Chương 14: Agent got the dragon’s tail

Team Wendigo was the most unique special force under the employment of Veridian, the best-kept secret in the US secret forces. The whole team had been put together from previously captured anomalous entities who wanted to have a better life than simply staying in a prison-like facility. If they served under the agency, they would get a very nice place underground, complete with plenty of comforts. Of course, Veridian had taken a page from the comics and planted bombs in their bodies just to be sure.

Attempting to remove the bomb would set it off instantly, while trying to escape ended the same way. Agent R., also known as Raeriku, had nicknamed their boss Amanda Waller, and the whole joke had spread instantly. While the person in question was a thin white woman, she at least had enough of a sense of humour not to punish them for it. Anything that made the team work well together was useful, even if it was annoying.

"So," Raeriku said as he sat down, rubbing his freshly polished horn nubs.

"We are going to Scotland and trying to talk a near-divine entity into being on our side?" He tossed the folder onto the table.

"I call bullshit."

"I dunno. The sensors the higher-ups copied from the Vatican went haywire from the amount of power the fucker emitted," Agent W., also known as Warg, said as he leaned back and toyed with a piece of spicy jerky. His untamed wolf-humanoid body was quite a sight, though he was not a werewolf.

"At least the goal is not to fight," Agent G. real name Grevar, who hated being called G. said while checking the pictures they had been given. His goat-like eyes darted from one image to another.

"Not that I am against killing, but I would rather not be the one getting killed." He laughed casually. The last agent remained quiet. He had previously been known as the Ozark Howler. As it turned out, he was pretty smart, and while he couldn't speak properly, he had crazy-good instincts. He was also the team's four-legged support. Up in the command room, Agent Rellis frowned as she looked over the team's profiles.

"I get why you chose the wolfman and the Howler, but why the fucking goatman? We have seventeen agents in that department. He is a menace."

"Yeah, you're right." Her boss, Agent Brown, sat casually in his leather chair.

"But he is also the one who can tell power levels the best, and he loves his bonuses the most. I doubt he would act out. If anything, his crude jokes might just be helpful."

"I seriously doubt that." Rellis shook her head.

"Also, if we are planning to win this Joshua entity over to our side, wouldn't the small tactical nuke in their car raise alarms?"

"It is shielded from ability and magic users. It looks like nothing more than a high-tech box." Her boss shook his head.

"Besides, it's the best insurance." Seven hours later, the stealth submarine bumped its nose out of the water near a cliff-like shore where the water became very deep very quickly. The front almost slid onto the land as a single jeep shot out of the submarine, using a ramp to jump onto the shore. Its back tires splashed through the surf as it sped across the gravel, and within minutes, it was already on a proper road. The windows were tinted as the vehicle sped toward Glasgow.

Behind them, the submarine closed its front hatch and slipped back beneath the waves, disappearing from sight in less than two minutes. - - - - - - - - - - Luna loved the new servants at home, as she immediately started asking Kate for foods she had seen online, eaten by food YouTubers. She was doing great in college. The hardest part was P. E., where she had to limit herself and act tired.

She almost blew her cover once when her pen rolled under a bench in the courtyard and she lifted one side, not even realizing that the bench was secured to the ground. It was only for a few seconds, and she was sure no one had seen her accidentally rip the screw out. As for her classes, she was actually having some issues, as she had taken all the hardest ones and, without her cheats, it was genuinely challenging. Even so, she managed to keep up with the second-best student in most classes.

"Dad, I am home." She casually tossed her backpack onto a couch and grabbed an orange juice from the cooler. With a pop and hiss, the cap flew into the trash bin, and she chugged the whole bottle in one go.

"Ahh… this is so good."

"Please toss the glass into the recycling bin, honey," came Josh's voice from the gaming room. Luna made sure to double-check the bin before tossing the empty bottle out.

"Kate? Can you make a few chocolate chip and banana muffins?"

"Sure thing. I will get to it immediately." The calico maid bowed to her before hurrying into the kitchen.

"Felix, did you manage to look up the nearby areas for manors and similar big buildings?" she asked as she walked toward the stairs.

"I most certainly did, young lady. I have collected several options and even looked into how one could buy a castle." Felix looked up from his work.

"No castles," came the tired voice of Josh, making both Luna and the butler chuckle. Luna mouthed without a sound, "I would love a castle. Keep looking." Felix gave her a thumbs-up before going back to brushing Princess. Josh enjoyed being a god-seed, sure, but he was not really into the whole power fantasy that much. As far as he was concerned, he already had more than he could ever wish for.

He had a comfortable home, Luna was doing well, Princess was happy, and now he even had Kate and Felix around to make the place feel more lively. There was little reason to chase after even more power just for the sake of having it. So he took it easy. He still checked on his warlocks every other day, mostly out of curiosity, but he was not constantly watching them.

They had their own lives to live, and Josh figured that being a god did not mean he had to become some divine stalker who watched his followers every second of the day. Besides, he had games to play, movies to watch, food to eat, and an increasingly ridiculous collection of things to experiment with. Wren was currently in a large city, still studying and seemingly doing nothing particularly exciting.

He had been spending most of his time buried in books, occasionally joining a dungeon party when he had enough confidence to do so. Josh was actually rather proud of him. The boy had nearly died because of his lack of knowledge, and instead of giving up, he had decided to fix the problem the hard way. Gaix and his team, meanwhile, were apparently still trying to find whoever had set them up with the faulty boss item.

Josh had even spoken to Gaix directly about it, telling him to alert him the moment they found the people responsible.

"Let me know when you find them," Josh had told him.

"I want to punish them myself." Gaix and Bastion had taken that request very seriously. As for the small kobold called Piur? Josh had absolutely no idea what to make of him. The little blue kobold was currently drinking and dancing with a bunch of other small kobolds, all of them looking incredibly happy to follow a dragon god. There were a dozen more kobolds living in the settlement now, though thankfully Josh had yet to see anything that suggested they were actually preparing for world conquest.

Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Josh had spoken to him directly, explaining that while believing in his god was perfectly fine, going around hurting innocent people in the name of Joshua Steel was not. Piur had immediately promised to behave while the small kobold maxxed out his faith in real time, giving Josh another ten thousand patron points.

Josh watched for another few seconds as Piur nearly fell over at the notification he got about becoming a faithweaver. He immediately jumped attempting to spin around with his staff. With that, Josh leaned back into his sofa and returned to whatever game he had been playing, leaving his followers to enjoy their lives without a god constantly hovering over their shoulders.

- - - - - - - - - - Matteo Drake, whose body had been temporarily turned into that of a teenager by a weird metallic dragon, was sitting in the temple room he had been given when his black phone rang. This was not the type he carried to school, but a direct line to the secret agency.

"Drake here," he said in a military tone as he picked up the phone.

"We have a signal on four supernaturals coming from the west on the main road. The signal is weak, but since we fine-tuned it over the entirety of Glasgow, we have pinpointed the car. According to the satellite image, it is a military-style jeep with tinted windows. We suspect they are headed to Joshua Steel. ETA twenty minutes. Team Gamma is ready to support."

"Roger. Send the team. We cannot let this turn into a mess." Matteo ended the call and pulled out his newly issued smaller vest and weapons, kitting himself out before tossing a black overcoat over everything. The same phone rang again, this time displaying the name… Briggs.

"I need transport at Meeting Point Beta," Matteo spoke as soon as the line connected.

"We are going to be there in four," came the gruff voice of Briggs. The line ended, and Matteo slipped the phone into a lined pocket.

"This better not mess up our agreement with the entity," he muttered through gritted teeth. The Vatican had accepted Joshua and granted him a special status, but if this turned into a confrontation, everything they had worked to establish could be put at risk. Matteo stopped himself before he could dwell on it any longer and instead held his cross, quietly saying a prayer.

They arrived in the neighbourhood a short while later, and the team took up positions nearby, keeping themselves out of sight while watching the road. - - - - - - - - - Josh was in the middle of an anime when his phone beeped with a rare notification tone. His eyes darted toward it. He picked up the phone and read the message: "We suspect supernaturals arriving at your place in minutes. Our team has taken up defensive positions and is ready to support you in case of trouble. —Briggs""Well, shit."

Josh lowered the phone.

"Kate, Felix, we will likely have guests."

"Good or bad?" Felix asked as he gently pulled on his silk glove, his dark purple eyes glinting with menace.

"Not sure yet. A Vatican team is already here in case something happens." Josh smirked.

"Like we need them," Felix chuckled grimly.

"Well, it's their way of showing their alliance." Josh stood up and waited for either the doorbell or a knock. Outside, several people were already watching the house. Inside, three supernatural beings waited to see who would arrive first. - - - - - - - - - - - The Vatican team had been watching the street for nearly twenty minutes, and by now the tension had become almost ridiculous.

Briggs was crouched behind a chimney with binoculars pressed against his eyes, while Doyle walked in civilian clothes on the opposite side of the street. Reeve was positioned near a garden wall, and Eleanor sat in the driver's seat of their own vehicle with the engine running. The military jeep arrived at normal speed.

"I have the target in sight," said Doyle first, who was at eye level with the incoming road.

"Get ready, team," Briggs said from his spot, his modified Barrett M82 resting on the rooftop.

"Bogey is getting out," Reeve whispered into his mic as he saw a hooded human figure get out and casually walk toward the door.

"Is that…"

"Its a mail he is putting in," Briggs finished for him as his scope caught the figure dropping a white envelope into the mail slot. The hooded figure, whose face was fully covered, returned to the jeep, and the car rolled away onto the next side street. Briggs immediately called Joshua.

"There was a mail drop-off by a stranger. No visual on his face, though." Josh flipped his phone into his left hand while he leaned down and picked up the letter.

"No worries. It is not magical. I will read it and call you back in a second." While Kate was calm, Felix was a bit let down, as he had really wanted to carve up some intruders into modern art. He couldn't help it. As a demon butler, that would have been just right. Josh skimmed the letter, which was written in a rather ambiguous way. It mentioned something about meeting at Loch Katrine the next day at midnight and a possible deal with the US.

"Hey, Briggs, do you know about US agencies similar to yours?" Josh asked.

"One called Veridian. We had a small… misunderstanding a decade ago. Since then, they have stayed rather quiet."

"Great. I think they are interested in me. Better put down some ground rules with them too, I guess. I will go alone. Wouldn't want to get you or the Vatican forces mixed up or possibly hurt due to unforeseen fighting."

"We appreciate the sentiment. Still, I think Doyle will go and watch it from afar. Just in case," Briggs noted.

"If he must." Joshua nodded. - - - - - - - - - - - Loch Katrine was like a black mirror. Even the moon was covered by dark clouds, and a thin layer of mist clung to its surface, barely visible like a thin spider web. Joshua arrived almost soundlessly, his wingbeats slowing him down as they made ripples across the still lake before his legs landed in the shallows. Doyle released his death grip on the neck spikes and almost rolled off his back.

"Way… too… fast." He breathed out slowly as he gathered himself.

"You are the one who wanted to ride a dragon," Joshua chuckled.

"It sounded fun as an idea… now my insides disagree." The agent lumbered off toward a lookout point Josh had pointed out as they arrived. It took quite a while before Josh could see movement. Four pairs of eyes appeared in the tree lane. One was a four-legged being with horns and a weirdly strong-looking body. The rest were more humanoid. At the front was a being with a deer skull for a face, on his left a wolfman, while on his right stood a goat-headed humanoid.

"Good evening, fellas." Josh nodded, all casual.

"And a good evening to you too. There were some debates about whether you were also a dragon, much like your so-called daughter… I guess it was true," the skull-headed entity spoke.

"I am Agent R., but you may also refer to me as Raeriku."

"Joshua Steel, obviously." He nodded back.

"I am Warg. Hate being called an agent," the wolfman said with a smirk.

"Damn, you are one overgrown lizzy."

"Shut the fuck up!" the goatman whisper-shouted at the wolf.

"I am the only one of us who can tell just how powerful he is, and I would like to curl up in a corner and cry."

"Oh?" Josh raised a scaly brow.

"I don't eat goats, so you are safe." He leaned closer.

"Meee-e-e-e!" The sound left the goatman's throat without him wanting it to. Animalistic fear almost overwhelmed him.

"P… please, let's not get this close. I… I am… Agent G. Or Grevar… sir." He swallowed hard.

"He is funny." Josh leaned back, imagining that the goatman would go stiff like a normal goat if he poked him.

"So… about that whole deal thing?" He returned his focus to the possible leader of the squad. Raeriku nodded slowly, his deer skull turning slightly toward the other members of his team before returning to Joshua.

"Veridian is an organization dedicated to protecting the world from supernatural threats. In some ways, we are not that different from the Vatican. We have had disagreements with them, obviously, but both organizations have the same general goal: keeping supernatural incidents from becoming disasters." He took a step forward, keeping a respectful distance from the dragon.

"We would like to extend that same understanding to you. If you were willing to cooperate with us, we could—""I will stop you right there as I can see where this is going." Joshua cut him off so casually that Raeriku actually stopped speaking. Josh folded his wings against his back.

"I am not becoming someone else's dog." The silence that followed was almost painful. Raeriku's skull tilted slightly.

"I was going to say partner."

"Same problem with a nicer word." Warg snorted.

"I like him." Grevar elbowed him.

"You are not helping."

"I wasn't trying to." snorted the wolf man with glee. He hated to be someone else's dog, but he was captured and a bomb placed in his neck so he did not have the freedom he would have liked. Josh looked between the three supernatural agents.

"Look, I don't have a problem with you guys existing. I don't even have a problem with the Vatican. They have been surprisingly reasonable with me. But I'm not taking orders from anyone. I'm not joining an agency, wearing a uniform, answering calls at three in the morning, or letting someone decide where I am allowed to go." Raeriku gave a slow nod.

"That is understandable."

"If there is a massive supernatural disaster and you genuinely need help, though…" Josh shrugged.

"I'll help if I can. If something threatens a city, a country, or the entire world, I am not going to sit at home and watch people die just because they aren't my problem." Warg crossed his arms.

"So you're basically offering to be the guy who shows up when the shit gets really bad."

"Pretty much."

"That's actually pretty fucking useful." the wolf man agreed. Grevar looked at Josh with considerably less fear than before, although he still kept his distance.

"I suppose having someone like you willing to help during a major catastrophe is better than having someone like you become hostile because we tried to put a leash on you."

"Exactly." Josh grinned but that grin suddenly turned into a frown. Before his eyes, he saw a system message. God seed will be relocated into the god trial with all life forms within a mile as part of the first test. Get ready 3… 2…

"FUCK!"