Chapter 33: Family

Friday, March 31st, 11:47 PM

Coconut Grove Ruins

Santa Cruz, California

My Devilflies turned en-masse and streaked through the sky toward Beach Street.

Dire Widows webbed off Coconut Grove’s exits to prevent enemies from escaping.

I was distracted from managing my minions when Michael cried out in pain. He fell to his knees, dropping his rifle to clasp his hands over a wound in his abdomen.

Rihelah rushed to Michael and dragged him away before another volley of bullets impacted the rubble. She took a round in her left shoulder, and they collapsed together, hidden inside the irregular, bowl-shaped wreckage of Casablanca.

“Fucking hell,” Joe swore as he healed the couple.

Rihelah grunted and Michael sighed in relief as their flesh was repaired.

“Stay down,” Mike warned.

Michael retrieved his rifle, looked around, then slowly raised himself to peer toward Coconut Grove.

“Son, I said stay down,” Mike repeated.

Michael replied, “We need to know where they’re shooting fr—”

Flinching as bits of stone and dirt struck his face, Michael ducked back with the others when more bullets ricocheted off the rubble around them.

Mike growled, “Dammit, son! I said stay down! We’re being sniped. Sidearms for now. If anyone comes rushing in, we’ll light ‘em up.”

[Stay there. I’ll deal with the snipers,] I told my residents.

Rihelah said, “The Professor says she’ll handle the snipers, Papa Mike.”

“Thank fuck for that,” said Mike.

“Damn shame about Sergeant Rhonda the 25th, though.” Joe sighed.

“Yeah. She was reliable.” Mike glared up at his ruined rifle. “I’ll collect something from these assholes when it’s over. Won’t be Rhonda, but I’ll make do.”

It took almost a minute, and I had to add a minion exit up through the tallest portion of the opposite, nearly-destroyed end of the Coconut Grove ruins to get a better viewing angle, but I located the snipers.

[Found them. Give me a moment.]

Seven shooters were lined up behind a low cement wall, on top of a flat portion of Coconut Grove’s roof facing west, where it hadn’t collapsed. Two women and two men were reloading while three men had their rifles trained on the ruins where Joe and the others sheltered.

A muscular, middle-aged, balding man with a massive graying beard crouched behind them, giving orders. His deep voice and slight accent identified him as the speaker from before. “Good! Keep weapons trained on target at all times! Half ready to shoot while half reload. Never allow time for the enemy to—yah!”

He swatted above him, just missing three Devilflies that had bitten the back of his head.

“Stupid bugs,” he hissed.

The three who’d been watching the Casablanca ruins turned their heads to see what was happening.

“What the fuck?” one exclaimed after I had Devilflies bite each of them on their arms. They dropped their weapons to rub at the wounds.

One of the rifles fell from the roof, and the speaker-man flew into a rage.

“What did I tell you?” He drew a pistol from his hip, shot the woman who’d lost her weapon in the forehead, and heaved her body over the edge.

The speaker crouched and growled, “Focus at all times. Do not become distracted by what you hear!” He waved a large, callused finger in their faces while he spoke.

“Yes, Ivan!” The six who remained said in unison. The two who’d dropped them shook while they retrieved their rifles, and resumed watching the Casablanca as they were joined by the other four.

Ivan squinted hard, then shook his head. He rocked back and forth in a crouch and blinked repeatedly with a blank expression. Ivan’s eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed backward, but the others didn’t look.

I had my Devilflies bite the last four on their necks, then dart away.

They grunted as they were envenomated, but none looked back.

Now, to clean up the rest.

Thirty-nine Devilflies rushed to every traitor in my sight who could still walk, tying their legs up and biting any who carried a weapon.

The six snipers on the roof collapsed, moaning in agony and confusion as the potent venom attacked their nervous systems.

[The snipers are dealt with, and I’m blocking the entrances to the building. I don’t know much about this kind of thing, aside from “kill the bad guys,” so let me know if the marines need anything.]

Michael and Rihelah relayed that to Joe and Mike, and my Dire Widows disappeared after blocking every exit from Coconut Grove with sticky silk. I heard angry voices from inside.

I resisted the temptation to send in my Devilflies with orders to kill everything that moved, in case they had prisoners.

Back at the harbor gate, Sunny and Sandy came into view with three tied-up children walking between them. Both had bloodied snouts and Sunny limped a little, but the children seemed okay from what I could tell, and my pups would heal. Physically.

I hope they weren’t forced to kill anyone…

That thought hit hard.

My sweet, loyal girls should never have to do something like that.

[Soybean and Joybean, please gather some adults to help you meet my girls and the children at the harbor bridge.]

Siobhán and Joy had been crying together since learning that Nino and Hanzo were killed, but they departed the fruit orchard to spread the word.

As soon as I heard my Labs and the children, I called out to them.

[Girls, are you okay?]

[Mommy!] they cried in unison.

[Sunny bit bad lady.] Sunny sounded sad, limping with her tail between her legs, and I wanted to die.

[Sandy bit bad woman.]

[Is Sandy a bad girl?] She whined.

[No, babies. You saved the children, so you were good girls. I’m sorry I had to ask you to do something so painful. But you saved those children from very bad people. Did you see what happened to Nino and Hanzo?]

[Kitties is…] Sunny began but trailed off as her voice broke.

Oh, no. They saw.

[Bad lady killed kitties.] Sandy yowled.

[Hurt Sunny’s paw.]

[Scary loud thing.]

[Girls ran away.]

[Hurt bad lady’s leg.]

[Will Sunny run again?] Sunny looked at her wounded front right paw and keened.

[Yes, Sunny girl. You’ll be okay. You’re both wonderful girls for helping the children. Also, Nino and Hanzo will be alive again, soon.]

[Is true?]

[Kitties is living?]

Both Labs perked their ears and cocked their heads to the right. Their tails wagged a little, though still between their legs.

[Yes, sweeties. They will come back to us in just a little while.]

That set their tails to wagging properly, though their tongues remained in their mouths.

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Siobhán frowned.

Of course, Professor Miller’s boning Nikki again—you could almost hear them from the Crow’s Nest. I hope ProfCon doesn’t see. Or hear. Ugh.

Shaking her head to clear it, Siobhán focused on her task.

So few are listening. It’s like people don’t care about anything beyond their own problems.

With Joy, Siobhán ran around between all the houses Ciara had made, spreading the word that three children had been rescued. Only four people showed interest in caring for them so far—two couples who’d survived but had no children of their own.

The last house stood before them. Only two people lived there.

[Soybean, Joybean—there’s a woman in that house named Allison. I’m not sure what happened to her children, but she’s been grieving and muttering about them nonstop since she arrived.]

“Yeah. We know Allison. She lost her husband and all five of their children—quintuplets.” Siobhán frowned and hugged Joy, who stood still with her eyes shut.

“I hate this. There’s so few of us left.” Joy shook her head and squeezed Siobhán before stepping back. “We have to. For the kids.” Her friend sounded confident, but Siobhán wasn’t surprised when Joy backed away as she spoke.

Yeah. I get it, Joy. I’ll handle it.

“For the kids,” Siobhán replied with a stiff nod. She took a deep breath and called out, “Hello? We’ve got news! There are some children who’ve been rescued, and—”

“Go away. I don’t want to hear about it!” a voice wailed from inside.

It was Allison Ames.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

Siobhán pressed her lips and took a breath, trying to stay positive.

Brenda Whitaker came out to meet them.

“Please forgive Allison, dear. It’s… she just needs time,” said Brenda.

Siobhán gave a lopsided smile. “I know. Three children will arrive soon. The Dungeon’s pets rescued them from those traitors who’ve been killing people, and we’re hoping someone will help care for them.”

“That’s not funny, Siobhán. Don’t. Just don’t,” Allison said, stepping into view with a scowl and despair in her eyes.

“It’s not a joke, Allison. There are three kids coming with Sunny and Sandy,” said Joy.

“Stop it. I just can’t—hope—anymore. It’s too…” Sniffling, Allison rubbed at her swollen eyelids, and Brenda hugged her.

“Come on, now, Miss Ames. Those little ones are going to need love and support. You don’t have to adopt if you’re not ready. Let’s just go and be there for them, alright?”

Allison sniffled, wiped her nose a few times, and whispered, “Okay, fine.”

The walk to the harbor bridge was slower than Siobhán would have liked since Allison trudged slowly.

I hope this doesn’t open wounds for her, but those children need help.

Sunny came limping through the harbor gate with a bloodied muzzle. Then a trio of children, their clothing half covered in ash. The kids’ necks were secured by a single dark rope, with a child on each end carrying a coiled length. Sandy followed after, with blood on her snout as well.

Allison stopped and fell to her knees at the sight of the children. Her mouth hung open, and she wavered. Siobhán dropped beside Allison to help steady her.

“Allison, are you…” Siobhán started to ask a question but fell silent.

But Allison didn’t respond. She just stared at the children, as tears poured down her cheeks.

What do I even say in this situation? The poor woman.

Siobhán’s eyes watered and her mouth tightened.

The girl in the center paused to grip the shoulders of the two beside her when they were around thirty meters away.

“Mom?” she asked, her eyes flooding as her breath caught halfway through the word.

“Mommy?” the two others cried out together, their wide eyes fixed on Allison.

“Mom!” they yelled in unison, and they all came forward, smiling, bawling, and rubbing at their eyes.

“My babies…” Allison whimpered at last.

Siobhán choked out a sob and covered her mouth with both hands.

Then Allison sucked in a breath and grabbed Siobhán’s shoulder, but her focus remained on her children.

“Girls, where are your brothers? Daddy?”

The children winced. Three pairs of youthful eyes shared a haunted glance as deep frowns annihilated their smiles. The one in the center shook her head, her bottom lip trembling, and a glimmer of hope died in their mother’s eyes.

Allison covered her face and sobbed, harder than Siobhán had ever seen anyone cry, while her three daughters embraced her.

The Labs sat beside the children and whined with sad eyes.

A few minutes later—after Allison asked if anyone could help, Joy used a knife from her belt to free the children from the cruel rope.

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“Dungeon, are you able to see inside? Are there any prisoners?” Rihelah asked.

[I don’t have vision inside.]

Ugh.

How do I explain this without revealing the existence of my core and that humans can block my abilities?

[It takes time to tunnel. But I did hear voices. Most sounded like women, but it’s hard to say.]

All true—technically.

Michael replied, “Hm. We need to find someone who’s been in there, and question them. Are any still alive on the beach?”

[Sorry, I killed them all.]

Then I realized there were survivors—elsewhere.

[Wait. I may have a solution.]

[Soybean, I hate to ask this so soon, but I need to find out if those kids know if there are prisoners inside Coconut Grove.]

“Really, ProfCon? These kids just found their mother. I really don’t think this is a good time for—”

[I know, Siobhán. But Joe and Mike need to know if there are innocents inside that building before we go charging in to murder everyone.]

“Oh. I see. Uh, give me a minute?” Siobhán rubbed her temples and shook her head with a frown.

[Take some time if you need to, but the sooner we know, the more likely we’ll be able to save anyone who might be trapped there.]

“Right.” Siobhán wrung her hands.

“Allison, can I ask one of your daughters a question? We need to know if there are any other kids at Coconut Grove.”

“There aren’t. It’s only them inside that place.” One of the girls spoke immediately.

“Katie!” Allison chided her daughter.

“No, mom.” Katie took her mom’s face in her hands, locked eyes with her, and shook her head.

One of the other girls continued, “Not right now. You didn’t see what they did—”

Allison shook her head and cut the girl off, “No, Valerie…”

“They seemed nice when they found us a few days ago. But after they told us what they were doing, Daddy got mad and said we were leaving,” the last girl said.

“They shot him. Right after Daddy said no.” Valerie keened.

Katie sniffed a couple of times, then added, “Paul and Ryan tried to fight, and so did we, but—”

The third girl took over, staring at the ocean. “They kill boys who don’t join them.”

“No…” Allison fell sideways, and Brenda caught her.

“…Yes.” Katie choked on the word.

Allison’s daughters hugged her, and she rocked forward while repeating, “No.”

Valerie pulled away, sniffling at Siobhán. The child’s eyes glistened, but her hard expression could cut glass. “It’s only bad people there, after they sent us away for… that.”

“They wanna take over the country!” the third sister added.

“They’re taking over the country, Lizzie. With that breeding program.” Valerie frowned.

“Nicolas and Ivan told us that once we got to Scotts Valley, the men there would—” Katie grimaced as her voice trailed off and she covered her mouth.

“No.” Allison’s eyes widened. “They didn’t.”

“They were gonna.” Katie rubbed her puffy eyelids. “But… no, they didn’t get to. The talking doggies and kitties saved us.”

Allison’s children hugged her tightly while she grieved.

My instinct sensed my burning desire for retribution and bared its fangs.

I’ve been too soft on those traitors. Widow venom is painful, but I have much worse.

[Siobhán, I’ve heard everything I need to. Tell the kids they won’t have to worry about those people ever again.]

[Michael, Rihelah—stay back from that building. There are no prisoners inside, and you don’t want to hear what’s about to happen after what I just learned.]

“That bad?” Michael asked.

[No, it’s worse. I don’t want to talk about it right now. Just get yourselves away from there.]

“Roger that,” Michael replied.

I sent Vijaya through my tunnels. Dire Widows cut holes in the silk across one doorway, facing the beach. Every Devilfly swarmed inside, with orders to mummify all humans.

Screams and gunfire began seconds after the first of my minions entered, and I lost six more Devilflies in the confines of the building.

While Michael and Rihelah worked to herd Joe and Mike away from the terrible cacophony inside the half-destroyed building, I addressed someone who deserved every last millennium of imprisonment I could deliver for him.

I made my voice sweet as honey. [Nicolas, darling. There’s one little detail I forgot to mention about the body you inhabit. It’s female, and your name is Vijaya. Every order I previously gave you as Nicolas still applies, Vijaya dear.]

I gave the arrogant prick a moment to let her new reality sink in while she continued racing toward the Boardwalk through my tunnels.

While I wasn’t certain how much it would matter to Nicolas that his consciousness inhabited a female body—especially since he’d become a centipede, the Dungeon inside me yearned for anything that could make him and his rotten organization suffer. I knew it wasn’t right to be so cruel, but I was too angry to care. Feelings overwhelmed my judgment.

[Vijaya, after you arrive at the Coconut Grove, you will kill every single human inside with only your bite. You are not allowed to use venom. Attack sensitive, vulnerable areas. Return to your room when you are finished.]

With that, I recalled my Sentinel gulls, Dire Widows, and all but two of my Devilflies to the main Dungeon. The pair that remained had orders to make sure no traitors escaped.

Ten minutes later, Hanzo and Nino respawned in their love nest.

[Human children survived?] Nino asked as the cats groomed one another.

How is she so calm?

[Yes, Nino-kitty. You, Hanzo, Sunny, and Sandy—you saved them. And their mother is here. You brought a family back together.]

[Good. Our deaths were not wasted,] Hanzo said.

Him, too? They act like dying wasn’t a big deal!

[Death is unpleasant,] Nino pointed out.

[Yes, it is. Thank you both for giving your lives to help those little ones.]

[I demand pets from the children,] Nino stated.

[I also desire pets,] Hanzo added.

[Go and find them. They’re grateful, and I’m sure you’ll get all the pets you want.]

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Minions: 100/100

Residents: 10/10

Denizens: 40377

Traps: 1/5