text: The parking lot of the Parkland branch of the Pierce County Library was strewn with the broken corpses of the Lemures that had clung to the van. Several people peeked out around cars, gaping in astonishment at the group of mostly naked women who had just fought a pack of monsters off.
  
  "Is anyone hurt?" Bev asked, her silver sword vanishing.
  
  "No," Rochelle answered.
  
  "We're fine over here," Mindy called out.
  
  "Let's find this book, okay," Hikaru said, sliding out of the van, her round face tight.
  
  "What the hell is going on?" a guy asked.
  
  "Sir, you need to evacuate the area," Mindy told him, her voice booming with a cop's authority. "Everyone, Parkland is not safe. Head south down Pacific Avenue. Get out of the area as fast as you can."
  
  The guy saw her Pierce County Sheriff's uniform, swallowed, and nodded.
  
  "A County-wide tac alert has been issued," squawked Mindy's radio. "All off-duty units are recalled immediately."
  
  "What's that?" asked Juanita, her eyes watering from the mace she had used on a Demon.
  
  "It's bad," Mindy answered. "They've declared a tactical emergency. Every cop that can be spared in the County is going to converging here: State Troopers, County Sheriffs, and local municipalities."
  
  Gunfire still echoed from the direction of PLU. Sirens blared, racing in that direction. Rochelle wondered how long the cops could hold back the flood of Lemures pouring out of the Hellgate?
  
  "We need to get that book," Hikaru clapped. "Come on!"
  
  "Right," Rochelle nodded.
  
  They swarmed into the library. A matronly woman, glasses perched on her nose, swaths of her black hair going gray, gaped at them. "You can't come in here dressed like that!"
  
  The naked lacrosse girls shrugged, and stood around looking dangerous while they twirled their chains. The librarian, clearly not used to be being ignored, bristled. "This is a public library not a strip club or a flophouse. I'm calling the police unless you leave this instant!"
  
  "The police are already here," Mindy said, walking to the counter. "Now we need a book."
  
  "Handbuch von der Dämonen und der Engel," Rochelle answered, striding up next to the woman.
  
  "I..."
  
  Rochelle felt bad for the poor woman, but they didn't have time for this so she slapped the counter. "Look up the damn book, lady!"
  
  She flinched, her glasses almost sliding off her nose completely. "Handbook..." she muttered, typing on her keyboard. "It's, um, in the comparative religion section." She wrote something on an index card and handed it over.
  
  Hikaru snatched it and dashed off.
  
  Mindy's radio squawked more. It sounded like the police were running into a lot of problems. She bit her lip, listening to the chatter. Those were her friends and coworkers out there fighting the Demons. And dying.
  
  "What is going on?" the librarian demanded.
  
  "Armageddon," Juanita whispered. "Or not, I don't know. There are Demons pouring out of Hell."
  
  "They just issued a mandatory evacuation order for Parkland," Mindy announced. "It's getting bad out there fast."
  
  "Evacuation?" The librarian's jaw almost fell to the counter.
  
  "You should flee south," Mindy advised. "Get as far away from PLU as you can. It sounds like the Lemures are pressing down Pacific Avenue at Brookdale and are heading this way."
  
  "Brookdale... That's only seven or eight blocks away," paled the librarian.
  
  "I'd get moving then," the deputy advised.
  
  "I have it!" Hikaru shouted, rushing up, flanked by Liu and Wendy, two of the lacrosse players.
  
  "We need to get back to the church," Rochelle smiled, taking the book from Hikaru. I can save Master with this!
  
  "That's through the chaos," Mindy pointed out.
  
  "Yep," Rochelle nodded. "I'll start futuring."
  
  "Futuring?" Juanita asked.
  
  "I've decided to call it futuring," Rochelle smiled. "I will futuring into the future."
  
  "That's terrible English," groaned Hikaru.
  
  Rochelle took a deep breath and set out futuring them around all the chaos.