John returned to his human form by the time he reached the bridge. The moment he stepped into the chamber, he spotted Tiara crying on the floor. It looked like she had a major meltdown.

He rushed toward her and kneeled behind her. "Hey… Are you okay?"

Tiara sniffed and rubbed the tears off her shimmering yellow eyes. "I'm fine… Zira is gone."

John glanced around. He doesn't want to know how Tiara disposed of her sister’s body. "You don't look like you are having a victory cry."

Tiara shrugged and rise onto her feet. “Did you destroy the beacon?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s check if it worked.”

John glanced at the shielded window. “How?”

Tiara approached the control panel beneath the window and pulled the lever down. Only the left window seal side slid back from the other blast shield.

Behind the glass, outer space was black with sparkling stars as clear as John could see. The white moon glimmered in the east, and no signs of starship wreckage floated around the Earth.

John swung his left fist up. "Yes! We did it!"

Tiara smiled at him. "You meant you did it?"

John grinned at her. "There's no such thing as I in team."

The demon lady strolled toward him. "Come closer."

John’s back chilled as the she-devil wrapped her arms around him. But he couldn’t resist her charm. So he bent down and kissed her lips. Her spicy heat flowed through his veins.

As he sucked her bottom lip, an explosion rattled throughout the ship. John almost fell, but he hugged Tiara to remain balanced. "What the hell?"

He glanced at the window and saw laser beams flying toward the demon ship. One of them impacted and rocked the bridge.

John growled. "Damn! The fleet must be the ones shooting at us!"

Tiara glanced at the ceiling. "This vessel's shield will not hold forever."

"Then how do we get off this thing?"

"We can use those fighters in the hangar." Tiara wobbled when the floor shook. "I can fly them."

"Good idea."

After the she-devil picked up her mask, she rushed to the doorway as John followed her.

*****

Explosives boomed around John and Tiara when they returned to the hangar bay. The demon ship’s shields probably collapsed, and now the energy projectiles broke through the vessel. 

Around them, the demon soldiers panicked as they raced to their available crafts to escape. But most of them didn’t make it through the explosions.

Tiara opened the cockpit on the red flyer and hopped into the front pilot seat. She placed her mask back on and observed the controls. John took the backseat behind her before the cockpit window closed over him and her.

"Hold on to your ass!" Tiara flipped a few switches and grabbed the two flight sticks.

The starfighter levitated off the floor and hovered toward the open hangar floor door. It dived down and entered the Earth’s atmosphere. Flames coated the ship as the cockpit rattled.

A beeping siren screamed around the cockpit from flashing red lights.

John gazed around at the lights. "What’s happening now?"

Tiara growled through her mask. "I forgot these crafts can't fly through the atmosphere!"

"You forgot?"

"Sorry! I was imprisoned for a long time! But we will make it!"

"We better!" John gripped his seat, feeling his stomach touch his throat.

Soon, the flames cleared and the sky turned dark with streaming clouds. And the city gleaned on the dark ground near the ocean.

John almost felt relief until the craft’s back exploded.

"Shit! The engines are blown! We are going down fast!" Tiara warned.

John glared at her. "I knew I shouldn't trust you to fly this thing!"

"I got this!" Tiara jerked the handles. "Where can I land?"

John pointed his finger over Tiara’s shoulder. "Into that bay over there! Try skipping the water first!"

Tiara nodded and steered the fighter toward the bay where the Statue of Liberty stood. The military base camp should see them if they crash close to the statue. That is if they don't explode when they touch the water.

The fighter dived toward the water until Tiara pulled it up. It slid across the water and crashed through the sand on the beach near the city.

After it stopped, Tiara immediately switched the engine off. Smoke drifted into the air behind the fighter.

"Should we wait until this thing cools off?" John asked.

Tiara leaned back against her seat. "For now, but it won't take long."

John sighed. What a crash and burn they experienced.

*****

Later, Tiara opened the cockpit and John hopped out. He smiled at the dark blue sky, relieved it was no longer red. The morning was just right around the corner.

From Bedloe’s Island, a troop carrier hovered toward the beach and landed on the sand. After the side door slid open, Lena jumped out and ran toward John. “Wolfy!!!”

She jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly. “I knew you will come back!”

John chuckled against her cheek. “You damn right I’ll come back, baby. Nothing can kill me and keep me in hell.”

While Lena rubbed her head against John’s cheek like a puppy, Kara and Alexia approached him from the aircraft. Both of them smiled at him.

"You and Tiara did it," said Alexia. "We were able to contact the fleet after the sky cleared."

"The portal flew down upon us very fast!" Kara exclaimed. "You should have seen it!"

John wished he did, but it took him some time to reach the bridge aboard the demon ship. He didn't expect the Earth to return to normal space so quickly.

Across the ocean, the sun rose from the horizon. John and the girls turned toward the sunrise as they embraced together.

"It's been a long time since we saw the sun," said John. "We hunted in the darkness far too long in space."

Tiara grinned. “I have never seen the sun before. But it is beautiful.”

“I’m glad I can walk through the sunlight without burning into ashes,” said Kara. “I’m a half-vampire, after all.”

Tiara beamed her eyes at the half-vampire woman. “Sooooooo, do you trust me now? I did help your beast-man save the world.”

Kara smiled at her. “I think we will be on good terms for now. Just don’t turn into a comp bitch.”

John laughed and continued to watch the sun. “After this, I think we all should take a break. There is a nice tropical planet we could settle on. They don’t care about monsters living among humans.”

Alexia nodded with a grin. “Works for us.”

John was pretty sure the director won’t mind. They did save the Earth and they should earn a vacation for that. The galaxy will always be haunted, but there were plenty of other paranormal defense squads to protect the human race.

Author's note:

"This is the last chapter for book 3 and the end of this series for now. I do plan to write two more books, but I will be taking a long break right now. The next books will be self-contained with new monsters and threats. I have other projects I want to finish and I hope you enjoyed Dark Wolf."