Here I go to the time and trouble to kill Anton, only to realize at lunch what a conundrum that makes:  sure, Maya now knows the entire plan to try to save Chris & Cat, but that still leaves her at UCSD, miles from Miramar Air Station and at the mercy of their passive and active defenses – to say nothing of the ‘boss battle’ in the hanger.  It’d be 5k words, minimum, to get through that.

Soooo… Anton doesn’t die.  Maya (and her riders) tempts him, instead.  Fits the theme of the story better, really.  Anton accepts, calling for his bodyguard/driver, Manuel.  He promises to get her through Security.  I’m not sure if he’s scared for his own pampered, aristocratic life, or if he’s sincere.  We’ll see.

Personally, if a demoness was resting her teeth on my neck, after killing my soldiers, and having leeched about 10% of my life out, so long as it wasn’t about my wife & kids, I’d talk a deal, too.  Buy time.  The horse might learn to sing.

“Major!” Private Vega shouted, seeing his CO at his right get hit in the head as the roof collapsed. Had they put too much up there for the old truck to handle? He made to stand, but when something hit him in the back, he couldn’t get his legs to work properly. He suddenly coughed blood. What?!

Vega looked down to the three inches of bloody plastic sticking out of his chest just left of his breastbone. He rolled forwards to the floor, understanding nothing.

Killing the human on her left had slashed her hand down to the bone, ramming the plastic into his heart. It would be physically useless until healed, but she could still eat life with it.

Private Garza had seen something drop just to his right when the roof caved in. He’d been getting weird vibes off the Major about this ‘terrorist’ they were trying to apprehend for days now. Regarded as something of a geek by his squad mates, Garza had always preferred to hang out in barracks and read his science fiction novels while everyone else went out drinking and carousing.

Parsing and piecing what the CO had said about the young woman that was their target, she sure sounded like some super-human vampire… he drew his pistol as he turned in his chair… there was an odd thunk behind him; was Vega coughing?

An Oriental girl, wearing just a bra and panties, covered in cuts and blood, snapped her head right to face him. Red eyes. Her right hand was reaching out….

He pulled the trigger.

Realizing the humans were beginning to react, she knew time was against her. Maya looked to the right as she raised her hand –

Part of her upper left arm was gone. He was about to pull the trigger again! No time!

She closed her hand, leaving only two fingers extended as she fell towards him.

His first shot had been a reaxion of fear, and he’d missed. Aim for center of mass! But those eyes…!

By looking into her eyes, he didn’t even notice her fingers stabbing into his. In shock, he pulled the trigger again, the shot going wild.

No time, Maya thought! Even at the expense of her energy, she allowed the life force to flow out of her. Fast. Fast enough to liquefy the human’s brain. She looked left at the last of the seated three. He’d made the mistake to stand and figure out what was going on. He was just now pulling his sidearm. Maya wrenched the now dead man up by his eye sockets, putting his body between them. The body began bucking as it took hits. Time was short. Maya advanced on the third.

“Noooo…!” He cried in terror as he turned to run, but he tripped over the officer who had just begun to push himself up, holding his head. Maya dropped her right arm to let riddled corpse slide off of her fingers. For the scared food, she cared nothing; it was already scrambling over the other man and diving out the driver’s door. Maya knelt and jerked Anton’s torso up, painfully bending his spine back.

“Grrk!” He let go between clenched teeth. There was a pounding on the rear doors of the van. Those four soldiers.

“Human?” She whispered just behind his left ear. “Where is my brother?”

Anton let his right hand go to his webbing. He grabbed a grenade and pulled its pin with his thumb.

“Let’s have none of that, food!” He felt her right hand close about his. She tore it out of his grasp just as the doors behind them were flung open. She tossed it just above the four; how nice of them to bunch up like that! She pushed the human and herself down, fast. Even so, a piece of shrapnel hit her right buttock. Hearing only cries of pain behind her, she again lifted the man.

“Your men are afraid of me! That means you know something about me.” It was the voice of Death itself, Anton thought. “My brother told you.”

He felt her teeth touch his neck, then withdraw.

“Where is my brother?” When he didn’t reply, she licked where she’d almost bitten. “If I eat you, I’ll know, anyway. Don’t you want to live? Just tell me.”

Betray him, she thought.

“A… a deal…” He managed. “Uhhnnnn!”

She drew his life out through her hands. What an interesting man!

“They’re in a large, empty building somewhere! And, it’s at your instigation!” She said, savoring his pain. “Would you like to make another deal?”

“I… I take you there. Can… get you through security. No one will know!” He shuddered. “Let me… call my driver!”