Baylahn: A Supernatural Action Adventure Opera (War Of The Angels Book 3)

by Michael Todd

  Sean smiled. “I don’t know how fabulous I have been, but yeah, one time when I was stuck in these weird goopy cocoons.”

  Timothy smacked his lips. “Mmhmm. I forgot all about that drama. Damn Vampirella trying to steal your fucking souls. Well, let me tell you, when those monitors went down, that’s what happened to me. I was frozen for the first time in my life. I have always had stellar response time, but this? Nope. I froze like a fucking popsicle. I thought about my hacking, my failures at hacking, and my huge wins, like this beauty all around us. I thought about the family I love, the boys I’ve loved multiple times, ha! I thought about what exactly my life was at that moment.”

  Sean looked at Timothy. “And what did you decide?”

  Timothy leaned back, clicking the button on the server. He shook his head and took a deep breath. “I realized that I spend so much time plugged in, I am not actually plugged into the system. That the things outside of the room are not generated, they are fucking real. That the people outside of this room are not avatars, they are my true-blue friends. That I am not hiding behind a chat screen and people still for some reason want to be around me.”

  Sean tilted his head back and laughed. “Of course, they do because you are made of unicorns and glitter.”

  Timothy smirked. “Yes, sir. You know it. And don’t forget deep-down amazing sexiness. But for real—it was a crazy and wild eye-opening moment, and because of that I almost lost it all. In a moment of need, I almost dropped the ball.”

  Sean turned to Timothy and shook his head. “But you didn’t. You need to stop sweating it. We got it taken care of like the fucking pros we are. We are officially badasses.”

  Roars echoed from the charging rhino demons as the battle continued. Calvin stood above the soldiers on the wall, holding his gun high as they fired beneath him. Demons were going down hard, but they were coming in just as fast. He reloaded and let off another shot, tumbling a rhino. “Keep firing! Do not stop firing at these sonsofbitches. They will not stop charging us, so we can’t stop giving it right back!”

  Calvin glanced at the boxes of ammo, which lay on their sides, completely empty. He turned and looked into the fort, but there was no ammo left there either. He took a deep breath and held his head high. “You keep firing until there are no bullets left. And when you are done shooting, you grab anything you can and launch it at those bastards. Rocks, stones, steel from the construction piles. I don’t care what it is, but you throw it. It may not kill them, but it will slow their asses down.”

  Korbin stood below, shooting through the steel openings in the gate. The team of Damned stood perched and ready behind him, waiting for their turn to be set loose on the demons. Korbin glanced up at Calvin high above. He was shouting orders to the soldiers and shooting his at the beasts on the ground.

  When he looked back, there was a large group of demons charging the gate. Korbin took a couple of steps back and stood in front of the Damned. “All right, troops, it’s your turn. Your time to be the heroes. Give it everything you got, and know I’m right here fighting with you!”

  They all let out a wild battle cry as the demons slammed into the gate, knocking it half off the thick hinges. The beasts flooded in quickly, tearing into anything they could get their hands on. Korbin blasted at the demons, taking down one after another. He used his body to launch two of them into the air and then shot straight up, turning them to dust before they hit the ground.

  He turned to see his crew, the Damned, fighting for the first time, but it was obvious right away that they were not ready. The demons had charged into them, and they didn’t know how to handle it. On the ground were bits and pieces of two of the Damned, torn to shreds by the beasts. Korbin growled and ran forward, slamming his gun into the back of a large demon’s head. It stumbled, dropping the Damned it had grabbed by the shirt.

  The Damned scooted back on his ass and pulled his pistol up, pulling the trigger three times. The bullets slammed into the beast’s head, knocking it to the ground. Korbin walked over and helped the kid up, nodding. “Keep going. Don’t stop. You can do this.”

  The kid nodded and ran off, chasing down a couple of the demons trying to get through to the city. Korbin looked up at Calvin, who had turned, watching the entirety of the battle from the wall. He knew Korbin couldn’t see it from down there, but the carnage was great. There was no mistaking it. They were losing badly.

  16

  Katie, Pandora, and Juntto left the city of Atlantis abruptly. The slamming of the gates rang in the tunnel ahead of them. They set out without a word, knowing there was nothing to do but march forward. The floors were no longer stone; they were back to the squishy, rippling substance they had been before.

  Pandora kicked at a rock on the floor. “This makes me wonder what my insides look like. Do I have a mini city of people living in my guts?”

  Katie chuckled. “If you do, they are all fat from the donuts you ingest.”

  Pandora groaned, throwing her head back. “Don’t talk to me about donuts. All we’ve had to eat are these disgusting MREs.”

  Katie smiled as they walked, looking up in time avoid to running into Juntto’s back. She swerved around him as Pandora came up on his other side. They all sighed. Katie shook her head. “Great, another crossroads. We should have been drawing a fucking map as we went.”

  Pandora snarled. “For what, so that anyone else who accidentally gets swallowed by a Leviathan can avoid the hellacious path?”

  Katie shrugged. “Maybe. What do we do this time?”

  Juntto shrugged. “Eenie meenie miney mo?”

  Pandora put out her hand. “Rock, paper, scissors.”

  Katie looked at both of them with a straight face. “I don’t think I am going to leave my fate up to a game. Besides, if Baylahn is as big as the stories say, we could be walking for weeks. We don’t have the supplies or the time for that, especially if Wilson took the correct path and is getting close to the Sword of Lucifer.”

  Pandora growled and narrowed her eyes. “The cousin-fuckers could have given us directions, but noooo. They wanted us to wander around in this hellhole trying to figure it out. This is total and complete bullshit. You know this.”

  Katie shrugged. “Bullshit or not, we are here, and we have to make a decision. Clock is fucking ticking.”

  Pandora tapped her foot on the mushy ground. “Well, we can either pick a way or go both.”

  Katie looked at her as she sprouted her wings. “I’ll take the right, you take the left. Go as far as you can in like ten minutes and then come back here to report.”

  Pandora put her finger next to her nose. “Exactly, and if one of us doesn’t come back, we know which way not to go. Sorry, Katie, I’m leaving you to the crabs.”

  Katie rolled her eyes, lifting herself off the ground. “The way you fly, you’ll crash in the first thirty seconds.”

  They smirked and took off in opposite directions, speeding down the tunnels. Juntto stood there looking back and forth and finally put up his hand. “I’ll stay here. Don’t worry about me.”

  He growled and put his hand down, looking around him. The ground and walls rippled wildly, and a loud belch moved through the tunnel. Juntto wrinkled his nose as a foul smell emerged. Apparently, Baylahn was not above indigestion and gas.

  Juntto covered his mouth and tilted his head back, slamming his large blue foot against the squishy ground. “This is not Hygge!”

  Loud crashing sounds echoed across the Taiwanese landscape as large boulders fell from the east end of the wall. The fort was under extreme duress, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. There were deep gouges in the outside of the wall, and the structure was swaying from the enormous beasts slamming their bodies into it. Inside, things were being torn to shreds. Tents were torn down, buildings were beaten up, and bodies were strewn across the grasses on the base.

  There was no getting around it; the fort was being wrecked. Again. It had been built for that, but Korbin couldn’t help but
wonder how many times it was going to get wrecked before they could move on to the next fort. At the same time, though, it was probably being attacked because it was the newest of them. He could only hope he wouldn’t have to deal with that at every fort he went to.

  Korbin fired into three charging demons, dropping them to the ground. He attempted to reload his weapon, but he was out of ammo. He holstered it and pulled his long swords back out of their sheaths. He always waited until the end to use them; they were his last resort. He gritted his teeth and turned to rally his recruits, stopping in shock. There were only two recruits still standing, and neither one of them was in the best condition.

  He swallowed hard and looked at their bruised and bloodied hands. One held a short sword and the other two daggers. Apparently, they too were out of ammo. “Come on, guys. You’re kicking ass. Let’s chase some of these bitches down.”

  Up above on the wall, Calvin held onto the post as it rocked. He threw his gun down, everyone long out of ammo, and pulled his pistol from the back of his pants. He only had eight special bullets, which he was saving for his last attempt. It seemed from the demolishing of the fort, and the death of so many that they might have reached that point.

  He stepped between two dead soldiers and looked down at the demons. As he squinted one eye and aimed, he paused. In his sights was a heavily breathing large brutal demon with drool running down his chin. It looked up at him as he looked down at it, red flashing in the beast’s eyes. Calvin looked down at dirt pushed halfway up the wall. Taking a breath for bravery, he leapt off, hitting the pile and rolling to the ground.

  He jumped up, cracking his neck and looking up at the demon. “That was not easy to do without being infected. Making a mental note.”

  He took off across the grass toward the demon and pointed his gun, letting loose two of his special bullets. They slammed into the demon’s knees, dropping him to the ground. Calvin leapt high in the air and landed on the beast’s chest, putting his pistol to its forehead. I’m sorry, Sofia. I have to save my men. He hoped she would forgive him for what he was about to do, but it was the only thing he knew.

  All around them, the demons raced by, none of them paying Calvin and his opponent a bit of attention. The demon growled and spat as Calvin held the gun to his forehead. He lifted a chain out of his shirt with one hand and, rubbing his fingers down the cross, thought about the moment Sofia had given it to him. It was on their honeymoon, a family heirloom that he kept very close to his heart both literally and figuratively.

  Calvin held the cross out to the demon. “This is God’s power. You see? Do you see it? It is the very symbol of his power.”

  The demon roared and tried to buck, but Calvin dropped on one knee and pushed his gun harder into the demon’s forehead. He narrowed his eyes, staring, intensely into the demon’s. The beast tried to avoid eye contact, but Calvin shook his head. “NO! You will look at me, coward.”

  The beast snarled but shifted its eyes toward Calvin. He pushed on the gun. “And this is man’s power. Together? Well, I think you are old enough to know what it means, but if not, I’ll tell you. Together they’re going to fuck you up, brother. They are going to send you painfully back to the depths of hell, and you will remain there for centuries.”

  The demon hissed at him, shaking his shoulders. Calvin sat there staring at him, watching him struggle with the pain of the bullets surging through his entire body. He was weak from the pain and thus unable to handle a human half his size. Calvin waited for him to calm back down and loosened the pressure of his gun against the beast’s head.

  The demon noticed it and looked him in the eye, still snarling and growling. Calvin smirked and shook his head. “I think I’m nuts.”

  He looked back at the fort, which was damaged worse with every moment that passed. “This power could be your end, but it doesn’t have to be like that. It doesn’t have to be the end of this story.”

  Calvin laughed wildly and shook his head. “I mean, seriously. Is hell really that great? I’ve been there. To me, it’s a hot, sweaty, fucking mess, and it smells like rotten fucking eggs all the time, not to mention the torture, suffering, and constant fear of some fallen angel living in a huge mansion on the hill.”

  The demon furrowed its brow, listening to what it assumed was a human who had lost its mind. Calvin continued, knowing he had a point. “I tell you what…up here, they have tacos for days. And I’m not talking about that Taco Bell shit. In California, they sell the best fish tacos anyone could ever have. In the South, it’s brisket and pulled pork tacos. Fucking amazing. We got potstickers. Italian food. German food. Tell me, would you rather me shoot you right here and send you back to hell, or do you want to find out how many fucking pot stickers you can eat in one sitting? You look like a big boy. I bet you could do some fucking damage.”

  The demon stopped struggling and looked at him for a moment, unsure whether it was a trick. He pulled his brows together and narrowed his eyes. “What are you saying?”

  Calvin’s smile faded, and he leaned into the demon’s face. “Infect me. Get inside me like you know you want to and find out what this world has to offer besides dying at the hands of a human with really fucking painful bullets. Who fucking cares about your orders? Be your own fucking boss and make your own decision. Infect me.”

  The demon looked at him with wide eyes for a moment and started to laugh hysterically. “You are the craziest fucking human I’ve ever come across. You are dead fucking serious, aren’t you?”

  Calvin sat back, taking the gun from the demon’s head. “Infect me.”

  The demon snarled and snorted air out of his huge nostrils. “Idiotic human. I’ll use you for a plaything. I’ll murder your friends and your family with your hands. I’ll do things to the people you love that will drive you out of your fucking mind. But hey, it’s your choice.”

  Suddenly the demon disappeared from below him and surged into Calvin’s body. Calvin dropped to the ground on all fours. His mouth opened wide, and his eyes bugged slightly. All the air left his lungs, and all he could feel was pain throughout his entire body. Calvin yelled as the pain tried to overwhelm him, but he didn’t give in; he was stronger than the demon believed. He had been infected before, and he knew how to control a demon like that one. There were no more games to be played. Calvin had gained exactly what he wanted.

  The demon tried to pull at Calvin’s soul, but he lashed back, pushing the demon down in his body. He grunted as he got to his knees. Sweat poured from his forehead, and his body bulged. He clenched his hands into fists and tensed the muscles of his chest. Calvin opened his mouth and let out a deep growl, fighting the demon until it was cornered inside him.

  He breathed heavily, blinking the fog from his eyes. “You are under my control, demon. You’re going to help me, you got it? There will be no more fighting it. You want to live, you’ll do as I say. If not, I swear I’ll have you ripped out of me by a fucking angel.”

  The demon shook and grumbled, curling up inside Calvin. He didn’t know what had hit him, but he was going to do exactly what Calvin wanted. He knew what it meant to be exorcized by an angel; it meant death, no coming back from it.

  Slowly Calvin’s body began to relax, and the demon pushed a bit of energy through Calvin for good measure. Calvin put his hands down and pulled his leg up, struggling to his feet. He stood taller than before and cracked his neck from side to side. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath from the bottom of his lungs and slowly let it out. As his eyes opened, they glowed a deep red.

  He smiled and walked toward the battle with a swagger in his step that hadn’t been there since he’d lost his demon. He was ready to fight now, and his demon wasn’t even thinking about fucking that up. Calvin was back.

  Pandora shook from side to side, putting her arms out to steady her body. “Come on, wings, don’t fail me now, fuckers. Katie can’t get the satisfaction of being right.”

  She pulled her arms back in and looked up as she approached t
he entrance to a large organ. She grimaced and put her arms up as she flew through it and came out the other side, then slowed and came to a stop, hovering in the air. She wrinkled her nose and wiped her slime-covered hand down her suit. She could hear the glops of goo hitting the floor below her.

  Small bubbles formed in her nostrils as she breathed heavily in and out. Pandora flung the goo off of her hands and wiped her face one more time. “That was the most repulsive thing I have ever done, hands down. I am completely disgusted.”

  Her wings flapped, and she glided over, landing on the edge of a vast lake. She shook the goop out of her hair and paused, sniffing. She put her hand over her mouth as she gagged and looked out in front of her. It bubbled and gurgled, the smell pure shit.

  She shook her head. “Ugh. This is not where I want to be. Fucking cousin-fuckers.”

  She turned quickly but stopped. She closed her eyes, she heard a soft whisper in her mind. She whirled, but there was still a huge lake of shit in front of her. Still, something had whispered.

  Pandora narrowed her eyes and took flight, heading back the way she’d come.

  Katie scanned the area as she flew, sailing over the rubble of the ancient city Ormund had told them about. Below her, she saw several stone huts still intact even after what looked like the complete destruction of the city. She put her wings out wide and pointed her feet down, dropping gently. She balanced for a moment on one of the stone huts before folding her wings into her back. Her eyes roved over the surroundings, but there wasn’t a sound.

  As she stepped forward, something shimmered beneath her. She looked down between the huts and narrowed her eyes. Bending down on one knee, she got closer. Suddenly she jerked back, covering her mouth and nose. “Oh fuck.”