Abe Sapien and the Witch

Chapter 20

Chapter twenty

"Goddamn witches!" Red roared over the communicator, startling her from her pleasant memories of last week's dance. Their current mission was going well, and she had thought that eradicating the creatures that inhabited the old house would have marked the end for today's job, once she had correctly identified them. She cocked her head, waiting for more information yet finding the communicators silent as she listened along with the two junior agents stationed in the truck.

She naturally couldn't speak into the communicator and tried tapping on the microphone a few times to elicit a response. "Goddamn it," she heard Red whisper again, "they have us cornered in the basement. I damn well hate witches, why are they always popping up out of nowhere just when you're ready to go home?" Gun shots resounded now, echoing over the headpiece and then Abes gentler voice spoke.

"We may need extra assistance on this one, there seems to be a group of them blocking us at every exit." She stood up as one of the junior agents spoke affirmation through his headset, the headpiece falling from her ear as she rushed towards the back of the vehicle with the agents hurrying along to assist her.

_What to do, what to do...Ok, need to make some of these...Some magic suppressors should help.... ouch! _ she hissed in through her teeth as some of the liquid leaked on to her fingers. Her hands were shaking as more gunshots echoed up through her dangling headset. Witches, that usually meant trouble, as well she knew. Green vapour billowed from her seared flesh as she rinsed her hand in water, motioning for the nearest agent to take over with mixing the concoction.

"Is this to quench their magic, this hurts you too right?" the young agent asked, stating the obvious while swirling the test tube around and she nodded, grimacing as the skin on her fingers turned a dark colour. "Will you be alright?" he asked, pouring the liquid into pre-moulded bullet shells and she showed him a quick thumbs up, moving to make some protection reliquaries for the group to wear to defend themselves against any dark curse a witch might throw at them.

The items were finished, and the other agent carried them outside to be passed on by more experienced representatives. She pressed back against the work bench as gunshots sounded from just outside the van, loud and rapid. She heard a yell, and the agent next to her drew his gun, heading out the back doors. More rapid fire followed, and her heart felt like it might burst out through her throat as a stark silence trailed the mayhem.

She inched to the side, trying to stay quiet while lifting her headpiece. With a finger she tapped the Morse code for SOS against the tiny microphone, hoping that somebody might recognise it as a distress call and within two tries Abes voice rang back over the earpiece "Are you alright, is that an SOS?" She repeated the pattern, dropping the headpiece to the floor with a clatter as the back door of the van swung open and a voice spoke.

"Well, well. And I thought you were dead, darling."