by J. L. Murray
“That will be nearly impossible,” said Sam. “These creatures want to fight. Angels and demons. It's their nature to love fighting one another.”
“You said 'nearly impossible,'” I repeated. “That means there's a way. It's not like we haven't done the nearly impossible before, right?”
“This is different,” he said. “It's not one demon, or a group of evil men that consume angelwine. It's war.”
“Can we stop Michael?” I said.
“It's not Michael we have to convince,” said Sam. “It's everyone else. To do that, to get them to stop, would take a miracle. I'm not even convinced your death would appease them.”
“Then we go to Plan B,” I said. “We find the Creator. I've seen him before, he's not really difficult to pick out of a crowd. Just look for the ugly sweater.” Sam laughed and I squeezed his hand. “We can do this,” I said.
Sasha was waiting outside, his arms crossed and his back leaning against the cliff wall. He looked from my face to Sam's. “You found him,” he said.
“Yes,” said Sam. “We found him.”
“And?” said Sasha.
“And if we don't end the war, he will,” said Sam.
“Is good, right?” said Sasha.
We explained what would happen in two days. Three beasts to consume everyone on the planet. I told Sasha about the Creator, about how he was in the world, how I had met Him. How I had to find Him.
“Niki, I want to help you,” Sasha said. “I don't care what it is. If you are doing it, I know must be the right thing.”
“Sasha, what you told me today doesn't change anything,” I said. “I'll always think of you as my father. No matter what. You've been a really shitty father, but a father nonetheless.” Sasha laughed and nodded.
“Yes, shitty. I have been this. That is why I owe you, Nikita. I owe you this respect. I owe you so much more, but respect is what I give you now. And, my army.”
“How will you get them to the world?” said Sam.
“Sam,” I said, “he doesn't need to be involved.”
“Well, we cannot possibly search the entire city on our own, can we?” said Sam. “For a single man? We'll need help.”
“We have a door,” said Sasha. “I opened a portal three days ago. I hear things.”
“Can you meet us above?” said Sam. “At the Deep Blue Sea?”
“The what?” said Sasha.
“Meet us where your old warehouse used to be,” I said.
“By the river?” said Sasha. I nodded.
We parted ways with Sasha at the place where we had entered Hell. He continued on towards Erebos. “Are you ready?” said Sam.
“No,” I said. “How are we going to do this?”
“How do you usually do things?” said Sam.
I smiled. “By the seat of my pants, screaming and shooting my way to the exit.”
“Then that is how we will do this,” said Sam. “Minus the screaming, I hope.” He held out his arm and I hesitated a moment before wrapping my arms around him and bracing myself for the dizzying ride through the Unsung. I concentrated the whole time on trying not to notice the heat of Sam through his jacket, or the feeling of his hands around my waist. I concentrated on trying to feel sick this time.
It didn't work.
The pain started as soon as we broke through to the Deep Blue Sea, and I immediately doubled over, putting my hands over my ears. The noise was so loud I couldn't function. A screaming voice was causing the shrieking pain inside my head. Putting my hands over my ears did nothing. It was as if the screaming was coming from inside my head. I sank to my knees.
I felt arms around me, other voices, but couldn't make out the words. I realized I was also screaming, and willed myself to stop, trying to breathe through the pain. Sam was touching me, comforting me, but it did no good.
And then the noise became words. Fight for Michael, Slay the demons. The pain suddenly disappeared, leaving me panting on the floor. Sam was holding me up, sitting behind me and supporting my shoulders.
“Niki?” he said. He sounded angry. No, I realized, not angry. Scared. He was afraid. Afraid for me.
“I'm okay,” I said, but my voice sounded small.
“The hell you are,” he said. He seemed to sag back a little. “Niki, you scared the hell out of me.”
“I didn't do it on purpose,” I said, trying to stand up. My head was spinning, and I sat back down.
“What happened?” said Sam.
“I'm not sure,” I said, trying to get my bearings. “I think,” I said slowly, “that Michael just tried to recruit me.”
“Recruit you?” said Sam. “To fight for him?”
“Yeah,” I said. “A voice said, Fight for Michael, Slay the demons.”
“Why would he do that?” said Sam. “He knows you wouldn't fight for him.”
“I'm not sure, but I don't think it was meant only for me.”
“He did this to others?” said Sam.
“Could he be losing already?” I said. “Could he be so desperate he's recruiting humans?”
“He wouldn't recruit humans,” said Sam, his voice wooden. I turned around to look up into his face. He looked at me and shook his head. There was something between shock and horror on his face. “He'd recruit Abbies.”
What little strength I had seemed to evaporate. I forced myself to stand. Sam let me go. I walked across the bar, as if weighed down with sandbags. Each step took so much effort. I opened the door and stepped outside.
The fighting had left the warehouse district. I walked out to the street. There were no explosions here any longer, only occasional screams. A wet thud. A dull clang as a blade hit stone or concrete. A gurgle. The strangled cries of victory followed by a short, eerie silence. The dead lay where they had fallen. The road was washed in silver and black and red, the blood of angels and demons and humans.
I walked up the street. I had no fear, only dread. Two blocks up, where the residential apartment buildings started. I heard crying from a pile of rubble on my right. I went to it and cleared debris away to find a little boy, his blue eyes blinking at me, pleading for help just before they went empty. I looked down to see he had been crushed by a beam. His midsection was the stuff of nightmares. I looked at his innocent, dead face. He hadn't asked for this. His spirit appeared before me in a swirl.
“What happened to me?” he said.
I closed my eyes, fighting the emotion I felt. I shook my head and forced myself to look at him. “I'm sorry,” I said. “You died.”
“Will I go to Heaven?” he said.
“Soon,” I said. I felt wrong for the lie. At least I suspected it was a lie. But it was the kindest thing I could say to him.
“Are you an angel?” he said.
“I don't know,” I said truthfully. “I'm not sure what I am.” I tried to smile, but my eyes burned. “Maybe I'm an angel.” The boy smiled.
“Are my mom and dad dead too?” he said.
I looked at the pile of bricks that used to be his home. “Yes,” I said.
“I'm going to find them,” he said.
“They might not remember you,” I said. “But they'll remember again when you get to Heaven. Okay?”
He nodded sagely. “Okay. Will you help me find them?”
“I'm sorry,” I said. “I can't.”
“Why not?”
“I have to go save the world.”
“Do you think you can do it?” said the boy.
“I hope so,” I said.
He looked at me skeptically. “You don't look very strong.” He shrugged and ran off down the street. As I watched him, I noticed a group of ghosts still keeping their distance. Across the street, a door slammed and a man staggered out of the building. He saw me and came walking toward me.
“Is it true?” he said. He surveyed the carnage with a shocked look. “Is it really a war between Heaven and Hell?”
“Yes,” I said.
“I want to help,” he said. “I want to h
elp Michael.”
“Why?” I said.
“I'll kill these demon bastards for him,” he said. He help out his hand and a ball of green energy appeared in his palm. “I can fight,” he said.
“Why do you want to kill the demons?” I said. “Because the voice in your head told you to?”
“No,” he said, looking at me like I was stupid. “Because Heaven is good. Everyone knows that. Hell is evil.”
“I wouldn't be so sure,” I said. “Michael started this war.”
“He must have had a good reason,” he said.
“No,” I said. “He didn't. He's crazy. He started it because he just wanted a war.”
“Well, it's demons, though,” said the man. He seemed to become aware that I made him feel uncomfortable. He stepped away from me. “Demons are evil. I have to go.” He took off down the street. I watched until he turned a corner and was out of sight. I felt Sam behind me, and turned. He was in the form of Death, his robes billowing in the wind. I could see the man underneath, but no one else would be able to, except maybe his brothers.
“You're outside,” I pointed out.
“Nothing to lose now,” he said. “In two days, Lucifer will loose the Scourges.”
“Is there any way to stop the Abbies from joining up with Michael?” I said. “Without hurting them?”
“The best thing we can do is find the Creator and stop the war. Sasha and his people should be here within the next few hours. We should prepare.”
I allowed Sam to lead me back to the Deep Blue Sea. I looked over my shoulder at the sound of a gurgle to see an Abby woman surround a black-skinned demon with a ball of water. He thrashed and jerked in the bubble, then went limp. The water lifted into the air and the demon dropped to the pavement. The woman sucked the water back in through her mouth and wiped her lips with the back of her hand, then got on her knees with her hands clasped. I realized she was praying. She was goddamn praying. I turned my back to her.
“Do they even deserve to be saved?” I said.
“You tell me,” said Sam. “Would you let Sofi die?”
“No,” I said.
“Robert Gage?”
“Of course not.”
“Then it's worth it to save them all.”
“Stop being so goddamn right, Sam,” I said.
Thirteen
The Deep Blue Sea was dead quiet. I went straight for the bar and poured myself a drink. I drank it all at once and then poured another. Sam sat down at the bar and I poured him one too. He looked at me solemnly while sipping his drink.
“Why do you look like that?” I said. “Out there, I mean. You don't look different in Erebos. Why here?”
“A cruel caveat,” he said, taking a sip. “Michael's condition. I was permitted to leave Briah to live in the world. But I couldn't live a normal life. I had to assume a terrifying form when I moved among people. ”
“So, what happens to your agreement if Michael dies?” I said. “Would you be able to live like a normal person?”
“Normal?” he said.
“Well, more normal,” I said.
“In the way that you're normal?” he said. “Possibly,” he said. “I don't think about it any more. At least I didn't.” He looked at me contemplatively. “She's far away, you know.”
“What?” I said, surprised.
“Your godmother. You're thinking of her, aren't you? Wondering if she's all right? Mr. Gage has done right by you, Niki. They are both far away.”
“How do you know?” I said.
“I just know,” he said. “They're safe. They are far from the fighting. For now. You know, if Michael is using the Abbies, that could mean that he's already losing.”
“You think the Hellions were winning?” I said.
“I suspect,” said Sam, “the angels were not all keen to fight. I'm not sensing an overabundance of death in Briah. Perhaps many are just refusing to fight.”
“Wouldn't Michael just have them killed if they refuse?” I said.
“Not necessarily,” said Sam. “There are many prisons in Briah. He could have them arrested.”
“So his people are refusing to follow him?” I said. “Even with his cause?”
“It's quite possible,” said Sam.
“That doesn't make what he's doing to the Abbies any less horrible,” I said. “They'll be dying out there. He doesn't care about humans, Abbies or not. They're expendable to him. He needs to be stopped.” I finished my glass. “I don't like any of this. It's bullshit. Abbies were persecuted by New Government, then their own people. And now Michael is using them. And none of this will stop Lucifer from destroying the world. I'm sick of it all. Why here? Why us?”
“Why do human armies march on countries and civilizations that are ill-suited to defend themselves?” said Sam.
“I don't know,” I said. “Oil? Money? Sex, drugs, rock and roll?”
“No,” said Sam. He put his glass to his lips and drained it. He set the empty back on the bar and looked at me. “Because they can.”
I picked up the bottle and filled his glass again. I tipped it to fill my own, but I jumped as a voice resounded in my head. Niki. Help me. Please. I dropped the bottle and it broke with a wet clatter.
“No!” I said, holding my head. “Leave me alone, Natalie.”
Sam was staring at me.
Niki? said the voice. It was so loud that it was like someone yelling in my ear. Natalie sounded strange. She was usually calm, withdrawn. But something was wrong with her. I shook my head. It didn't matter. She had betrayed me. Betrayed the whole damn world. She didn't deserve my pity. It was probably a trick anyway.
“Your sister?” said Sam.
“She's not my sister,” I said. I got down from my stool to fetch a towel to clean up the whiskey and broken glass. It had been the good stuff, too. Just another casualty of Natalie. I sighed.
“What did she say?” said Sam.
“It doesn't matter,” I said, gathering up the big chunks of glass.
“I think it does,” said Sam. “It might be a clue as to what Michael's up to. Besides, it obviously matters to you.”
“You don't know me nearly as well as you think you do,” I said.
“Perhaps not,” said Sam. “But you're bleeding.”
I looked down to realize I had been scrubbing the floor with the towel and glass had gone through and cut my hand.
“Damn,” I said. I left the mess and went into the bathroom. I ran the cut under cold water. I looked closer. The blood was still red, but it was tinged with silver. I rubbed at it with my thumb. The red rubbed off and blood welled up in the wound, but it was no longer red. It was full silver.
I avoided my reflection in the mirror. I couldn't see my own face right now. It was too jarring. My eyes looked so alien, so supernatural. Like something from a movie. I didn't want to see. I splashed water on my face. My hand wasn't bleeding any longer. I touched the dried silver and it flaked off.
“What the hell?” I said. I ran water over my hand. There was no cut. No evidence there ever had been one. I braced myself on the counter again. What the hell was happening to me? I felt the power in my chest begin to agitate. I felt dizzy. I needed food. I opened the door and walked across the bar to the table where Eli had left some bread and apples. There wasn't much left. Just a stale end of the loaf and the last apple. I ate them both quickly. Sam came over and stood next to me, staring at me.
“What?” I said through a mouthful of apple.
“I'm sorry, Niki, but we need to plan our search.”
“I just need a minute, Sam. Okay? I'm starving.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but there was a ripping noise. I sat down in the chair next to me as the blackness invaded my head. “What now?” I said. Only one figure emerged, this time, though. Janis was alone. She closed the gap behind her, the thickness disappearing from my head, and stood there blinking at us, her eyes magnified by her eyeglasses. She looked at Sam and her mouth opened and closed lik
e a fish out of water. I looked down at the front of her. She was covered in silver angel blood. She held her hands out like she didn't know what to do with them.
“Janis?” said Sam. He rushed to her. “What's happened?”
She shook her head. She reached up to put her hand over her mouth, but remembered at the last minute that she was covered in blood. She just looked at her hands, holding them in front of her face. “I didn't know what to do,” she said, her voice a raspy croak.
I brought a chair over to her. She sat down slowly, stiffly.
“What happened?” I said. She looked up at me like she had forgotten I was there. She shook her head. She seemed shell-shocked.
“She was just so small,” she said. “Just a little thing. It wasn't right. But I didn't know what to do.” She looked at Sam. “You know I have to help someone travel if they ask me. I can't choose who to help. I had to take her, but I didn't know where else to go.”
Sam stood up straight, an expression of realization on his face. “Someone is in Limbo,” he said. “Who have you taken there, Janis?”
“Natalie,” I said.
“Yes,” said Janis.
“Is that her blood all over you?” I said.
“Yes,” she said. “He was going to kill her. She's just a little thing. I can't ever go back to Briah. She did something,” she said. “To Michael. Something in his head. He got very angry. He went after her with that sword of his.” She shook her head, her eyes wider than seemed possible behind her glasses. “She ran and hid behind that other angel, the healer.”
“Raphael?” said Sam.
“That's the one,” said Janis. “He tried to talk to Michael, to reason with him. But Michael was out of his head. He was screaming about how he was the New Creator. He pushed Raphael out of the way and ran that little girl through.”
I caught my breath involuntarily. “He stabbed Natalie?” I said. I didn't know how to feel. Emotions were churning inside me, feeding the already-roiling power in my chest.
“There was blood everywhere,” said Janis. “Just a little thing. I couldn't believe it. She's so small. She looked at me and told me she wanted to go to Limbo. So before Michael could kill her, I put my arms around her and traveled.”
