She looked upon her uncle’s face with a gasp of wonderment and even as the last flicker of what was left of his Light fled his eyes, Tellan hoarsely whispered, “You know…what to do…my love…”
Reya’s eyes searched Tellan’s bloodless face in spite of how heavily the breath rushed from his body then, and even when his hands became woefully slack in hers, still she stared at him in silent disbelief. She sat there in numb shock, heedless of the fight between Jenko and Belial that still raged brutally behind her, for all she could see was her beloved uncle, as lost to her now as her father. Reya looked up hopelessly at the fight that thundered on devastatingly, how enraged Jenko was as he battered relentlessly upon Belial’s guard, devastated at the death of Tellan beyond all sanity.
But he wasn’t dead, not truly…Reya realised in shock as she looked inside herself, for within the Light Tellan had passed to her there was so much of him there, so many of his memories and impossible knowledge that she sobbed in anguished wonder. He had kept his promise after all…
And within her newfound memories and vitality that made her feel more alive than she had ever been, Reya became seized with the undeniable knowledge of what she needed to do. That now, with the combined vitality of Asgard that burned within her like a new star, there was no one else on this plane that could do the impossible…not only did she have to kill Belial, but she had to destroy him.
Jenko pounded devastatingly upon Belial’s sword, a roaring anger that sent his mind aflame with insanity. This was the moment that danced on the edge of a knife, he knew; he was all that was left of a tremendous lineage, the last of his kin and all that kept the horrors of the Abyss from invading this plane. But all that screamed within his mind was the death of his brothers, each of them taken by the wrath of the demon bastard that had plagued their lives, who had taken everything they had fought so hard for. Jenko was seized with an overwhelming desire to destroy Belial beyond any death this mortal realm could offer and as he swung his blades with the fire of murder in his arms, Belial staggered terribly.
But such devastating anger brought a heavy price and, combined with his injuries from fighting Belial’s drones, Jenko’s relentless attacks were slowing gradually. It wasn’t an obvious slowing to human eyes, but as Reya rose from her crouch, her heightened senses could see the waver in his stamina that brought Belial an attack of opportunity. Reya began her sprint at the same moment Belial rammed his shoulder into Jenko’s stomach and with the rushing of air, came the downward strike that sent a sabre clattering out of the angel’s stunned grip.
Vella groaned groggily from her collapse upon the ground and as she rubbed her throat that burned terribly from Belial’s grip, she glanced in confusion at the scene before her. Her eyes slipped into weary focus at the body that lay so still upon the ground and with the sorrowful realisation that Tellan had been killed, she gasped in shock. No…She thought despairingly and as her hazy eyes slid towards the frenetic motion in the distance that seemed both close and far away, she saw Jenko was still locked in combat with Belial.
But…Reya…what are you doing? Vella wondered as she blinked dumbly at the girl’s mad dash for the men still in battle and her sensibilities crashed into devastating clarity when she watched the parrying flourish of Belial’s long sword.
The infernal weapon scored across Jenko’s stomach deeply and as the angel fell grunting onto his knees, Belial surged forward on the immediate advantage with a murderous flash of his silver eyes.
“Jenko!!” Vella screamed hoarsely.
Belial hissed derisively as Jenko tenaciously brought his remaining sabre into a hasty guard, but the kick that sent his weapon spinning from his grasp also staggered him and Belial lunged for the kill.
He wrapped his bare hand around Jenko’s throat and even as he began to strangle such pressure upon him, Reya ground her teeth and bore straight for Belial.
“Everything you’ve fought for, Jenko, everything you stand for, will be for nothing!” Belial taunted as he increased the pressure of his hateful grasp until Jenko’s face turned red, “When Baldur’s bitch opens those gateways, the shadow of the Abyss will swallow Midgard whole until there is nothing left but ash and nightmares!”
Jenko struggled against the hold that pounded terrible pressure into his skull and as he weakly clawed at Belial’s hand in fruitless retaliation, the demon prince brought his long sword back for the killing thrust. “You…have…failed, Asgard!” Belial hissed.
Jenko gasped for air desperately, all too aware that his vision drastically slipped in and out of focus beyond his control. Blood throbbed in his ears like the roaring of the tide that forced even more pressure into his brain and as his eyes rolled helplessly, he felt the titanic bruise of Belial’s truth. It was only a matter of time now until the colossal strength of that demonic blade punctured his heart and, when his chest began to spasm reflexively for the breath denied him, Jenko knew that this was the end.
But a sudden, unexpected jolt shook Belial’s body violently and as his hand fell abruptly from Jenko’s neck with a clattering of the long sword upon the ground, Belial looked down in numb shock. Jenko’s vision flooded back into him with pulsing flares of light and as his chest convulsed hungrily for air, he glanced up in confusion as to why his nemesis had suddenly released him.
Angel and demon both stared incredulously at the little hand that was laid gently against Belial’s chest and when Belial staggered back slightly with a grunt of surprise, Jenko gasped in horrified shock at the slender form that now stood between them.
“Reya…” He whispered hoarsely with wide eyes when he realised his niece stood tall and unafraid before the demon prince. And with the blue tinge that framed her hand placed over the broad expanse of Belial’s chest, he knew gravely within his heart what she had done.
Belial stared down at her with numb shock within his dark grey face and as his eyes flashed impotently, he weakly grasped her wrist with teeth bared in refusal. But Reya’s hand was unmovable against him even as he sank heavily onto his knees and with a grunt that brought forth the gift of her uncle’s Light, Reya pushed her hand ever stronger against the demon’s chest. Her nose bled as she continued to concentrate the force of Tellan’s Light into her own, sending it through her arm and crashing its combined strength against the threshold of Belial’s Dark.
Reya pushed deeper against his chest and with the sheer pressure that built up so crushingly within the demon’s being, Belial realised he could do nothing in the face of such power. Reya grunted from the tumultuous energy that surged resoundingly through her very soul as she searched for the centre of Belial’s Dark, and when she found the writhing core of his tainted soul, Reya’s eyes flared with a triumphant, searing blue light.
Jenko shielded his eyes from the intensity of light that suddenly engulfed Reya’s body like a flaming corona of pure energy, a swirling, pulsating blue luminance that he thought he would never see again within his lifetime. Jenko sank back on his knees with breathless wonder when he recognised the incredible magnitude of what she had done…the gateway she had opened within the centre of Belial’s body was not to Asgard, but to the Light of Asgard itself.
Belial screamed in agony when the taint of his Dark became overwhelmed by the magnificent power that was the Light of Asgard, and within Reya’s glowing eyes came the knowledge that he was doomed. Her body trembled with undiluted power as she pushed against Belial’s body once again, her hand reinforced by the strength of Tellan’s Light as though he himself stood by her side, whispering to her alone that she could see this through, that just a little more and it would all be over. Cascading thunder bolts of the purest energy pulsed throughout the demon’s Dark and with a scream that shrieked of such incredible pain, blue light began to snake across Belial’s skin as though his very veins had been filled with liquid lightning. Reya’s screams of effort matched Belial’s own as she opened the gateway to Asgard’s heart even further, forcing the sheer power of Light into the very centre of the demon
prince’s being, until he convulsed wildly against her hand.
The blue light that snaked over Belial’s skin pulsated suddenly and his skin audibly cracked into wide fissures of shining blue luminance, blasting a terrific psychic boom that crashed devastatingly across Jenko’s instincts. When the full potential of Reya’s incredibly powerful gateway opened within Belial’s centre with an even brighter flare, the demon prince’s body exploded into a cloud of blue splinters and with the obliteration of his body, the true core of Belial’s Dark became unbound. Jenko stared in astonishment at the sheer power his niece controlled as the particles of the demon prince’s Dark burned away into the ether like a smouldering ash cloud, and finally, the taint of Belial’s influence was eradicated by the incredible force of Asgardian Light.
But as Reya stood there, her hand still held out sightlessly amid the swirling whorls of incredible luminance that whipped a howling vortex around her, Jenko realised that blood trickled steadily from her nose and ears now. And with the exhausted fluttering of her lashes, even as she stood at the tremendous epicentre of her gateway that still hungrily devoured her energy, came the knowledge that the cost of summoning such power was soon to take its ultimate toll.
Everything within the ruin seemed to bleed of all sound and colour then and as Jenko instinctually dove forward with his hand desperately outstretched for her, his eyes widened when Reya’s own rolled within her head. In a horrifying echo of Tellan’s own mad grasp for her when she had fallen from the bridge, Jenko’s fingertips missed hers by millimetres and backwards she fell, unconscious into the open arms of the gateway.
His heart was rent asunder as he relived the overwhelming horror of watching her plummet, for his grasping hand flailed impotently at nothing but air and Jenko’s desperate scream of her name sounded mute in his ears. He watched on helplessly when her fingertips slipped last through the incredible light of the gateway and, when the energy that Reya had summoned collapsed abruptly within itself with a great vacuum of air, Jenko landed on all fours upon the ruin’s cold, stone floor.
He shuddered numbly as he stared unblinkingly at the blood stained stone beneath his palms, open mouthed in shock at the enormity of what had just happened. He hadn’t caught her…Reya…he…he’d lost her.
“Jenko!!” Vella cried as she ran towards him, but her voice was hollow in his ears as he stared at the stones with his mouth agape, shaking with the terrible grief that wracked his mind and body alike.
Vella collapsed beside him and gathered him up ferociously in her arms, but still Jenko stared in numb shock at the empty place where Reya had fallen. All that raced through his mind was that she was gone, lost to him entirely and he had failed Baldur in keeping her safe. She had gone where he couldn’t follow and, as Jenko closed his eyes despairingly at the remembrance of the blood that had dripped from her nose and ears, he didn’t know if she would have the strength to return.
Reya…He wailed within himself, devastated by the awful, soul destroying knowledge that the child he had loved with all his heart was now lost to him forever.
And with the utterance of such a horrific realisation in his mind, Jenko clung onto Vella’s trembling body tightly and screamed his grief at the sky, buffeted by her own sobs as she struggled against the raw emotion that devoured her.
There was nothing left of Belial; the magnitude of the Light of Asgard was grander than Asgard itself and Jenko could only imagine the agony opening such a gateway must have forced upon Reya’s human body. He felt a bitter pride within himself then even as he screamed raw anguish: that after centuries of war, after the deaths of countless immortals, Reya had done what none other could. She had brought peace to the planes with the destruction of Belial…Midgard was finally safe from his taint.
But she was still gone. Jenko’s heart became crushed by the overwhelming despair that Baldur’s daughter, his beloved niece, was lost and as he clung onto Vella, his mind was destroyed by incoherent anguish.
What little remained of Belial’s men had fled in terror when they had seen their master’s body and influence ripped apart by the Light of Asgard, and in truth, Vella was glad that they had offered no further violence. Jenko had sat between his fallen brothers in a silent vigil for hours and had refused to allow her to treat his wounds, in spite of her many insistent words. Everything she had said was answered by grief stricken silence and Vella despaired of what had become of him as he slumped there helplessly, to her eyes an entirely broken man. Eventually she decided she would treat his wounds regardless of his initial protestations and as he sat there, staring into nothing between the bodies of Tellan and Timran, Vella had selflessly taken care of him.
And when he had finally broken his silence with the simple utterance that he wanted to give Tellan and Timran the funeral they deserved, together they had built pyres on the very spot where they had fallen. There were no words as Jenko lit the pyres with grim mourning, for he felt that anything he could have said aloud to his brothers was useless in the face of his failures. He felt responsible for it all…if he had fought better fifteen years ago, Timran would have still been alive; if he had been there three months ago, Baldur would have still been alive; if he had been faster last night, Tellan would have still been alive. If he had caught her…Reya…
Jenko stood there haloed by the roaring light of flame as the fires claimed the bodies of his brothers and as he watched them burn, he hoped that somehow they knew he had done all he could…but it hadn’t been enough. That knowledge was a burden that he would carry beyond the death he desperately wanted for himself, for the grief that swallowed him whole shrouded him with such intense pain that he couldn’t stand it.
I should have died…not Tellan. Jenko thought in misery as he closed his eyes with a silent sob that tore his heart in two. He was – had been, had always been the better man…the better soldier, the better uncle. He would have caught Reya, he knew instinctually with a heavy swallow that all but choked him in its gravity.
“Jenko…please…” Vella murmured as he dropped the torch from lifeless fingers.
But a soul destroying anguish had claimed him so completely that his tongue had become frozen and so he remained silent, even as the flames devoured his brothers’ bodies. Still he stood beside his brothers in devastated silence, staring sightlessly in mourning of everything he had ever held dear, while the flames climbed higher into the sky.
Vella’s mouth quivered as a tear slid down her cheek and with the gentle pressing of her hand upon his shoulder that trembled so terribly, she whispered plaintively through choking sobs that wrenched her chest, “Jenko…please. I–I can’t…”
Jenko looked upon his remaining friend then and, with the pleading solemnity that exuded from her very being, he finally reached out for her hand. She gripped onto him gratefully, thankful that at the very least he still knew that she was there. And as she let go of her own heart–breaking sorrow for Tellan and Reya both, Jenko closed his eyes in anguished agony.
Jenko then hauled her into a tight embrace and as they held one another desperately in their shared grief, he found comfort in the realisation that after everything that had happened, everything he had lost, he still had Vella. He stroked her hair as he frowned sorrowfully into the security of her neck, grateful that she had fearlessly stayed and fought beside him, where so many others would not have had the courage to do so.
And now, as she held him so tightly, she still remained as fiercely loyal to him as he had been to Tellan…and that was more precious than Jenko could ever tell her. He found a stability within the solidity of her contact then, something tangible that he could use to repair the wounds in his soul and as he stepped back from her slightly, he looked upon her solemnly.
Vella touched his face caringly and as he pressed his forehead against hers, they shared this brief moment that held no barriers between them. It was strange, she reflected as she closed her eyes against the unusually unveiled warmth that exuded from them both, to find a brother in someone th
at was so different from her. But he wasn’t different, not really; he still bled, he still loved…he still mourned.
We’re our own family…She realised as he sighed in gratitude of her empathy and finally, when he felt strong enough that he could stand back from her arms, he nodded firmly that he was better.
“How did she do that?” Vella asked when she registered instinctually that it was finally alright to do so.
Jenko knew what she meant without asking for an explanation. He looked upon the roiling fire of Tellan’s pyre and replied with soft pride that shone from his eyes, “Tellan gave her his Light. Opening that gateway would have killed her, otherwise.”
“Can she come back?”
Jenko’s jaw clenched as he fought against the sudden rush of emotion that hammered at his heart. “I don’t know.” He murmured honestly.
He closed his eyes then and within the silence that crackled with the heat of the funeral pyres, Jenko pictured the wonderful violet of Reya’s eyes. He remembered then, as he always did when he thought of her, of that moment he had sat holding her in his arms under that great oak tree. The way those infant eyes had stared at him in such wonder when he had sung to her, how tightly her little hand had grasped onto his finger…
“I wish I could take you away from all of this, somewhere safe and free, far away where angels and demons could never touch you.”
Jenko’s eyes flared open suddenly and with a swell of hope that bloomed almost painfully within his heart, he looked at Vella with renewed faith in his wounded eyes.
“What?” She asked in hopeful curiosity.
“Do you think we’re far from the wagon?”
“I’m not sure…I don’t think so. Why?”
Jenko gathered his sabres purposefully then and as he slid them home into their sheaths, he said decisively, “We’re going home.”
When they reached the place they had abandoned the wagon, Jenko was dismayed that there was no sign of it; likely taken by bandits who had thought they’d found a lucky mark. Jenko and Vella travelled towards the nearest town they could find on foot and when they finally found themselves in a small trading town, they stole furtively aboard a postal wagon bound for Dahlia.
The Fallen Page 40
