite disadvantage in this battle. The redhead therefore had to not only fend off her own multiple attackers, but also did her best to keep the blonde from being overwhelmed besides. Then, to make matters worse, the two with the guns regrouped and moved around the flames and started firing into the throng, not caring that the only people they were dropping were their own.

 

While Jessica was grateful for the lessening of the numbers against her and Kallista, her heart was sick at the sight of these innocents being mowed down like pixelated characters in a video game. So it was with no small amount of relief that she saw NightFox and Raven moving to take out the two gun-toting kids upon their arrival.

 

“Stay behind me until we get close, Raven,” NightFox warned as she pulled her glowing sword from the air and began to twirl it in front of her like a propeller.

 

“You don’t need to tell me that twice,” Raven replied as the pair turned their attentions to the crime fighters and the bullets bounced off of the glowing blade.

 

The super heroine and her sidekick moved slowly forward, with NightFox increasing the rotation speed of her weapon as they got closer to the kids, until they were near enough to knock the guns from their hands and tackle them to the ground. Within seconds, the two youth were unconscious and the glowing sword had made short work of the machine guns, insuring that no one else would use them ever again.

 

Jessica and Kallista, meanwhile, had adopted an almost purely defensive stand, crouching next to each other with their arms wrapped protectively around each other’s heads, content to let the children beat on their backs. But the wounds were taking their toll, especially on the blonde, who wasn’t blessed with the redhead’s superior body chemistry that not only made her difficult to injure but also helped her body heal itself remarkably quickly. But when a knife stabbed into Kall’s shoulder, Jessica knew that their decision to not fight back was the wrong one.

 

“Give me your cell phone, Kall,” Jessica snapped as a chain whipped across her back.

 

“Who you gonna call, Jess?” Kall asked, sounding very tired as she handed over the phone.

 

Jessica ignored the question and pushed *69. A moment later a Japanese voice answered the phone, “Kahira residence.”

 

“Put Kahira on the phone. Now!” Jessica barked.

 

“Yes?” inquired Lilith a few seconds later.

 

“We’re getting slaughtered out here, Kahira,” Jessica informed her. “So, unless you want to try to explain the deaths of two government agents on your property to my superior, I suggest you turn off the damn transmitter that prevents me from using my telekinetic abilities. And I mean five minutes ago, bitch!”

 

The redhead angrily severed the connection and said grimly, “We’ll know in a few minutes if Kahira was playing us or not. Just hold on, Kall.”

 

After disposing of the guns and their wielders, NightFox and Raven were shocked to see what appeared to be a living pile of children all seemingly intent on destroying whatever was at their center.

 

“Gods! I hope that Jessica and Kallista aren’t already lost to us,” NightFox said as she and her sidekick raced over and began knocking out the children, trying desperately to reach the pair of agents. But even they could see that the sheer numbers of their foes would take too much time.

 

“We’re gonna have to start incorporating some sort of gas pellets or something else to deal with large numbers of baddies,” Raven grunted as she sent her fist crashing into a boy’s jaw. “The hand-to-hand stuff is fine for one or two enemies, but…”

 

NightFox nodded in agreement and grabbed a boy and a girl by the hair and cracked their skulls together.

 

Suddenly, the mass of children exploded outwards, revealing the bloody forms of Jessica and Kallista, the redhead standing protectively over the kneeling blonde.

 

NightFox and Raven looked around and saw with surprise and relief that all of the kids were unconscious and said, “Or we could get something like that… whatever it was.”

 

They walked over as Jessica put her hands on Kallista’s wounds and closed her eyes. Her fingertips seemed to slightly glow as energy snaked out from them and into the blonde’s body, closing the most serious injuries and more or less instantly healing the lesser abrasions. Then she collapsed on the ground next to her partner, gasping for breath.

 

“Neat trick,” observed Raven, examining the blonde.

 

NightFox knelt beside Jessica and helped her to sit up. “Are you all right?”

 

“I’ll be all right. Kall has a small transmitter embedded in her that negates my powers, but its signal is very weak and with enough concentration I can overcome it, but it takes a lot out of me, especially when I’m not in top shape myself,” the redhead explained. “If you could help me put some distance between us so I could work on my own wounds…”

 

“Of course,” the super heroine replied, half-carrying, half-dragging the redhead over to the front steps of the mansion.

 

Lilith and Yumi came out a few seconds later, the Japanese servant baring an armload of towels, bandages, and other first-aid supplies. Lilith took some of them and then sent Yumi over to see to the blonde agent.

 

“Here,” she said, handing the supplies to NightFox.

 

“You see to her, I still have to deal with Sakhmet,” the raven-haired beauty said, standing up and heading for the doors.

 

“I told you that she left, along with Farrah and the rest of her minions,” Lilith said as she fumbled with the bandages, unsure how to use them. “After these two agents nearly got Koyuki away earlier, Sakhmet decided that it wasn’t safe enough here. And, no, I don’t know where they went. All I know is that I’m to meet them at the concert tomorrow night.”

 

“But I can clearly sense Sakhmet’s presence in this house,” NightFox insisted.

 

“Well, then your Goddess-sensing equipment must be on the fritz, because I’m telling you that she isn’t here,” Lilith said, giving up and just handing the first-aid supplies to Jessica with a helpless shrug.

 

“Let’s go see if she’s telling the truth, although—And don’t ask me why—I fear that she is,” Jessica said, climbing to her feet. She handed the supplies to the Egyptian. “See if Kallista can use these, or if any of the kids who were shot are still alive.”

 

“No one died here,” NightFox said as they walked towards the doors.

 

“What are you talking about?! I saw a dozen kids drop after they were hit by the bullets from those guns,” the redhead said, gesturing to the remains of the two machine guns.

 

“They may have fallen, but they’re not dead, not from rubber bullets,” NightFox said.

 

“Rubber bullets…” Jessica looked over at Lilith.

 

“I switched them after Sakhmet left. I couldn’t let any more kids die because of her; because of me and what I unleashed when I introduced her to Koyuki,” the Egyptian amended. “Besides, I really don’t need any more trouble from the police.”

 

“Still think she’s lying?” Jessica asked as they entered the mansion.

 

“No, but I also can’t deny what my senses are telling me. And they clearly indicate that Sakhmet is within this dwelling,” NightFox said, obviously puzzled.

 

Jessica led the way to the elevator that she and Kallista had used earlier, but it was still a total wreck. “There must be another way down to the basement. They had to get Koyuki up from there somehow.”

 

“There’s a stairway from the kitchen,” Lilith said, joining them. “Follow me.”

 

The trio made their way through the Egyptian-themed corridors, paying scant attention to the beautiful artwork that adorned the walls or the priceless objects d’art that sat on tables, and to the stairs that led down into the basement. Lilith hesitated at the top of the stairs, but then with a resigned shrug she led the way down. At the bottom of the stairs was a huge wine cellar. Lilith purposely walked over to one of the racks and pressed a spot on the frame that looked no different from the rest.

 

“Impressive,” Jessica commented when the entire rack slid up into the ceiling, revealing another stairway behind it.

 

They Egyptian led them down this set of stairs and into what looked like a mechanical workshop with various pieces of electronic equipment scattered on the workbenches. NightFox walked directly over to a device about the size of a CPU and cocked her head.

 

“This thing is emitting Sakhmet’s signal,” she said, her voice tinged with both anger and confusion. “How is that possible?”

 

“Koyuki’s forte is special radio frequencies and the apparatus that produces them, along with robotics,” Jessica added, noting the presence of spare mechanical arms and legs and other parts.

 

“But I only sense Sakhmet in this location,” NightFox said, the frustration in her voice growing. “Even if this device were mimicking her signature, I should still be able to sense her elsewhere besides. But I don’t.”

 

“Perhaps this thing is merely a relay, or maybe Koyuki managed to create a device which masks Sakhmet’s own signal?” Jessica suggested.

 

NightFox whipped out her sword and destroyed the device and then froze and closed her eyes. “It must be the latter,” she said after a moment. “You’re sure you don’t know where Sakhmet is, Kahira?” She spun around and whipped the sword at Lilith’s throat, stopping its momentum just as it made contact with her dark flesh.

 

Lilith gulped and carefully shook her head. “I’ve told you everything I know. After Jessica and Kallista were able to so easily breach my defenses, Sakhmet grew suspicious of me. If she’d been certain I’d betrayed her, I wouldn’t be standing here. But since she wasn’t, she just decided that it would be safer for her plans if she and her minions left here. Like I said, I’m to meet with her tomorrow night at the concert. She’s the opening act.”

 

Both NightFox and Jessica did a double take at that last bit of news.

 

“Come again?” the redhead asked, stifling a giggle.

 

“Well, I know I’ve heard her singing down here, so that’s my guess. Plus, she had Koyuki design these special microphones,” she said, picking one up off the floor and handing it to the redhead. “She worked really hard on perfecting them.”

 

“It’s got one of those transmitters in it,” Jessica said after carefully examining it. “You said that with the frequency Sakhmet could make kids do whatever she wanted?” Lilith nodded. “Well, let’s go test if the same holds true for you, NightFox. You know, if it’s one of those Goddess things you’re so proud of.” The redhead smiled and the trio made their way back to the front of the house.

 

Most of the kids were still unconscious but a few were beginning to come around. Jessica handed the mic to NightFox. “Do your stuff,” she said and then hurried over to see how Kallista was doing.

 

NightFox looked over at Lilith, but the Egyptian shrugged her shoulders. With an annoyed sigh, the super heroine switched the microphone on and then said, “Behave like a chicken.”

 

The kids who were conscious just looked at her like she was nuts and continued to groan as they struggled to their feet.

 

“When Sakhmet did it earlier, she made her voice sort of echo,” Lilith suggested.

 

NightFox nodded. “Behave like a chicken!” she roared into the device.

 

Suddenly, all the kids who weren’t out cold began clucking and bobbing their heads as they scratched at the driveway with their feet.

 

“I guess it really is a Goddess thing,” Lilith remarked as the kids folded their arms and strutted around her yard. “Okay, now make them stop being chickens and then instruct them to forget everything that happened to them today. Then I’ll have them dropped off at the security office and they should all be home by morning, with only some bumps and bruises to show for their ordeal.”

 

NightFox regarded the Egyptian coldly. “Even if I do this for you, Kahira, it doesn’t settle what is between us. You might stop at killing children, but I know that murder is not above you and one day you will pay for your crimes,” she said.

 

“Maybe, but you’ll have a hard time proving my direct involvement in anything illegal,” Lilith replied. “I may be evil, but I’m not stupid. And I’m also as eager to see Sakhmet stopped as you are. Maybe more, since if she stays in this plane of reality I’m pretty much as good as dead for betraying her.”

 

“You almost tempt me into leaving her here once I’ve foiled her attempt to enslave the children of the world,” NightFox said with a grim smile. She enjoyed the fear that covered the Egyptian’s face and then bellowed into the microphone, telling the kids what Lilith had instructed her to and then commanding them to sleep. “That will make it easier to transport them.” She walked over to where Raven was standing next to the two agents and asked, “How is Kallista?”

 

“You’d almost never know she’d been recently fighting for her life, thanks to Jessica’s amazing healing abilities,” Raven replied.

 

Just then, the blonde’s cell phone rang and Jessica answered it. All of them heard the sobbing of the woman on the other end, but only Jessica and Kallista recognized the voice as belonging to one of the Japanese officers. “Calm down and tell me what happened,” Jessica said.

 

“She’s dead! Rei is dead! She was killed by a pair of assassins who were sent to kill you and Agent Blackhart,” Isako sobbed.

 

“Are you all right, Asami?” Jessi asked.

 

“I’m hurt pretty bad, but I’ll be all right, I think,” she said, her words punctuated by definite gasps as well as sobs.

 

“What about the assassins?” the redhead asked.

 

“Rei killed one before they killed her and I took care of the other. They won’t be killing anyone else,” Isako assured her.

 

Jessica bit her lower lip thoughtfully. “Okay, Sam, just stay put and don’t touch anything until we get there. We’re leaving right now.”

 

“Did you find Takagashi?” Isako asked.

 

“I’m afraid she got away again, but we know where she’ll be tomorrow night and we’ll get her then. I promise you that, Asami,” the redhead said. “Now just sit tight until Kallista and I get there. And, Sam, I really am sorry about Rei.”

 

“Thank you, Jessica. Hurry back, okay?” Isako said, inwardly laughing that her former mistress had once more outwitted the Americans.

 

“We’re practically there,” Jessica said and then closed the connection and handed the phone back to the blonde.

 

“I had nothing to do with that and no idea that anyone had been sent to kill you two, although, I hardly think it a surprise that Sakhmet decided to eliminate you after the way you nearly ruined her plans this afternoon. She’s been keeping Koyuki close today and I get the feeling that she needs her for something during the concert itself, but I don’t know what,” Lilith explained.

 

“Well, we’ll have to deal with that tomorrow. Right now Kall and I have to get back to our hotel and try to salvage our official relationship with Japan,” Jessica said with a half-hearted smile. “Can we count on you to be at the Vice Girls concert tomorrow night?” the redhead asked, looking at the pair of vigilantes.

 

“Definitely,” replied NightFox, glancing down at the microphone and trying to ignore the excited squealing inside her head.

 

“I’ve got a feeling this is going to be one Hell of a show,” Kallista said.

 

 

To my fans: I apologize for the length of time in between the parts of this story—I can’t believe it’s been over a year! —but the surgery was more devastating than either myself or my doctor had anticipated and I was literally out of commission for over eight months. Then, as if that wasn’t bad enough, my Muse decided to go AWOL on me. L

 

The good news, however, is that she finally came back and has been whispering to me non-stop for the past couple of weeks, so I hope to have this story concluded very soon, in addition to several other projects she’s encouraging me to write.

 

I just want to thank those of you who wrote to wish me the best and all of the people who enjoy these stories. Your support means a lot to me. J

 

 

To be concluded...

 

 

Send comments/criticism to: Autolycus