Clickers III (10 page)

it doesn’t. I don’t know what that is. Black Lodge? What are you, like the X-Files or some shit?”

“Our organization no longer works within the confines of any one government,” Baby-face told him. “We are beholden to a much higher law. We are engaged in many activities, and to tell you all of it… well, I’m afraid it would be a bit confusing for a novice such as yourself. Suffice to say, we’re a bit more complicated than the television show you referenced.”

The older man began dragging the maintenance man toward the door again. The captive shouted in protest, but the agents ignored him.

“You take him out of here,” Tony told Baby-face, “and I swear to fucking God I’m not doing shit for you. Ask her.” He nodded at the woman. “If she can read minds, have her read mine right the fuck now. Tell me if I’m lying. I dare you.”

The woman paused. Her eyes narrowed. “He means it. Stubborn and contentious, just as we were told he’d be.”

Sighing, Baby-face hung his head. “Who was the idiot that wrote this mission’s sit-rep?”

“You did,” the woman said.

“Don’t remind me.”

“What do you want me to do with him?” the older man asked.

Baby-face looked up. “He stays. We’ve got to keep Mr. Genova happy, don’t we?”

“But—”

“No buts. Need I remind you of your station?”

“That’s right,” Tony said. “You’ve got to keep Mr. Genova happy. So why don’t we start with some oral sex?”

They stared at him, unblinking.

“No? Okay, then. How about your names?”

“I’m afraid not,” Baby-face said. “Names have power. Instead, how about we tell you what we prefer to be called?”

“Whatever.”

Baby-face pointed to the older man. “That is Diamond. The gentleman to his left is Onyx. The young lady is Ruby. And I am Amethyst.”

“That’s a chick’s name.”

“Excuse me?”

“Amethyst. It’s a chick’s name. I used to bang a stripper named Amethyst. Wasn’t her real name, of course.”

“Nor are these our real names. They are simply what we prefer to be called.”

“You prefer to be called by a chick’s name? Hell, why not just call yourself Bambi or Sally, while you’re at it. Or wait…I got it. You can be Snow White and the rest of the happy fun club can be Dopey, Sleepy and Shit-head.”

“Okay. So,
Amethyst
…you gonna untie me or what?”

Amethyst glanced over his shoulder at Ruby. “Can we?”

“Not yet. He’s still imagining ways to escape.”

Amethyst turned back to Tony and smiled. “Perhaps after you hear us out.”

“What about him?” Tony nodded at the other captive. “No sense keeping him here. You’re not gonna say anything, are you dude?”

“That one is thinking of ways to escape, as well,” Ruby said. “He is driven by violence and an all-consuming need for revenge. He’s the one they’ve been looking for—the one who has killed many of those associated with the Tyler Administration. The secret assassin. He wants to murder former Secretary of State Donald Barker next. He’s hoping to cut a deal with us in that regard. If not, he intends on killing us, as well.”

“That’s unexpected,” Amethyst muttered, and then turned back to Tony. “Are you ready to hear us out?”

“What else am I gonna do tonight? It ain’t like I can go anywhere.”

“Oh, but you’re wrong. You can leave whenever you like.”

“Then you didn’t do your research. If you had, you’d know that—”

“The conditions of your deal with the government need not be a concern. We’ve taken care of that. You’re free to travel. Indeed, we’ll be leaving shortly.”

“Where are we going?”

“To the airport. We have a plane on standby.”

“Awesome,” Tony said. “Let’s hit St. Martin’s. Or Cabo. Yeah, let’s go to Cabo. Sammy Hagar’s got a bar down there. Always wanted to see it.”

“We’re going to the island of Naranu.”

“Never heard of it.”

“That’s not surprising. Until recently, it was wholly unremarkable to the average layperson.”

“Until recently? What changed? The natives discover cable television or something?”

“No,” Amethyst said. “A team of scientists discovered something else—some very old ruins. But what they don’t know is that Naranu has another, older name. R’lyeh.”

“The fuck is that?”

“In mythology, it’s a sunken city. In reality, it’s the island we call Naranu.”

“So why are we going there?”

“Because Naranu refers to more than just the island itself. It is also the name of the catacombs that honeycomb the island, and the sunken city that lies beneath it. Naranu is a shrine, of sorts. A temple. The Dark Ones consider the island to be the holiest of ground.”

“The Dark Ones?” Chuckling, Tony shook his head. “I should have known. I mean, you brought the Clickers up earlier. I should have fucking known that sooner or later it would come around to this. You want to go fucking around with those goddamned lizard things, and since I’ve faced them before, you expect me to be some sort of guide and shit. A civilian advisor. Is that it?”

“Yes, and no.”

“Well, I got news for you, Amethyst—the Dark Ones are dead. The Army scragged them and the fucking Clickers. They’re extinct.”

“Far from it,” Amethyst said. “You’ve fought them, and survived. Tell me, did the Dark Ones seem intelligent to you?”

“Sure. The Clickers were dumb as stumps, but those lizard-things were as smart as you or me.”

“They are, indeed. And they have thriving communities far from the reach of mankind. The Dark Ones are far from extinct, Mr. Genova—or may I call you Tony?”

Tony shrugged, and Amethyst continued.

“The Dark Ones have certainly suffered heavy losses. But they’ve been biding their time. Waiting until the stars are right. You see, the Dark Ones are theistic. They worship a being known as Dagon. Humans know this deity as Cthulhu or Dagnu. He has many other names, as well. Tlaloc. Matsya. Vishnu. Dingir. Bekalam. Kraken. His real name, however, his
secret
name…is Leviathan.”

“You guys take this name shit seriously, don’t you?”

Ignoring the comment, the younger man continued. “The island of Naranu is little more than nine miles in circumference. It’s basically a mountaintop of phosphorous rock and lush jungle jutting up from the ocean. Beneath the waves, however, lies a much larger landmass—sunken eons ago. The being that the Dark Ones worship is said to reside in a temple located deep beneath the island—somewhere in Naranu’s subterranean depths. According to the Dark One’s beliefs, he sleeps until the stars and planets align in a particular formation, at which time they can awaken him, after which he shall exact their revenge on the surface world. Like all other religions, this is not entirely accurate. Dagon actually dwells on another plane—a place called the Great Deep; it is a dimensional realm composed entirely of water. There is a portal beneath Naranu—a doorway, if you will. When the astrological formation occurs, the Dark Ones’ ceremony will actually open this portal, allowing Dagon to crossover from his realm to our own.”

“You said this thing’s real name was Leviathan,” Tony said. “So why do you keep calling it Dagon?”

“It is hard to explain to a novice such as yourself. Suffice to say, the Dark Ones know it as Dagon, so that is what we must confront it as.”

“Time,” Diamond reminded them.

“I knew they were smart,” Tony muttered, “but I didn’t realize they had their own religion and shit.”

“Oh, yes. Since your last encounter with them, the Dark Ones have not been idle. They have retreated from the surface world, licking their wounds and gathering strength again. Now, due to certain astrological events that they believe to be portents, the Dark Ones intend to wake up their god.”

“And do what?”

“Destroy mankind. They want to exact revenge on us for thwarting their last invasion attempt.”

“Well, shit. You’d better untie me. If the world’s gonna end, then I’ve got a lot of things I want to do before it happens.”

“The world isn’t going to end, Tony, because we’re going to stop it from happening.”

“We? I’m not going anywhere. You guys can enjoy your little island getaway. I’m staying here. I fought those fuckers once before. I ain’t fighting them again.”

“You have no choice,” Ruby said. “It is your destiny.”

Tony laughed. “Christ. You people sound like you’re quoting really cheesy movie dialogue. There is no such thing as destiny, sweetheart, Destiny is what you make it. Destiny is the shit I took this morning. Destiny is what comes out of the barrel of a gun. You want to talk about destiny? Listen to the lyrics of Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler. That’s everything you ever wanted to know about destiny but were afraid to ask.”

Smiling, Amethyst folded his fingers into a steeple formation. “We assumed that would be your reaction. I’d be remiss if I didn’t explain to you that if you refuse to help us, your deal with the government shall be immediately rendered null and void, and you will be incarcerated and tried for your crimes.
All
of your crimes.”

“Bullshit. You ain’t got the power to—”

“Oh, but we do, Tony. We really do.”

“Prove it.”

“Is that really a risk you’re willing to take?”

Tony didn’t respond. He glanced around the room. Diamond, Onyx and Ruby all returned his gaze, unblinking, their faces emotionless. The maintenance man who wasn’t really a maintenance man stared at him, too. His expression was easier to read. Tony knew it well. It mirrored his own thoughts and emotions.

Play along with the crazy fuckers until we can come up with a way out of this shit.

“He’s going to bluff us,” Ruby reported. “He has no desire to accompany us to Naranu. He’s still just looking for an avenue of escape. He senses a kinship with the other man.”

Tony shrugged.

“Did I mention,” Amethyst said softly, “that Jennifer Wasco is on the island? You know her, yes?”

“Jennifer? She’s on Naranu?”

“Yes.” Amethyst nodded. “She is part of a research team that was recently dispatched there.”

Onyx stepped forward, holding a black leather brief-case. It hadn’t been in his hands a moment earlier. Tony was sure of it. Wondering where it came from, he nodded at the briefcase.

“So, in addition to reading minds, you guys do slight of hand tricks, too? Can you pull a rabbit out of a hat?”

Onyx didn’t answer.

“No?” Tony shrugged again. “Well, then how about this? Can you pull my dick out of my pants? Or maybe an elephant out of your ass?”

Onyx didn’t react to the taunts. His face impassive, he handed the briefcase to Amethyst, who opened it and took out some eight-by-ten color photographs. He held them up so that Tony could see them.

“These were taken less than an hour ago via our remote viewers. I trust that you recognize her?”

“Fuck…”

The series of photographs were all of Jennifer, running in terror across a tropical beach, pursued by both Clickers and Dark Ones. There were other people with her, but Tony didn’t recognize any of them. He assumed they were her colleagues—other scientists and researchers. The quality and resolution were enough that Tony could see the fear etched in Jennifer’s expression.

“Fuck,” he repeated.

“Understand this,” Amethyst said. “The events taking place on Naranu are happening as we speak. By the time the international community acts, it will be too late. She will die unless we get to her. If you don’t want to act to save the world, Tony, then perhaps you’ll act to save your friend.”

Ruby licked her lips and stepped forward. “It is very easy to adopt a new name—a new identity—and pretend that doing so erases the mistakes of your past. It’s much harder to actually forge a future that is free of those past sins. I see that you struggle to do so. Perhaps this can be the first step toward real redemption.”

Tony stared at them, glanced back down at the photographs, and then up again.

“I assure you,” Amethyst said, “these are not fakes. Jennifer Wasco is on that island right now, fighting for her life.”

“Well shit,” Tony said. “Why didn’t you just say so in the first place? When do we leave?”

Nodding, Amethyst stood up and turned to the others. “Onyx, untie him. Diamond, take our other guest outside. Contact the circle and tell them we’ll need him picked up at the airport. Then we—”

“No,” Tony interrupted. “The lawn jockey comes with us. Seriously. I’ve got enough blood on my hands. I’m not just gonna stand by while you fuckers do God knows what to him just because he had the bad luck to be outside of my apartment.”

“I’m afraid that’s out of the question.” Amethyst shook his head.

“Then I’m not going. Have Ruby read my mind—tell me I’m bullshitting you.”

“He’s not,” she confirmed. “His will and intent are clear to me. He’ll refuse to come along if we don’t do as he asks. He means it.”

“You’re damn straight I do. I don’t want his body showing up in a ditch somewhere, and then the cops trace him back here to my place. Screw that. He’s coming along for the ride.”

Amethyst sighed. “Very well. We don’t have time to argue. He can accompany us. But when we get there, his blood will indeed be on your hands—and I assure you, Mr. Genova, that is a very likely possibility.”

Onyx untied Tony while Diamond did the same to the newcomer. Tony stood, stretching his muscles and flexing his fingers.

“Just let me grab my gun.”

“I’m afraid we can’t allow that,” Amethyst said. “Both of you will be issued weapons once we reach our destination. We’ll also debrief you in full during the flight. Now, if there are no further delays?”

“Actually, I gotta use the can real quick.”

Amethyst started to protest, but Tony cut him off with a wave of his hand.

“No funny business. I promise. Seriously, unless you want me to piss in your ride on the way to the airport, then I’ve got to take a leak first. I’ve got a weak bladder. Used to drive my partner, Vince, nuts with it. We’d drive from York to Atlantic City or Philly or someplace like that, and he’d have to pull over three or four times so I could piss.”

“Go ahead. But please hurry.”