by M. R. Forbes
I came down a few feet away from her, throwing my power out as I landed to clear the area. Demons and Touched both fell back at the sudden shockwave, before resetting their sights on one another.
"Sarah," I said calmly.
She was twenty feet away, standing on the ground. I recognized the Beatles t-shirt she was wearing. I had given it to her for her birthday a couple of years earlier.
She looked over at me but didn't speak. The fire was still in her eyes. The wanton chaos. It wasn't a good sign.
"Sarah, it's me. It's Landon."
Nothing. No response. No recognition. What the hell had happened to her?
She began walking toward me. No fear, either. No hesitation.
"Sarah, stop," I said. "I don't want to hurt you."
She didn't stop. She didn't slow. Her wings folded in, fluttering ahead of her, each scaled tip like a separate knife, already coated in a layer of blood.
"Damn it, Sarah," I said. "This isn't you. Whatever is happening, I can help."
She kept coming until she was too close. I threw my power out at her. Her wings folded in, blocking her face, and the power washed over them, turned harmlessly aside.
She took three quick steps toward me, her face appearing behind the wings.
"No, brother, you can't," she said, one of them spreading and stabbing toward me.
I had to roll away to get clear of it, and I felt the breeze as it slammed into the ground beside me. I made it back to my feet, then backpedaled just in time to avoid the other wing.
"Yes, I can. You don't have to do this. There's no such thing as destiny."
"I've seen it," she said, coming at me again. "I've seen it all. How it ends. How it must be."
"We can change it. You thought the Beast was going to destroy the world, and we stopped it. We beat him."
"I was wrong. It wasn't the Beast I saw tearing this world apart."
Her wings came at me in a flurry of blows that I could barely see, and barely keep up with. One sliced my shoulder, the other caught my wrist. I pushed myself back, getting a little more distance between us.
"The Divine will destroy it, brother," Sarah said, following me. "Their war will continue until all of it is gone. Until everything is dust. The balance will turn further and faster, beyond anyone's ability to control."
"We won't let it," I said.
"You can't stop it," she replied, a single tear running down her cheek. "You're causing it."
Fourteen
Time stopped.
Her words hung in the air between us, a bullet unlike any other, filtering in so slowly and so impressively that it sucked the universe away from me in an instant.
Causing it?
A ton of bricks would have hurt less.
I had given all of myself, all of everything I cared about and loved, to do the job that I was asked to do. To be at the center of the war between good and evil, to fight the good fight, to make sure that humankind was free to decide their own future. I had made more sacrifices than anyone should have to make. I had fallen and gotten back up, drowned and resurfaced, burned and was reborn.
Causing it?
I was doing what I was supposed to do. I had no secret agenda. No ulterior motive. In that sense, I was as good as I could be and proud of that fact. I knew the balance was becoming more difficult to maintain. I knew that the war had been escalating since the Beast had been destroyed.
Or was it since I had returned to it?
Causing it?
The Fist of God. Sarah. Adam. Gervais. Now a potential new war brewing in Heaven. I had sensed how things were growing beyond control. I felt the pressure to reign it all in. It was the reason I was there. To stop Adam. To stop her.
But had it all happened because I was here? Because I had taken up the mantle of Champion for Humankind? The balance had always maintained itself before Charis and I arrived on the scene. Was Dante wrong? Had he wanted to keep the status quo, and in his efforts destroyed it?
Which came first?
It wasn't the first time the thoughts had come, but they had been solely prompted by my own uncertainty. Now Sarah was telling me that maybe the downside of my existence was the truth of it. She could see the future. It wasn't always clear. It wasn't always accurate, but she knew it better than anyone else.
Causing it?
What if I was?
I snapped back to reality with every sense heightened. I could smell the demons. I could taste the mortal sweat and blood. I could feel the charge of energy in the air.
Sarah was sweeping toward me, her wings aiming to cut me down. At least now I knew why. She thought she could stop it by killing me and all of the other Divine. Did she know about Gervais? She wouldn't be able to stop the Fist, no matter how strong she had become.
Did that mean that Adam wasn't the bad guy? Or was he using her? Did he convince her that I was the problem? Were her visions even real? He had a hand in creating the Fist; surely he could find a way to fake someone's dreams.
I had no answers. Nothing solid to back any of my decisions. Right now, I knew Sarah wanted to kill me, and whether I was the cause of the discord or not, I couldn't let her. Not while Gervais was still out there. Not until I knew the truth.
I threw my power against her again. Once more, she deflected it with her wings. It slowed her down slightly to defend, and so I pushed again, harder and harder with each blow. It was enough to slow her as I backed away, but not enough to stop her.
I couldn't win this fight. We both knew it. I needed to get out of this. I needed to escape. How?
I could time walk almost anywhere, but that would mean leaving Obi behind. Maybe he could take care of himself, but I wasn't going to do that. There had to be another way.
"Sarah, please," I said, trying to continue the dialog, trying one more time to reason with her.
"I'm sorry, brother," she replied. "It is what must be."
"What if Adam is lying to you?" I asked. "What if he is tricking you with your visions?"
"He isn't," she said.
"How do you know?"
"I've been having them since you defeated the Beast. I've known these days were going to come. I've prayed, Landon. I've prayed that it would change and that I would be wrong."
She changed her tactics, putting her wings out in front of her like a wedge. It was enough to break free of my attacks, to get herself moving toward me unhindered. She came on like a freight train, leading with those impossibly sharp edges.
"He's using you," I said, diving to the side, coming to my feet as she turned, her wings sweeping out toward me.
I smacked one down with my hand. The other caught my side, digging deep and causing me to grunt and fall to my knees. I threw myself back and away as they plunged for the killing blow, narrowly escaping.
"No, brother," she replied, making her final approach. "I'm using him."
I saw her wing rippling toward me. I tried to throw my power at it, but it cut right through. I wanted to duck away from it, but I was too damn slow.
What would happen when I died? I didn't even know. Part of me welcomed the opportunity to find out.
"I do not accept this," I heard Dante say.
Dante?
He appeared from thin air, right in front of me. His staff came up, blocking Sarah's wing and pushing it aside. Then he reached back and put his hand on my shoulder.
I felt a soft breeze like a breath tickle my face, and then we were somewhere else.
Fifteen
I sat on the grass, my eyes closed. I could hear the faint burbling of a nearby stream, and the whistling of swallows nearby. My side hurt. My arm hurt. My pride hurt.
"Where are we?" I asked, pushing my power throughout my body, using it to begin healing the wounds. I could feel the resistance. These weren't normal cuts.
"New Zealand," Dante replied.
"Not Italy?"
"Too cold."
"You don't feel cold."
"Too close to the slaughter,
then. Does it matter, signore?"
"Not as long as you can get me back there. I'll be ready in a minute."
He sighed. "I didn't pull you out of that massacre to let you charge back into it. Did you learn nothing, Landon?"
"Obi is still out there."
"Obi will be fine. He isn't Divine."
"The rest of them are. The Touched."
"And they are going to die, as are every last demon in the army the fallen angel assembled. I'm sorry, Landon. There is no way for either of us to stop it."
I knew he was right. That didn't mean it sat well.
"So you know what's happening?" I asked.
"Si, signore. I was already looking into the rumors when Alichino left a message for me from you. I would have arrived sooner, but I didn't know where to find you. The Mass seemed the most likely place to rendezvous. I'm just glad I made it in time."
"She would have killed me," I said, still not quite believing it. Sarah was the closest thing to family I had. I couldn't comprehend that she would honestly believe that all of this was my fault.
Unless it honestly was.
"She said I'm the reason the war is escalating. That my presence is the cause, not the effect. Is she right?"
Dante looked me in the eye. He didn't speak for a few heartbeats, choosing his words before speaking them.
"It is hard to say," he replied.
"That's not an answer."
"It is very much an answer. The balance is a universal truth, Landon. It isn't under our direct control. It is possible that introducing you to the equation changed the algorithm, yes. But it is also possible that the world would have already burned without you."
"That wouldn't mean I'm not causing it."
"No. But it would mean that your cause is necessary."
It wasn't what I was looking for. Then again, I didn't know what I was looking for. I didn't want to be right or wrong. I just wanted things to smooth out and go my way for once.
"I can't hurt her," I said, changing the subject.
"Landon, I know you are very close to Sarah. I know you don't wish to see her come to harm-"
"No," I said, interrupting. "I mean I can't hurt her. She can deflect my power. Push it aside like it's nothing. If you hadn't stepped in, she would have killed me."
I could still feel the sting on my arm where her wing had cut me. It was healing very slowly.
He rubbed his chin. "I see. Would you have harmed her, if you could?"
"No. But I would have tried to subdue her."
"Subdue?" He shook his head. "I told you she is dangerous, Landon. I warned you that this could happen."
"This isn't like that. She doesn't want to kill humankind. She wants to protect it by destroying the Divine."
"Destroying the Divine is the same as destroying humankind. No matter what the ignorant among the mortals think, they cannot survive without Heaven or Hell. The Divine are as much a part of the fabric of the universe as they are, and as such are required to be."
"What about me?" I asked. "Am I required to be?"
"You're a different story."
"Is that a no?"
He hesitated.
"Is it?" I pushed.
"No, you aren't required to be. Except, you are the only one who can stop her."
"Because of course, I am. How? I just told you I couldn't hurt her."
"You defeated Abaddon, Landon. That was no small feat."
"I stabbed him in the back like a cheap thief," I said. "And Gervais got away with the Fist. Zifah showed up while I was in France. Did you know that?"
"No."
"The Fist is powerful, Dante. Insanely powerful. I don't know if I can destroy that thing either. It's just like Sarah said. The war is getting harder and harder to control. When the wheels finally do come off, everything is going to crash hard."
"You have defeated things more powerful than yourself before. The Beast, for one."
"With help. A lot of help."
"You have help. Obi. Alyx."
"I can't use Alyx. Her aura will lead Gervais right to me."
"Which could be very valuable if utilized correctly."
I was going to say something. I kept my mouth shut. He was thinking way ahead of me. I took a few breaths, staring up at the sky.
"Okay. I'm listening. What do you know?"
"After you defeated Abaddon, I returned to Purgatory to begin doing some research. On Zifah for one, as I had never heard of him before. On Adam for another."
"Why Adam? Did you have a reason to be suspicious?"
"Adam helped create the Fist and is today considered a denizen of Hell, as are Zifah and Gervais. I couldn't rule out that he would help them learn to control the weapon."
I hadn't thought of that, but it made sense. "What did you discover that you decided not to tell me until it was overly important and probably too late?"
He smiled sheepishly. I had hit the nail right on the head.
"I discovered that Sarah had been in communication with him. She was using an old friend of yours to send messages to him."
"Old friend of mine?" I asked.
"The messenger demon. Yuli."
"I didn't think that little cretin was still alive."
"Si, signore. Working for Sarah. Since she was using a messenger, I couldn't determine what the contents of the messages were."
"But she was reaching out to him?" I asked. "Not the other way around?"
"As near as I can tell, that is correct."
So she hadn't been lying when she said she was using him. The idea of her actions being solely her responsibility made me feel sick. She had killed her so-called boyfriend and the changelings because she wanted to do it, not because Adam had put her under some kind of spell.
I sat silently for a minute. I knew the truth, but I didn't want to admit to it. I definitely didn't want to say it. First Josette. Then Charis and Clara. Then Rose and Elyse. Not Sarah, too.
"Landon," Dante said in a way that suggested he knew what I was thinking.
"I have to kill her, don't I?" I said.
"We cannot let her destroy the Divine, and there is no other way to stop her."
"I can reason with her."
"Can you, signore?"
I slammed my fist into the ground. "Damn it," I shouted. I knew I couldn't change her mind on this. It wasn't like when she was fighting her evil side, and I was trying to help her. This was the true culmination of her visions. The real endgame.
It was going to happen unless I ended her life.
"I can't get near her," I said. "My power is useless."
"You took only the smallest fraction of the Beast's power. It was an honorable decision, but also a short-sighted one. Fortunately, you also have one of the most powerful weapons ever made in your possession."
"I do?"
"Uriel's blade."
I had forgotten about the sword that Hearst had trapped Abaddon with, using it to draw out his power and take it for himself.
"The sword is in pieces," I said. It was in Alyx's new home in Mexico, sitting in a shoebox under her bed. "Besides, what would I do with it?"
"First, it doesn't have to remain that way," Dante replied. "Second, do you really need to ask? The blade steals Divine energy. You can use it to increase your power."
"You want me to do the same thing I'm supposed to stop Sarah from doing?"
"As a means to an end, yes. Such increased ability might also give you the upper hand against Gervais and the Fist."
I couldn't deny there was a pretty solid upside, but it wasn't all wine and roses. "Only one person can reforge the sword."
"Si, signore."
"You know what will happen if Uriel comes to Earth. It's bad enough Raguel stopped by to make an appearance."
"Si, signore. I understand the ramifications. That is why Uriel cannot come to the sword. That is why the sword must go to him."
I nodded. "Good idea. There's an angel helping me. One of Josette's mentors. His name
is Alfred. He-"
Dante was shaking his head.
"What?" I asked.
"If you turn the weapon over to the seraphim, you will never see it again."
"What if I make them promise to return it?"
"They will not make that promise. Uriel's blade is of unimaginable value to them, and allowing you to use it to gather power? It will never be allowed."
"I can't blame them for that."
"Nor can I. Yet it doesn't change the facts. You must convince Uriel to repair the sword. It is the only chance we have."
"I can't convince him of anything unless..." I paused, the lightbulb finally going on. "You want me to go to Heaven?"
"Si, signore."
"How?"
"You have allies among the angels. Use them."
"You just said the angels would never allow me to do what I need to do."
"You have always been resourceful, signore. I'm sure you will figure something out."
Not that I had a choice. Dante was right. I was too weak to fight Sarah in my current state. If getting Uriel to fix the sword and killing demons with it was the only way to level up, I had to do it.
"Can you send me back now?" I asked. "It seems I have a lot of work to do."
"One moment, signore," Dante said.
He vanished a moment later, returned a few heartbeats after that. Then he reached out toward me again. I extended my hand, touching it to his. A moment later I was standing in Alyx's bedroom. The sheets on the bed were still in disarray from our earlier near-miss. I crouched low, reaching under the bed and pulling out the old shoebox.
"I can't believe you put a priceless relic in that," he said.
"That's the idea," I replied, opening the lid. I lifted the shattered pieces of the blade from it and dropped them into my coat pocket. "You should stick around. I could get used to traveling the world like this."
He smiled. "You know I cannot remain, signore. Though I am pleased to be able to offer you assistance once more."
"I've got the blade. Take me back to Italy."
"Of course, signore. I will remain alert to messages from Alichino, should you require me again. I will also see if I can uncover anything else that might help."
"Thank you," I said.
