Chapter 9
Matthew 7:7
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Tobias's Journal:
Things started to heat up globally and war broke out. It was said to be the war to end all wars. Honestly, with all the evil I witnessed over the years around Europe, I truly wish it had been. I would like nothing more than to avoid going into too much detail here, but I will say the chaos and creatures that were drawn to war, on an industrial scale for the first time, was almost beyond comprehension. We had men of faith, from all over and sometimes even on different sides, that knew how to contact us when things surfaced. After the great war I talked with some of the other members, all of them hardened warriors from great armies lost to time, and they were all haunted by some of the things they saw as well. Thankfully we had an all too brief respite before the world went back at it again. We were all grateful for the break and a return to normal, or at least as normal as things get for The Order. There were many days, and sleepless nights where I truly believed it was the end of days during the second world war. Surely, this had to be Hell. The occult things the Germans got into and the atrocities committed against humanity as a whole were heartbreaking. Thankfully I wasn't working in the pacific theater, I later spoke with Reginald after the war was over and he was changed. Distant… Reginald’s origins began during the crusades, so he was used to battle and war. Even with his bloody past and experience with the order, whatever he saw or did during that time had him shaken. I can't explain it, he was always somewhat high strung but when it was all said and done… He wanted nothing to do with field work, and dove deeper and deeper into the new technologies emerging. It was like he was driven to personally collect as much information, he would later call data, and move mountains to see all the pieces on the board globally. I know his work avoided some crazy things during the cold war but he truly has not been the same since. Thomas, Simon, Philip and I all worked together during the second world war and became very close. I know a good deal of my “reputation” for being reckless came from this time but in my defense, I was absolutely lost and felt completely unhinged at times. I did everything in my power to save the men I worked with. I was blessed, so if I bled a single drop of blood that the men I worked with didn't have to, I was completely okay with that. This put me at the tip of the spear more often than not and gave me a bit of a reputation for crazy longshot, low odds, stunts. I don't want to get into too much of that here. I just want to give enough brief backstory for context on my life to this point. Maybe someday I'll write about the things I saw during the wars, but I can't bring myself to do so now…
One positive thing, for me personally, that came from World War two was my obsession with bottleneck pistol rounds. I loved the 45 long colt, don't get me wrong, but when I first saw the Russians CZ 52 and how it would punch right through a helmet… I was hooked. I traded some vodka for a case of the 7.62 Tokarev and a CZ 52 and quickly got to work on the ammo. After a bit of tinkering I managed to rig up a jig that held 25 rounds in place in 5 rows of 5. There were matching holes on the lid but the bullet would sit just above the bottom of the jig. I had embedded steel notches in an X shape over the base of the bullet and stopped just before the steel case. I would place the ammo in the jig, put the lid on it, then start drilling. I would drill about three quarters of the way through the projectile, then hammer the lid down firm with a mallet, notching the bullet. Then I would drop a bead of silver into each hole then tap it in place with a wooden dowel. The finished product was *very* similar to the 9x25 Dillon projectiles I'm using now. The silver bead would be held in place by the lead and copper jacket. It worked wonders on ghouls and the occasional Nazi Werewolves I ran into. After that, I was determined to get my 1911 to fire the same thing. I had a M3 grease gun that gave me an idea for a magazine that would stagger the bullets. After a TON of work, lots of trial and error and even more scrounging for parts… I finally had 2 matching 1911’s chambered in the 7.62 Tokarev that held about 18 rounds each. I also had a dozen magazines for them that I made by cutting the top off an M3 mag, then reforming the feed lips and cutting a new magazine catch. After adding some ruins, no one really looked at them. Everyone was armed, but having some really odd one of a kind gear in a war zone will single you out to some extent. If anyone takes enough time to pay attention at least.
Undisclosed location: Rome. Tobias and Angiola
After way too much debate and drama I finally found myself and Angiola walking hand and hand down a narrow alley in Rome. Once all the drama was over, I eventually convinced Simon and Reginald to let the two of us go on this little errand. It was easier to blend in as a couple and Angiola needed to spend some time in the field. Being a newer member, this would be a good time to work on her field craft. Plus with the two of us we could keep a better eye on the environment, and considering where we were heading, that would be needed. Just because we couldn't really die, or would die REALLY difficultly, either of us being captured would still be detrimental to the mission. Not to mention I really hate being tortured. We walked past an overflowing dumpster, and graffiti covered walls. It was a narrow and dim alley that really didn't go anywhere and wouldn’t attract attention unless you worked at one of the shops that backed into this small lane. Even the homeless didn't try to sleep here. Angiola looked stunning, wearing a flowing black dress with long sleeves, a modest V shaped neckline and black lace up boots that stopped just below her knees. “When we get there, let me do the majority of the talking, and remember the cover story. I'm a Necromancer and you are a Witch, we heard some interesting things about this Dark Pope, and it has us a bit curious. We are just here to do some shopping, if we look too eager to join the cause they will clam up. This market place is a sanctuary zone, meaning we WILL be safe. Any violence or enchantment aimed at the unwilling will be reversed and magnified 3 fold”. I said hoping to help calm her nerves. She seemed to be rather nervous but I wasn't sure what about. Frankly I was nervous too but that was more about being anywhere with her, more than anything else. We had a small sack of gold coins, some gems, and a few confiscated trinkets that would work for trade. “How comfortable are you with the darkness? There’s going to be a lot of different beings here”. I asked Angiola. “Not much honestly, I've spent a lot of time in training but I've mostly been learning the tech side under Reginald”. I knew the training she was referring to, there's lots of facts, strengths and weaknesses about most of what we deal with. Pictures or detailed drawings and diagrams of many of the different species out there. The occasional corpse of something defeated to dissect. The Order has been in this business for a LONG time and there are detailed reports filed for basically everything. At least she shouldn’t freak out too much when she saw some of the creatures we were about to deal with. “Okay, the basic classes and familiarity training is a great start but it can't really prepare you for the gut punching, clinch of terror that hits when dealing with true evil. Just take a few deep breaths and know you are safe, you will be just fine”. I said to her as I placed both hands on her shoulders and turned her to face me at the end of the alley. She nodded and looked into my eyes. She had the most amazing blue eyes I had ever seen, it was absolutely hypnotizing. She smiled up at me and placed her arms around my waist and moved in closer. I froze up completely. Then placing her head on my chest she said “I know your instinct is to protect people but, I'll be fine, Promise. I'm not too interested in field work but I figured this would give us a chance to talk a bit without Simon or Reginald having a coronary every time we are in the same room”. She finished with a giggle. I couldn't think straight with her pressing up close to me like this. I'm pretty smooth and I've had MANY years experience in dealing with women but, feeling her in my arms and smelling her perfume over the stink in that alley was almost too much. I cleared my throat and let go of her, then reached up to prick my finger on an exposed nail sticking out between the bricks at the end of the alley's wall. I placed my bloody fingertip on the 4 compass points on the wall in front of me. “I wish to enter and trade, I shall abide by the laws governing the marketplace”. I said formally to the brick wall. Silently a portion of the bricks moved back 3 inches then slid aside revealing the entrance to the market.
Once inside it was abundantly obvious that the basic familiarization training, and the real thing are two completely different worlds. In my defense I tried to warn her as best as possible. Some things simply don't translate. Thankfully she slapped a beautiful, if tense, smile on her face. If she hadn't been crushing my hand in panic, I don't think I would have known how badly she was freaking out at all. In all honesty, I get it. There's a feeling when evil is nearby. True evil, things from the other side and darkness that corrupts, just sends off waves of discomfort and dread. It can take years, if ever, to get accustomed to that soul clinching dread. What welcomed us was basically a flea market of the Damned. To the left of us was a stall for the soul market. A large humanoid creature in a tattered black cloak composed of wispy smoke was speaking with the necromancer from the next stall over in hushed tones. The Necromancers table was flanked by a Revenant on each side, basically undead muscle that can perform basic tasks a simple zombie couldn’t. The table was lined with bones and skulls of many unidentifiable creatures, slightly glowing chunks of meat and jars of unknown liquids. To the right of us was... a star-bucks? I nodded over to the right and said “Hey, let's grab something to help shake off the chill”. Angiola smiled up at me, “I forgot you live in Florida and mostly work in the southern part of America. She was right, I was very comfortable with the heat but not so much in the current cold. I was wearing black jeans, a long sleeve thermal undershirt with a Tool t-shirt and a long black leather jacket that went a bit past my waist line. Walking, still hand and hand, up to the bar we both ordered and got a small table at the back of the shop. She had such an amazing smile, it was really difficult not to just lose focus on what we were here for all together. I set a small black stone with some sigils inlaid in gold engraved onto it on the tabletop between us, and nodded at it. She visibly relaxed a bit and took a sip of her coffee. The stone between us would make any conversation at our table incomprehensible to anyone or anything trying to listen in. “I didn't know Thomas let you check out a silence stone, they are incredibly difficult to make”. Angiola said, nodding at the stone and setting down her coffee. “He didn't”. I answered “I've had one for many years now. Thomas and I worked together often back when I started my apprenticeship, and more when I started to work over some of the guns. I would go to him with a request like 'how can I make this silent, or what can I do about the brass’ and we would work together until we got it right. Over the years we have spent a lot of time working together. I worked with Simon, Thomas and Philip pretty extensively during the Second World War too. Unfortunately we don't get to spend as much time as we used to, but between the two of us we designed most of the guns in the arsenal”. “I guess I forget I'm still relatively new to all this”. Angiola said. “I've done this since I was 4 years old so to me it's been my whole life, but I guess I'm still getting used to the fact that you guys don't age”.
That took me by surprise and I had to pause a moment as I hadn't really thought about it in years, I understood it and acknowledged it, but it wasn't something I had consciously thought about in some time. Well, other than the reason for my solitary life and the lack of anything resembling a ‘lasting’ relationship. Everyone I worked with and many of the things I hunted down didn't really age or aged remarkably slowly. “Well, after a few decades pass, you almost don’t think about it? I mean it's not taken for granted but if you dwell on it too much you can start to see it almost as a curse, more than a blessing”. I said looking down at the table while fidgeting with the coffee cup in my hands. “Is that why The Order thinks of you as a ‘loose cannon’, I believe it was they called you”. Wow, her honesty was refreshing. “Yeah,” I chuckled. “I'm sure that's part of it. I tend to lead from the front in most of my operations and I've pulled off some ridiculous stunts. That, and basically there was an issue with some of the Vows The Order takes. I didn't really agree with all of them, and refused to take some of them. I understand the reasoning behind them, don't get me wrong, but for me personally I feel like I have a lot of love to give. That gets complicated quickly when you don't age and everyone else does... That and I honestly have a true weakness when it comes to a beautiful woman... I guess that's why Reginald doesn't want me anywhere near you”. I trailed off blushing. Angiola smiled and tried to hide a blushing giggle with a sip of her coffee. I couldn't believe I said that last part out loud. Desperately trying to change the topic I blurted out “So I know working under Reginald you”... At the same time she said “He's just over protective of me”.... We both chuckled a bit. After an awkward pause I continued. “So working with Reginald, I know you're amazing at computers but do you have much combat training?” Slipping the stone into my pocket we stood up to leave. She slipped an arm around my waist and rested her head on my shoulder and said “I love you babe”. I promptly spit my coffee all over a dwarf tossing his coffee in the can next to the exit door... She stared at me like I was a moron. She was really good at the whole “couple cover” that I had completely forgotten about... “Apologies kind sir, I was choking. No offence was intended, truly. Here, please let me get your next few cups of coffee”. I told as I quickly pulled an uncut sapphire out of my pocket and handing it to him. “No offense was intended, I assure you”. The Dwarf looked at the stone for a moment, holding it up to the light. He nodded and the stone vanished into his pockets quickly as he looked around to make sure no one saw where he was hiding it. We made a hasty exit and rushed a few steps out the door before we both burst into laughter. I was just really enjoying the date and getting to know her better. Was it a date? If so it was the most messed up first date in the history of first dates or dating in general... Hey I really like you so how about we go to this horrible market of the damned and look for trinkets that can steal your soul??? Doesn’t matter, stick with the mission and enjoy the benefit of her company.
We kept walking a bit before I nodded and acknowledged that I had completely forgotten the cover story. At least that seemed to drain any tension she may have been experiencing being around all the things shopping around us. “I have all the basic CQB tactic training but I much prefer to act as a sniper. I have a THOR M408 Cheytac that Thomas worked on. It's silent, thanks to the same sigil you use on your compensator, blessed onto the muzzle break. I'm very accurate out to 1000 yards. He put some other stuff on it so the 26lb rifle isn't too hard for me to lug around or move quickly with. I prefer to stand back and support. I'm not much for slugging it out with some of these things but I'm happy to put a chunk of blessed silver through something's heart from 1/2 a mile away”. She said with a mischievous smile. “Not that I've seen any combat honestly, but I can hit apples at distance after running through the obstacle course while in full armor”. We continued to walk around the market, my mind was distracted a bit. It was a bit odd to hear she hadn’t seen any combat missions. Or why they put something on her rifle to lighten it. Maybe so that she could manipulate it quicker in a jamb? I know Reginald normally ran support on missions so the long distance training made sense but I knew for a fact that The Order had been really busy the last few years and that Reginald and Simon had finished rooting out a large Vamp nest a few weeks ago despite rarely working in the field. We had just been THAT busy lately. We kept walking through the marketplace, my hands in my pocket and her arm locked around mine while leaning in close. The isle we were walking down seemed to be a blood market along one side, signs for different blood types and prices listed per unit. “Look honey they are running a sale on AB neg, guaranteed freshest in Rome”. Angolia said tugging excitedly on my arm. Thankfully there was a gun stall along the opposite side. I wandered over to the table quickly like something caught my eye because frankly, something had... “Hey what's the story on this old GI 1911, the grip looks fat and the sights are odd.” I asked the man, while speaking in American English. I knew the story on the gun... It was my old Remington Rand GI that I had modified. It ran on heavily modified M3 grease gun mags and had the updated blade and notch sights from the P-35, browning hi power. It was one of the early versions of adjustable sights. I had cut a frame in half and added some extra material around the grip to get it to accept the mags. “HAHA, Yyess that is a strange piece. It only has the one magazine. It is fat, unlike most 1911's... Ha, and it shoots the 7.62 Tokarev. I do not know who built it, but I cut you a deal on it. You like?? No one seems too interested in it, Hell I forgot I even had the thing until you mentioned it”. The tall and fat man said in heavily Italian accented English. I was shocked, It was one of mine. I made a matching set and that's what I ran during WWII any time I went out. These were the 1st guns Thomas and I put an obfuscation sigil on because even when not working stateside, it was best to hide one of a kind guns. Plus even in the trenches, oddball gear can get you singled out. I guess the sigil was still working if he forgot he had it all together. I lost it on the outskirts of the battle of Monte Cassino in 1944, fighting off some of the roaming ghoul packs the WWII trenches and death tended to bring out to feed. “It sure is ugly” I said picking it up “What's a Seven… Ahhh taka-what now? Do they still make that? It sounds really old”. I said playing dumb and uninterested, Playing up the stupid American card. I wasn’t leaving without this but if he knew that, the “great deal” would be a small fortune. Picking up on my act Angiola said “Can't you just get a Glock so we can get out of here already”. Looking back and forth between the two of us he brightened and said “For you, I will sell you a nice Glock 19 AND the 1911 for 650 Euros” I fumbled in my pocket a bit and pulled out a small pouch with uncut gyms and poured a few into my hand, The entire pouch wasn't worth 500 euros but his eyes went wide and he practically started drooling. “I didn't know you guys took cash here. An associate of mine told me about this place, but said it was all trade goods. Is this enough?” I asked as I held up a sparkling ruby, knowing that the trade value in this market for ruby was absurdly high. We had already blessed everything in the bag so it was completely useless to anything here, but of course, he didn’t know that. He smiled and nodded, and began to wrap the 2 pistols separately in butcher's paper. He handed over a bag that I promptly stuck into my coat with one hand as I handed the stone over to him with the other.
After we got a few stalls down Angiola pulled me into an empty area where a stall was obviously missing. “That was one of your builds wasn’t it? How on earth did it end up here?” She asked me dumbfounded. Shaking my head slowly I told her “I... I don't even... Yes it's mine, one of the first times I did something this extensive to a gun and it actually worked out. Thomas and I spent months getting everything perfect. I had a matching pair, its twin is still in my safe at my home in Florida. I Lost this in 1944…” She smiled again and hugged me. It was so warm and natural for her. This one wasn’t stiff or an act, this hug was different than anything else that had happened today as cover. “I guess God occasionally puts exactly what we need right in front of us, right when we need it most. You know?” Angiola said, still holding me tightly looking up at me. I couldn't help it, I was just so lost in the moment, looking into her eyes. I leaned down and kissed her, She reached up and wrapped an arm around the back of my head pulling me down to her and kissing me feverishly. My heart was absolutely pounding out of my chest, I just held her tightly in my arms and gave myself over to the fire that was trying to tear my chest apart. When we finished kissing she smiled at me and patted my left cheek gently saying “It's about time, I needed that sooo bad. Seems like you did too”. She grabbed my hand and we made our way back through the rest of the market.
After a few hours of walking around and talking to several people, things and others I would rather forget about existing, we didn't get a lot of useful information. Basically there was a buzz about something big coming soon but not a lot of actual information. “Soon we won't have to hide, soon it will be our time” and on and on. It seemed The Dark Pope was keeping his cards really close to the vest. If you're not directly involved in the action, your job was to “spread the news and to be ready”. Ready for what exactly? No one knew, but rumors varied from turning off the sun to a mass plague. Nothing about a date other than “soon”.
Driving back to Vatican city and The Order compound, we went over what little we did know. We both felt that if The Dark Pope was ready with his plan “soon” would have a date. So in theory at least he either A, didn't have all the pieces in place or B, was waiting for a specific date or something of significance to start his little party. The moves he was already making were really bold and if the interrogation of the Vamp claiming to be his right hand man/thing was to be believed at all, The Dark Pope had been working in the shadows for decades. His bold moves and spreading the word to be ready probably meant whatever he was planning on was almost complete. Of course the other possibility was that he had everything ready, a solid launch date and the “soon” he was telling everyone to get ready for was just a fail safe to keep anyone who may oppose him guessing on what he was up to and when it would happen. Leaving us planning and wondering or trying to blindly rush into a battle to try and stop something we couldn't even identify. The problem is that The Dark Pope was a strategic master and was taking the long view. Whatever he was up to, it didn’t sound like we had much time to get ahead of it.
Angiola drove us through the city in her black Audi TT, holding on tightly to my hand. She whipped us through tight turns and back alleys with only one hand on the wheel. It was pure insanity. There we were, going WAY over whatever the posted speed limit was, taking turns at speed and drifting through gaps I wouldn't have taken on a sports bike. All while driving with one hand on the wheel and having a conversation about what little info we gathered. I will say that the simple act of her holding my hand just felt right. I never wanted to let her hand go, and I could tell she felt the same. After we finished talking about what little information we gathered, the conversation turned personal. “So I know we haven't had much time to get to know each other, but I feel like I know you already, if that makes sense? I've read through all your after action reports when I was training and I know you held back a lot, but your personality comes through nevertheless. Not trying to sound like some star struck fan or anything”. Said Angiola blushing a bit. “Haha” I chuckled “No, you don't strike me as a 'fan’ or whatever. And I do know what you mean about my reports. Simon always told me to write down everything, not just what happened but anything I was going through or feeling during a mission. The reasoning being two fold, one was to help The Order identify any latent abilities I may be demonstrating. Because honestly, The Order never knows what we may be blessed with. Secondly, Well.... I think Simon sees that I can be a bit 'reckless’ when it comes to saving the innocent or sustaining personal damage. I think my emotional state at the time probably saved me from getting run out of The Order in the first several years. Now, I think I just have a reputation for doing crazy things but getting the problem solved. Some of the elders don't like it, but my results have gained a grudging respect over the decades. I don't know Angiola, I've never met anyone like you. You're just so free spirited and so comfortable with who you are, Plus you already know what I do for a living and I can actually talk to someone who not only understands but who gets it. You're absolutely gorgeous, incredibly smart, especially if Reginald is impressed with what you can do in the tech department, AND shoot 408 Cheytac... Yeah, You may have gotten my attention. Not to mention, for some reason it’s like a magnetic attraction from the moment I met you. I don’t know how or why, but it’s definitely there”. She leaned over and kissed me again just after putting the Audi in park in the underground lot at The Order. “So now what?” I asked. “Meaning do we act like nothing happened and keep this whole thing between us or do we just walk in there hand and hand and take our lumps?” Angiola said, reading my mind. “Yeah pretty much, I know we have some world ending problems that sorta takes precedence but... I guess we should talk about this?” I said. “I don't see any reason to hide, the elders won't be happy but whatever anger they have, will have to be side lined while we deal with, Ya know, the end of the world”. She said with a smile and logic I simply couldn’t argue with. Sure there will probably be some backlash but like she said, IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD... So bigger fish, to be fried.