Claws sliced at the back of his neck, opening him up. He felt a huge weight crushing the back of his skull, smushing his face against the unforgiving ground. He could barely breathe, barely move. It took everything he had to just turn his head and gasp.
A high-pitched feminine scream pierced the air, and from out of nowhere the women from the farm enveloped the demons pinning Mass down. They stomped and kicked, screaming hysterically. Mass crawled away in shock, not knowing where he was hurt or how badly.
Smithy fought nearby. The lad had a demon in a chokehold and was slowly rattling the life out of it. Addy and Tox, however, were in dire need of help. Four demons surrounded them, and they were visibly near exhaustion. Mass was bleeding all over, but he had to help his friends. He climbed to his feet and threw himself at the demons, sending two tumbling back into the ditch. The other two merely stumbled in the road. Suddenly, the humans outnumbered the monsters. They had a chance.
“Take them down, quick.” Mass tackled a burnt man and dropped it onto its back. As soon as it hit the ground, Smithy jumped on its head with both feet. Addy and Tox took care of the other demons, and within minutes, their misshapen corpses littered the road.
One of the women bent over and vomited, causing Smithy to leap aside and swear. Once finished, she straightened up and wiped her mouth. “I-I can’t believe we just did that.”
Mass was bleeding badly from his neck. He had to place a hand over the wound and press down as he approached the young woman. She had dark brown hair tangled in knots and smooth olive skin streaked with scratches and cuts. “What’s your name?”
“Maria.”
“Well, Maria, you and your friends just saved our butts.”
“You saved us from Naseem and his bastards. It’s nice to repay the favour. We’ve been victims for so long that it feels good to finally fight back.”
The women behind her, who had also calmed down, nodded in agreement. They hadn’t fought to save Mass and the others, they’d fought to save their own souls.
Addy bent over and spat blood from a bust lip. “Naseem’s farm is behind you, but we need to make it back to Portsmouth if you have any chance of being safe.”
Maria nodded to show she understood.
Smithy threw his bloody rock down on the ground and shook his hand gingerly. “We need to warn everyone about that boss-level gate that opened up.”
Mass glanced down the road in the direction they’d travelled. Something bad was coming, and it was a consequence of his actions. He never should have killed Vamps and set Crimolok free. The giant gate had appeared because of what he’d done.
I had no choice. I couldn’t let Vamps suffer any more. He was my brother.
“We need to rest,” said Tox. “I ache all over.”
Smithy nodded. “I think I bruised my arsehole.”
Mass stared at the blood on his hands and had to agree. He didn’t know the damage done to his neck, but he felt weak and feverish. He wanted to puke. “We’ll need somewhere to hole up for tonight. In the morning, we can head off, and be back to Portsmouth in less than two days.”
But they had never made it back in two days. In fact, they didn’t make it out of the small cottage they found shortly after leaving the dead demons in the road.
3
Ted stood in the guard tower watching the world go by. It’d been weeks since they’d last encountered demons, but a scouting party had returned yesterday with reports of the enemy amassing south of Carlisle. That men and women could even make it that far and back in safety was something he would have thought impossible only a few short months ago, but things had changed at Kielder Forest Park. Kothal Castle was at the centre of it all – the new hub of British civilisation.
What had once been a crumbling manor house was now a labyrinth of wood and stone. Ted had personally overseen the construction of timber and plasterboard buildings, providing warm and dry meeting places, dwellings, and workshops. At the bottom of the hill, tents and hastily erected huts surrounded a lodge-style activity centre. The small settlement had popped up after a large group from a nearby supermarket, as well as multiple stragglers, had arrived. Ted didn’t know the exact number of people now settled in the forest – they didn’t have time to conduct a census – but he was confident there were at least a thousand. Maybe more.
And they had an arsenal.
Damien’s arrival, alongside a small group of American soldiers and several crates of weapons, was a welcome, if concerning, event. Concerning, because one of the young man’s companions was a demon. Sorrow, it called itself. A monstrous thing with sharp horns and leathery black wings. It was the demon to which Ted now paid attention. The thing was evil, and it was only a matter of time before it turned on people.
Frank had been standing nearby, and he came over now. The short man – but don’t call him a midget – tiptoed so he could see over the guard tower’s wooden railing. The structure abutted the rooftop of the castle and, being the highest point, was where most of the lookouts stationed themselves.
“You nay trust that one, do ya?”
Ted gave Frank a pained sigh. “He’s one of them.”
“He ain’t done us no harm, kidda. W’out him, we wunt have built half the stuff we ’ave. Fella’s strong as ten men.”
Ted nodded. It was true. Sorrow had made himself an asset since arriving, no doubt about it. The demon could carry ten-foot logs as if they were broom handles, and his tireless runs up and down the fortifications had sped things up monumentally. Sorrow was a one-demon lumberyard.
But he was still one of them.
Right inside their camp.
But there was an even worse threat that plagued Ted’s mind. A fallen angel existed somewhere beyond the forest, a giant beast intent on destroying mankind. It had appeared on that dreadful day, months ago now, when a gate had appeared beneath the surface of their lake. A young boy, Nathan, had saved everybody by throwing himself into the water, but not before a massive creature had emerged and then retreated to lick its wounds. One day, it would be back, Ted knew it. He could feel a fight coming – felt it in his bones – and it was going to be bad. He’d been no soldier in his former life, but nowadays he was on constant high alert, always sensing danger and predicting attacks. If the people at Kielder weren’t ready to fight when the time came, they would all die.
And that’ll be on me.
Ted turned to Frank, who had recently taken to chewing twigs to ease his smoker’s cravings. The camp still had cigarettes, but they wouldn’t last forever, so a two per day rule had been implemented. Ted was glad he’d never caught the habit based on how many twigs Frank gnawed each day.
Folding his arms to show he wanted an honest answer, Ted asked, “Frank, how prepared do you think we are?”
Frank shrugged, an odd gesture with his slightly offset shoulders. “None of us are born fighters, Ted, but we are survivors. Everyone’ll step up when the time comes. Death has lost its horror after so much of it. There ain’t no cowards here.”
“You think we have a chance then?”
“Are yow kidding me? We’re more prepared than ever. We ’ave weapons, walls, manpower. We even have our own demon, which I personally think is bostin! Whatever happens, there’s nowt more we can do about it. Maybe it’s our fate to die, but last time we sent the buggers packing, dint we?”
Ted nodded silently.
Frank saw his sadness and frowned. “What’s got into yow, kidda? Yow’s a fella with practical solutions, not a worrier like this.”
“All I do is worry, Frank. I feel like everything is on my shoulders, and if we don’t make it, it’ll be because all my planning, all my big ideas weren’t good enough. People look to me to keep them safe, but the truth is I don’t think I’ve done anywhere near enough.”
Frank gave him a firm pat on the back. “Yow’ve done more than most. If anyone has better ideas, they can speak up, can’t they? I would soon tell you if I had something on my brain.”
Ted t
ittered. “Yeah, I can always rely on you to speak your mind, Frank. Thank you for that.”
“Yow’s welcome. Oh, bugger it, I forgot to say, Doctor Kamiyo wants to speak with yow at the infirmary.”
“Okay, d’you know what about?”
“Nah, but he seemed hot and bothered about something. Yow best be quick.”
Ted nodded and got going. Quick wasn’t something he would’ve managed a year ago, not with his age and substantial beer gut, but nowadays he was a lean, wiry, grey-haired man of action. He liked who he’d become, but it pained him that his daughter, Chloe, wasn’t alive to see it.
You would have loved this place, sweetheart.
Ted headed out of the castle and through the sally port in the inner wall. A wooden palisade dissected the steep grassy hill halfway down, and Ted had to wait while a pair of sentries opened the gate from above. One of the sentries was Scarlett, the demon’s ward. Sorrow seemed to be her bodyguard, and for the first couple of days at Kielder, he had refused to leave her side. Only recently had he relaxed enough to give her some breathing room.
The girl waved to him. “Hey, Ted, Doctor Kamiyo was looking for you. He’s in—”
“The infirmary, yeah. Thanks, Scarlett. Um, are you okay today?”
“Yeah, I really need to pee, but I think I can hold it a bit longer. You’ve got this place really buzzing. Any demons are gonna have a hard time taking us in a fight.”
“I hope you’re right. Your, um, friend… Will he be willing to fight against his—”
Scarlett smirked. “His fellow demons? Yah, no problem. I’ve seen him do it before. He’s a badass, and he’s ours. You can trust him.”
Ted passed no comment and headed through the outer gate. Despite the girl’s assurances, he didn’t think he could ever trust a demon. Especially not one with jet-black wings the length of two minibuses. Even his name was evil – Sorrow. How much of that had it caused serving in Hell?
It was done now though. The demon had ingratiated itself with the population. The children loved it, asking Sorrow to perform feats of strength or perform magic. Women, too, were under its thrall. Someone had to remain suspicious, even if it was only Ted.
I won’t ever trust that thing. It will never be one of us. It doesn’t understand what it is to be human.
The infirmary was located inside the activity centre, chosen because the upper floor contained multiple bedrooms, each with open fireplaces. It would be the only way to keep the sick healthy during the harsh winter months now rapidly on their way. No one knew the current date, but it felt like late October to Ted – those drizzly, chilly weeks that led into the freezing festive season. It would be the first true test for their community. They had planted crops under the supervision of a pair of ex-farmers, but no one really knew if the produce would survive the ground frosts. No one knew if the people at the camp would manage to keep warm. It all remained to be seen.
Whatever happened in the days ahead, death to some degree was certain. Even if the demons disappeared, humanity had been knocked spiralling into a new dark age. Cut off from each other and with limited resources, things would never again be the same. Medicine was rare, food was dwindling, and Kamiyo was their sole doctor. If he died, the entire camp would have to get by on the four ex-nurses who lived there. Most of the world’s doctors had been too involved in the initial rescue efforts during the invasion to still be alive a year later. Kamiyo never spoke about why he hadn’t been one of them, and Ted wouldn’t ask.
It’s his business. We all have a past we’re trying to forget.
Ted said hello to various people on his approach to the activity centre. The building was designed to look like a woodland lodge, with thick brown logs and planked flooring. It was a cluttered space, stacked with supplies and people. The lower floor was used as a school for the children, a useful way to keep track of them during the day. Twenty-six were under the age of fourteen, and their laughter was the biggest boost to morale in Kielder. They were the camp’s mascots – a treasure that must be protected at all costs. To lose the children would be to lose all hope.
Dr Kamiyo was rushing across the landing when Ted started upstairs. When he saw Ted, he skidded on his heels and waved a hand to follow. “I’ve been waiting for you to turn up. Follow me.”
Ted frowned as Kamiyo hurried to the room at the far end of the landing. The door was closed, but he shouldered it open easily, standing aside so that Ted could enter. “Our patient is awake. I wanted to wait for you to question them.”
Ted stepped inside and was greeted by the smell of medicinal alcohol and bleach. The woman lying in bed was indeed awake, but she appeared groggy and unwell. Twice, her pudgy jowls bulged as if she might vomit, and she showed no recognition of where she was. Yet neither did she seem afraid. The scouts had found her a week ago on the outskirts of the forest, unconscious in the middle of the road. She’d been stuck in an endless sleep until now.
“Hello, miss, my name’s Ted. We found you in trouble and brought you to our camp. You’re safe and among friends. There’s no reason to fret.”
The woman frowned. Middle-aged, and a little on the heavier side, she was not entirely unattractive, but something about her seemed harsh and unappealing. “What camp?” she asked in a phlegmy voice.
“Kielder Forest, do you know it?”
She shook her head. “I’m not really an outdoorsy type of bird.”
“What’s your name? Do you remember what happened to you?”
“Vaguely.”
“Okay, why don’t we start with your name then, and how you ended up in the road.”
The woman pushed herself up a little higher on her elbows. She blinked as if trying to wake up fully. “The name’s Angela, former minister in the Church of England and drinker of vodka. I went to Hell for being a dyke. Anyone got a cigarette?”
The weather was cooling. Nowhere was that more apparent than from the deck of The Hatchet. The sea seemed to leap up on purpose, aiming with the precision of a child’s catapult and hitting Maddy with its icy spray. The only colour was grey – grey boats, grey sky, grey sea. Grey mood. Maybe, once dawn broke, the world would bring back its colour.
Maddy was surprised that tragedy could still affect her, that she could still grieve when there had already been so much death, yet she grieved fully. She’d fallen in love with Amanda Wickstaff. That son of a bitch Thomas had taken her away; a week ago now, but still heavy in the pit of her stomach.
One day, I’ll kill him. I promise, Amanda, he’ll pay for what he’s done.
“We’re here,” said Tosco, putting a hand on Maddy’s back and making her jolt.
“Where is here?” she asked.
“About twenty miles north of Newcastle. The demon messenger that Mass sent to Portsmouth spoke about a group of people hiding out in a forest west of here. Kielder Forest Park. We’ve delayed long enough. It’s going to be dangerous, but everyone is rested up and raring to go.”
Maddy chuckled. Tosco’s attempts at pronouncing English locations was jarring – New Castle. Ports Mouth. She still couldn’t believe he’d abandoned Portsmouth to help her. The American had been in charge of half the fleet, respected and admired, but now he was drifting in the dreary North Sea, searching for a group of people who may or may not be hiding out in a forest.
“I hope they’re still alive,” Maddy muttered, “and willing to receive visitors.”
Tosco leant on the railing and gazed across the water to where England’s east coast waited to meet them. “Portsmouth can’t be the only place. There has to be more.”
“Is that why you came? To find out?”
He turned to look at her and seemed to struggle with something for a moment. “I came because you needed someone on your side, Maddy. I respected General Wickstaff, and I let her down. You warned me Thomas was a threat. I should’ve fought him the second he arrived.”
Maddy sighed, feeling exhausted; so tired of talking, so tired of breathing. “You’re not to blam
e for this, James. Only Thomas is.”
“Perhaps you’re right. Perhaps not. We’ll drop anchor in thirty minutes and take a boat to shore. Most of the men will stay here with The Hatchet, but we’ll remain in radio contact.”
Maddy pointed towards the blue and grey helicopter perched on the rear deck of the ship. “Can’t we use that to get where we need to?”
Tosco shook his head. “We don’t have a lot of fuel. I figure it’ll be more useful pulling us out of a fire than taking us into one. If we need rescuing, someone will fly the bird to come get us. We also have the big guns on deck if we need to bring forth Armageddon.”
“We’re a little late on that.”
Tosco smirked. “Yeah, you might say we missed the boat.”
“You Americans aren’t famed for your clever sense of humour.”
“Hey! We made Frasier. That’s like the smartest comedy ever.” He started singing in an unexpected baritone. “Tossed salad and scrambled eggs.”
“I was always more into Friends, but I withdraw my comment. Thank you, Tosco. Thank you for doing this.”
“James, please.”
She put a hand on his arm and squeezed. “Thank you, James.”
“I’ll let you know when everything’s ready. Go visit the latrine, grab a bite to eat, and wrap up warm.”
She saluted. “Yes, Commander.”
“I’m an outlaw now. Captain will do.”
Maddy chuckled and leant over the railing, staring out at the north of England, wondering how many people were still alive out there.
Hell On Earth Box Set | Books 1-6 Page 141
