Master of Plagues, D. B. Reynolds [best books to read fiction .txt] 📗

potent her stinger became. She whisked Richard across the back with her powerful legs and leveled him to the ground. Lying flat on his back, she jabbed him in the ribcage like a sharp Samurai sword.
He screamed like he’d never done. The potent venom packed inside the stinger enlarged the side of his abdomen. The pain was excruciating. Richard looked into Queen Devorah’s shifting yellow-to-red eyes. This single occurrence was one he felt was his worst nightmare. She stabbed him twice in the chest with her great weapon. Using the razor-sharp tip of her stinger, she burst open several of the cystic-like pimples on his face. Queen Devorah taught Richard a lesson he’d never forget.
While the queen of the hive took care of Richard, his fellow gang members believed they could shoot the swarm of giant killer bees away from them. William fired the rifle up in the sky. His attempts to kill any of the hive members were silly. The ammunition went right past them. Like their queen, they were angered by any attempts on their life. Two hive members outmaneuvered William and stung him on opposite sides of his face. His head swole to the size of a pumpkin.
Timothy and Edward fired up in the sky like a New Year’s celebration. What a shame for them to waste good ammunition. A legion of the hive surrounded them and stung them up and down their arms and legs. Before long, their arms and legs puffed up like the stuffing inside a mattress. Damon fired up in the air until he held an empty pistol. Other hive members were quite upset. Their stingers were set in motion. Flying down towards Damon at high speeds, their targets hit the bullseye. He got poked up and down his back and chest with burning stingers. It took less than thirty seconds for him to go from a flat chest to one like Mr. Universe. Sting, baby, sting! That’s exactly what Queen Devorah and her hive helpers did to the Liberty City gang known as the Fearsome Five.
Queen Devorah lifted Richard off the ground. Her shifting yellow-to-red eyes struck fear in him. “You know, it’s people like you who gives this planet a bad name. Where are your morals? How can you have the audacity to try and rob a blind man? Didn’t mother and father teach you to do unto others, as you would have others to do unto you?”
“This just can’t be real,” Richard groped with slurred words.
“Wrong, it is real. The people here in Liberty City are hardworkers who want a future for their families. Guys like you and your buddies come along and rob them of that. Stinging you across your body is probably the best thing that ever happened to you.”
Richard felt nauseated from the venom of the stings. “But bees don’t get as big as you. Bees don’t talk like people talk. This has gotta be one of the worst dreams of my life.”
“You should be ashamed to look at yourself in the mirror. Bad luck will follow you for the rest of your life.”
Richard got weaker and weaker. Still, he listened to Queen Devorah. “How is it that bees can talk like human beings talk. Where did you come from? Are you from outer space?”
“You must repent to the Ruler of the Universe for your evil intentions.”
Queen Devorah and her hive faded into the nighttime skies. Stuart didn’t want to see Richard and his hoodlum comrades die. He dialed nine-one-one and reported the five men who needed desperate medical attention. The promise he made to The One Most High had to be kept. The killing of even the worst perpetrators wasn’t acceptable.
Marshall Higbie had no idea that a hive of killer bees with supernatural powers came to his rescue. Did it matter since he didn’t have sight? Stuart drove over to the curb and got out of the car. Marshall stood up and tapped his walking stick against the wall to help him find his bearings.
Residents of Liberty City stood across the street looking over at the stung-up gang members.
Stuart placed his arms over the shoulders of Marshall. This sort of alarmed the blind man. “Everything okay, Marshall?”
“Who are you?” asked Marshall, feeling Stuart along his arms.
“My name’s Stuart Duffelmeyer,” Stuart disclosed, opening his trust between him and Marshall. “I’m from Staten Island, New York.”
“Why’re you in Miami?”
“Taking care of some business. Are you alright, sir?”
“Well, the last I remembered, there were a group of guys coming towards me like they were going to jump me. Then, I heard those same guys turn around and shout that some aliens from outer space were flying through the sky. Besides all that, I think I’m okay.”
“No one’s going to hurt you ever again, Marshall. I really mean that, my friend.”
“Let’s not talk about hurt. About a year ago, some guys jumped me and broke my jaw. They took every dime in my pocket.”
Listening to his story angered Stuart on the spot. As Queen Devorah had asked Richard: “Why would someone hurt or rob a blind man?”
Stuart looked at the innocent, slender face of Marshall. He noticed some imperfections. One of his eyes was partially opened while the other was completely closed. The left jaw the perpetrators had broken sat much lower than the right jaw. How unmerciful the world could be. Stuart felt no remorse for what the queen and her helpers did to those thug-bastards. He felt great compassion for Marshall. His three middle fingers went to work once again on the magical talisman. A very special request went out into the Universe.
Concentrating moreso than ever, Stuart begged for mercy from The One Most High. The planets and stars throughout the Universal Galaxies moved at different intervals. The skies presented an unexpected waxing crescent moon. Countless more stars spread apart to make way for a cosmic light to blast onto Earth.
A sizzling glow encompassed Marshall’s face. Rabbi Irwin Wedemeyer had been sent by The One Most High. He placed his divine spiritual hands over Marshall’s eyes. A force shook him until beams of light detonated across his face.
Rabbi Wedemeyer whispered into the right ear of Marshall. “You may open your eyes now. The One Most High has now granted you the gift of sight. It will be dutiful for you to praise The One Most High for the blessing bestowed upon you.”
The Rabbi returned to the Heavens. What had happened to Marshall was beyond miraculous. The once blind man now had the luxury of sight. After being blind his entire life, the first face he’d ever seen was Stuart’s.
He grabbed Stuart and bearhugged him rather tight. “I can see! I can see!”
“The One Most High, The Ruler of the Universe, he has granted you sight through one of his many miracles.”
“Church!” Marshall proclaimed. “I’ve got to get to the nearest church. No one’s going to believe that I can see.”
“The glory goes to The One Most High.”
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Marshall exclaimed with three victorious shouts. “The One Most High has given me sight! The Ruler of the Universe has allowed me to see!”
Stuart and Marshall exchanged hugs before they parted ways. Good deeds were emancipated on Stuart’s behalf while on his journey to seek vengeance against the egomaniacal eight.


CHAPTER—23

MOTION FROM THE OCEAN

Traveling from Miami to Los Angles sent Stuart embarking upon another mission in going after another member of the egomaniacal eight. A bright warm sun and sparkling beaches kept him within the boundaries of a coastal environment. The Gulf Coast and the West Coast both offered mild temperatures and people with sun-baked skin and toned bodies. The ocean breeze from the Pacific calmed the senses of the beachgoers.
The Millennium Biltmore in downtown Los Angeles provided the five star amenities Stuart desired during his travel excursions. Not that he was too good to stay in lower class hotels, but The Millennium Biltmore was centrally-located, while the service was suited more to his taste. Being the premier choice of celebrities and presidents and dignitaries, Stuart picked the hotel which offered historic grandeur and modern luxury in the heart of downtown Los Angeles.
Being close to the vibrant cultural and financial districts, he’d eventually indulge in the major attractions closeby. Besides visiting Dodger Stadium, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Staples Center, Hollywood and Beverly Hills, he had other places to go with big plans in mind. Stuart dropped down onto the plush, king-sized bed inside his exquisite suite. Looking around, he felt like one of the important celebrities or dignitaries who’d stayed there many years before he was even born. The mint-conditioned Victorian style furniture made him feel right at home. His parents passed their elegant taste down to him.
Refreshed was how Stuart felt when he showered with a lavender and cherry shower gel. Mixed with designer colognes and body spray, a scent tingled from his pores and clothing like a pleasant Spring breeze. The straight flight from Miami to Los Angeles dulled his senses until he landed in the “City of Angels”. Local weathermen predicted mild sunny days with slight breezes out of the southeast.
Stuart walked off the elevator and the view of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel awoke his one-time dull senses. What he witnessed was breathtaking. The Italian-Spanish influence dominated much of the lobby space. The hand-painted frescoes, bas-relief décor, fountains, polished marble floors, ornate ceilings and abundant tropical flowers, were a true testament to class and elegance.
Noises from crowds of people coming into the Biltmore Hotel resonated into the canals of Stuart’s ears. He turned around in a three-sixty formation. He saw hundreds of people coming through the lobby wearing tuxedos and evening dresses from the 1930s and 1940s. These were the modern times of the Twenty-First Century. Where did the people come from? A towering golden statue of the Academy Award’s Oscar appeared from out of nowhere. The Twentieth Annual Academy Awards was hosted at the Biltmore.
The spirits of all the attendees pulled a chapter out of history. Stuart stood in the lobby to witness it. None of the hotel guests from the present heard nor saw any of Oscar attendees. This signified Stuart’s powers to communicate with the dead.
The transparent spiritual form of some man being escorted by two beautiful women smiled right at Stuart. “When they say that some guys have all the luck, I guess they were talking about me.”
Stuart responded by saying, “Looking at those two beauties,