Victoria woke with a smile, and then she fed and cleaned her daughters. Played with them and, reluctantly, handed them over to their nursemaid. She made her way up towards Garonmouth proper and after a careful look entered the luxurious human scaled room. There she stripped and triggered her growth enchantment.

She smiled at her reflection in the mirror, admiring her trim figure and six perky breasts. Victoria opened her wardrobe and proceeded to don a gold embroidered silk gown. She reached up and tugged the red silk cord hanging to the right of the door and noted with approval the sound of the silver bell in the other room.

A solid looking badger folk wearing silvery chainmail under a blue tabard opened the door. “Good morning ma’am. Where are we going today?”

“To the temple Oscar.”

* * *

A pale blue eyed dolphin accompanied by a young sea sprite awaited her people floating in the sheltered bay as waves broke on the sheltering reef.

The first to arrive were Drina and Jaasoon Sunhigh. Drina squealed with glee, discarded her robe and dove into the bay and swam out to Mary. Jaasoon for his part sat on the beach and waited.

All those invited arrived before the stated time, and Mary felt a temporary link form with Victoria and Tomcat each currently meditating in a temple of Ocidon under the auspices of a priest.

« Welcome all. Bein’ somewhat dense ‘bout these things I suspect you all know most of what I have to say. So yeah, I am the acknowledged consort of Ocidon. »

There were some smirks and Drina giggled.

« Yeah, yeah. Laugh, ‘cause I was the last to know. Second ‘cordin’ to Ocidon I’m a pukka demi-goddess. » Mary paused to allow for some more snickers. « And assendin’ will be a full goddess beep it! Thanks to the prophecy only way we, me an’ Ocidon that is can survive the gods war is if I assend. »

She took in the smirks. So still no news. Once again she had been the last to know.

« Apparently I need a priesthood. That means you Alessandrina. » Drina choked and her eyes opened wide. « Gotta have to have two priesthoods like Ocidon, but doin’ it different. You my little mermaid are gonna be my voice an’ high priestess. Still got time but you’re into more lessons dearheart. »

Danilus facepalmed and sighed.

« Pete, you up to leading the underwater priesthood? »

« Erm. Yes I think so Mother. It’s a great honour. Erm, Altor do you mind giving me some herrp. »

“Happily Pete, come round to the temple whenever you want and we’ll talk.”

« Good. Victoria, you up to bein’ my high priestess to the landfolk, an’ you Thomas, my high priest to the sailors and merchants? »

« Yes Mother. » smiled Victoria.

« Me Mother? But – but what about? Erm... »

« Your girls Tomas? You have done right by them so far. You just have to hurry up and gather them up quickly. And don’t forget the new one in Garonmouth. »

« New one? Oh...! Well, if you’re sure Mother, I’ll do it. »

« Good ... » The dolphin seemed to glow aa a glowing blue streamer connected it to Alessandrina and Alessandrina to Pete, Victoria and Tomcat. « ... Whoo! That was quite a rush! »

« And now there’s no going back my dear. This step was irrevocable. »

* * * INTERLUDE 1 * * *

It was a cold dreary overcast day in Redmond. There was the odd snowflake drifting on the wind. The trees were bare and seemed to be clutching at the sky with skeletal fingers.

Logan however was running for his life. They were after him again and Timothy Brooks was leading the pack as usual. Logan was getting short of breath and a stitch was starting to form in his side. Then he saw it. St Anthony’s was just up ahead.

He sobbed in desperation. Oh god, how he hoped this would work. It had seemed like a good idea at the time but he had quickly come to realize real life was nothing like his favourite videogames. Logan ran, staggering slightly into the graveyard and fled across the neatly manicured grass as he threaded his way around the headstones towards the cluster of mausoleums against the far wall.

His tormentors howled with triumph as they saw their victim stagger and slow.

‘Come – come – come – raise up – save me – pleeease!’ Logan poured manna into his spells and collapsed at the foot of the statue of an angel holding a book.

“We’ve got the little shit now!” bayed Timothy or Snake as he was known to his friends. They stopped running and spread out with nasty grins.

The door of the nearest mausoleum creaked open and three decaying figures shuffled out. Two were holding rusty shovels and the third had a large carving knife. Behind the bullies four graves stirred as bones started to emerge. By the time the teenagers had realized that they faced zombies four skeletons finished assembling themselves and clicking softly stalked towards them.

“Zombies!” wailed Rick as he staggered back in horror right into the arms of one of the skeletons. It promptly bit him in the back of the neck while scrabbling at his throat with its bony fingers.

Frank froze in shock as he saw the skeleton attack his cousin and screamed when he saw blood fountain out of Rick’s throat as the skeleton clawed his throat open. Then Frank knew no more as a shovel smashed into the back of his head.

Snake fled, closely followed by his remaining friend. Seeing them run the skeletons chased after them, almost seeming to flow over the ground. The zombies followed but quickly fell behind. Despite that the zombies followed the magical link that tied them to their targets.

Logan raised himself and staggered into the church where he collapsed sobbing into a pew.

* * * INTERLUDE 2 * * *

Commander Meadows and his detail disembarked at the marina and nodded to Mary who was on the pier waiting. Then the motors on the newly named Storm Dolphin revved and Mary jumped back aboard with a very insincere sounding “sorry”.

Tod reversed course but was too late as the big boat with water boiling at her stern and to a lesser extent at her bow twisted away from the pier and tore off at a ever increasing rate of knots with Mary standing near the stern waving goodbye while a leopard girl manned the controls and a second dumped what Meadows strongly suspected were more bugs overboard.

Lieutenant Partlow cursed as she hauled out her tablet and checked their status regarding the Storm Dolphin. “Just the one bug again, the one that’s part of the GPS system by the con. What do you bet that she knows about it?”

“No bet.” Tod looked at the huge wake in the calm waters of the bay, “Just how fast is she going? I don’t think we ever went that fast.”

“Fifty-six knots and climbing,” relied Partlow.

“Well the drone will keep an eye on her,” mused Meadows as he watched one of their drones go by overhead.

* * *

Mary sprawled on her swivel chair in the rear of the cockpit and grinned widely at her mother. “Hey mama, ‘bout time I let you in on a couple of secrets. Don’ speak anything you don’ want known on the bridge. The GPS system is bugged, though funnily enough it’s buggy an’ prone to failin’ at irregular intervals. Got two drones shadowin’ us.”

“Mary Jane Silvestre. What are you playing at? I thought we were going to play along with the authorities.”

“Sorry mama but that won’ work. Got info suggestin’ several agencies are jockeyin’ for position. Got to knock ‘em off balance somehow. Meadows an’ his lot could be helpful. They seem sympathetic but gotta throw their bosses off balance.”

“Mary, please don’t be rash.”

Just workin’ to confirm their prejudices. Yanno reckless teenager, actin’ on impulse. They think they can control a gullible idealistic teen girl. So gotta try an’ look like one.”

“Oh dear, I do wish you father hadn’t had to return home when his vacation ended. So what are you planning to do?”

“Break out the rods an’ do some fishin’ to bore the pants of the drone controllers. Then go back to the marina an’ act contrite. Invite everyone to a barbie. Been a while since we’ve held one. Gotta invite a certain little catgirl sources tell me is pretty much addicted to tuna.”

“And how do you intend to get tuna?”

“Gonna cheat.”

“And you think this plan of yours will work. Do you really think the spooks are that gullible?”

“Most of them aren’t. Captain Gallows, the idiot who’s runnin’ the show is. ‘Specially if I drop a few key words in his bug’s ear. Problem will be Meadows, but he’s pissed at the captain so should work.”

Mary relaxed when she felt her domain enfold her. The big engines roar dropped to a soft rumble and she accepted her rod from Tessa. “Hey mama, wanna join me?”

“Don’t mind if I do dear. You’re being reckless again. Please get advice ... Wait, are you suggesting they’ve bugged the house and that’s why you didn’t talk to me about...?”

Mary blushed slightly. “Well they have tried several times but none of their bugs have worked. Nothin’ I’ve been able to do about the wire taps or radio interception.”

While her mother fumed silently glaring over the rear of the Storm Dolphin Mary contacted her companion.

« Jerica, are the sea wyverns standin’ by? And where’s that school of tuna we’ve been herdin’? »

« Sally and Doug are eagerly standing by with their wyverns. You should be cutting through the school any minute now. »

Then the reel let go and Mary forgot everything except her favourite sport.

* * *

“Fishing! All that for fishing. Damn the girl I thought she was smarter than that,” muttered lieutenant Partlow watching the feed from the drone on her tablet.

“She is. But she’s playing Gallows like a fiddle. Were any of those bugs she gave us one of hers?” asked Tod.

Meadows frowned. “She seems prone to using magic and enchanting rather than tech so I rather doubt it.”

“Oh god, we’re going to be here for ages they seem to have found a school of tuna,” complained Partlow.

* * *

The sun was almost touching the western horizon when Mary jumped up and proceeded to the bridge. “Hey Lissa, time to go home.”

Lissa flicked a switch near the wheel, “’K Mother.”

“Why is she calling you mother dear?”

Tessa grinned from her corner of the bridge, “Mary has two titles, Mother of Monsters was the first and we are her monsters. So Mother. Guess that makes you nana or grandma.”

“Beep! I keep tellin’ you, you’re my friends, my people. Not Monsters.” Asserted Mary in exasperation.

Lissa giggled, “then she’s Blackbeard’s Bane. She earned both titles on Parthia, wonder what she’s going to earn on Earth?”

Mary threw up her hands in exasperation, and after verifying that the cutout switch worked and that the bug was undergoing one of its periodic blackouts she started to explain everything to her mother.