NECESSARIUS

KELLY

Drakela Sanguinas was known to most people as Kelly. Drakela wasn't her birth name, of course, but it was her legal name. It was certainly better than the name her father had given her. In a city where people reinvented themselves on a regular basis, such a boring name wouldn't draw attention.

She sat in South Central's head Necessarius office, waiting for her boss to finish reading her report regarding her encounter with the screamers at AU. It was all for show, of course, since he had already read it.

Her boss was a lupe, a wolf kemo. He had thick hair—not fur—covering his body and dexterous silver ears poking out of his graying hair. He looked about sixty but carried himself like a thirty-year-old, which probably put him at forty-five or so. The lupes respected age.

He had enlarged canines and jaw muscles that reminded Kelly uncomfortably of the biters they had just cleared out. But his were less noticeable, and probably more useful in the long run. The screamers had massive horse-teeth that crowded their mouths and looked useless for anything but biting.

It was the claws that made her sweat, though. Six inches long and the highest quality steel, bonded straight to his enhanced finger bones. Kelly had seen claws like those disembowel friends of hers without much difficulty, and she had no doubt this man had done so more than once.

Her boss wasn't just any lupe, he was an ex-Rahu, a warrior wolf. His kind had hunted vampires like Kelly for a long, long time, tracking them by the smell of blood and cold flesh.

Kelly was hardly innocent either, of course. She was an ex-Belian and had killed her fair share of lupes and canes and whatnot. She even managed to take out an angel by herself once. A full-born daybreaker, not some crazy kid who took the glow on a whim. And that wasn't even getting into what she had done at Shendilavri.

They all had sins. But they were with Necessarius now. Nothing they did before they joined mattered, and nothing anyone else did before they joined mattered either. Set aside your differences and fight for the common good. Because it was necessary.

“You worked with the girl, the black-haired one?”

“There were two black-haired ones, sir,” Kelly said. “The girl with the sword went inside with the blonde and the man.”

“But the one who stayed outside, you followed her orders?”

Kelly shrugged. “She gave good orders. And she sure as blood was doing a better job of it than I was.”

“Hm.” He didn't say anything else, just tapped through his pad. It was made specifically to withstand his claws. “It says here they caught one alive. That correct?”

“Yes, a small female. The little blonde trapped her in some sort of rock handcuffs.”

“Interesting. You actually saw her use this power?”

“Yes, sir. She did it right in front of me, pulled up big chunks of asphalt like it was clay.”

He finally put the tablet down. “Describe her to me.”

“Uh... short, blonde hair cosmo... Asian... looked pretty athletic.”

“Full description, please. Spare nothing.”

Kelly sighed. “Fine. Just an inch over five feet. Well-toned, definitely plays sports. Probably soccer, judging by her kicks. She was wearing a good, strong deodorant, but she was sweating less than you'd expect in that situation.” Kelly's nose was enhanced just as much as any kemo's, so the scent was an important part of any person's description. “She wasn't as anxious or worried as I would have thought. She has problems with authority. She didn't like us, and she questioned her boss's orders every which way.”

He nodded for her to continue.

“The boss was blond—natural, I think—and blue eyes. Strong jaw, wiry muscles. Looks like a monster slayer, but moves like a soldier. He has the voice of command; he gave me an order and I obeyed. He's protective, especially of the girls he came with, but of everyone else too. He smelled afraid, but he didn't hesitate. He trusts himself, and he trusts his girls. At least the one with the sword and the one he left with us.”

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“Start with the girl with the sword,” her captain said.

“About average height. Maybe a little shorter, but she looked taller compared to soccer-girl. She had a katana, and she knew how to use it. Black hair is decorated with beads and a few other things I didn't understand, and she had it in a ponytail to keep it out of her face. Despite that, she's a soldier. She smelled like death, and she followed orders without question.

“The other one is a strategist. Face like a knife. Heart like a knife, too. She was ready to make hard decisions, though she didn't really need to since the mission stayed simple. She coordinated us well and anticipated the enemy easily. Maybe that doesn't sound impressive when you're dealing with zombies, but they were unpredictable. And she... predicted them.”

Kelly paused for a moment.

“What did she smell like?” her captain said.

She shrugged. “Lilacs. Real ones, I think. Or a really good perfume. She wasn't really sweating. I feel like it wasn't her first command. She probably just plays too many video games.”

“Excellent work, corporal. There may be a promotion in this for you.”

She frowned. “Sir?”

“The Big Boss wanted to field test his new toy,” he said. “And you were quite helpful.”

She felt her heart drop out of her chest. “Sir, if he released those screamers—”

Her captain chuckled. It sounded like gargling gravel. “Not the screamers, girl. The Paladins.” He gave her a toothy grin. “He wanted to test the Paladins against the screamers, and to see how they'd work with Necessarians in the field.” He nodded sagely. “I'd say you did a great job.”

Kelly swallowed. “Thank... you, sir. I think.”

“Of course,” he said, idly scratching his chin, “the fact that most of your direct superiors were killed doesn't hurt your chances either.”

She immediately felt better. Unexplained generosity was worrying, but these were circumstances she understood. “They did their best, sir, but we were all caught by surprise.”

“Of course, of course.” He made a note on his pad. “Well, promotion or not, you'll need to pick your team.”

Kelly blinked. “Sir?”

“You're going to be attached to the Paladins,” he said in the most infuriatingly off-hand way possible. “If nothing else, provide transportation.”

She nearly jumped out of her seat. “But, sir, I—”

He waved his hand. “You're dismissed. I want those squad assignments before you leave today. Five slots, including you.”

She recognized she wouldn't make any more headway, so she nodded and left his office without a word.

Alex Gabriel stood leaning against the wall. They smiled at her. “Problems with the old wolf?”

“He can hear you,” she grumbled. She stomped off, and Alex followed.

They were definitely going to be on this team she had to assemble, no question. In addition to being a close friend, their talents were invaluable.

As a full-born daybreaker, Alex was completely asexual. While some angels kept using gender pronouns even after they gave up their physical sex, Alex didn't. They were tall, thin, and completely hairless, covered in dimly glowing tattoos in strange, circular patterns, largely revealed by the white t-shirt they wore. Most of them terminated on their hands, where they had leather gloves with small, high-quality magnifying glasses in the palms. When they concentrated, they could focus the glow from the sunspots on their palms to devastating effect—especially against vampires. At their sides were matching long knives made out of mirrored steel.

“I need a team,” Kelly said bluntly once the pair was out of earshot.

“On the books?”

“I have no idea,” she said. “But it's sanctioned. We're the Paladins' retinue.”

“Cool,” they said happily. Even their voice was asexual, being both husky and soft at the same time. “Want me to assemble the old team?”

“No. We need ranged attackers. We're going to go against those screaming zombies, and I don't want to get within reach.”

They nodded in agreement. “I'll start with Nevin.”

“Nevin died a couple days ago. Sliced to ribbons by something with claws.” Kelly shrugged. “Probably a monster, but maybe a kemo.”

Alex winced. “Ooh. He was the best. Well, there are some alternatives. How many we need?”

“Five total. Think you can make that happen?”

They paused, thinking. “Yeah, I can. When do we need to be ready?”

“The old wolf wants the list by noon. I want to be ready for a quick training run in an hour. Need to know we can work together.”

They grinned, revealing perfect teeth. “Consider it done, boss.”

Kelly sighed. It was necessary.