Angelbound THRAX

by Christina Bauer

  Lincoln’s attention is riveted to my every word. “Not to me, it doesn’t.”

  “I know it will take time, too. Many lifetimes, maybe.”

  “Some fights are worth it.”

  I grip the gunner controls before me. “In that case, I think we should stay, Lincoln. The first step to a joint understanding of our peoples is for you and I to fight injustice together, as quasi and thrax.”

  The voice comes out on the speaker again. “Units with maintenance issues, this is your last chance to leave. Units with maintenance issues, this is your last chance to leave.”

  Lincoln’s gaze connects with mine. Invisible arcs of love and fear seem to move between us.

  “If you want to leave, I’ll respect that.” I straighten my shoulders. “But I really want to stay and fight.”

  “And I want to battle at your side,” says Lincoln. “For all thrax, including our Maxon.” The igni told me they wanted our son named after the last Great Scala. The guy was old as dirt when I met him, but he’d been with the igni for a thousand years. They loved the man. We were proud to pass on the name.

  My eyes well with held-in tears. “Including our Maxon.”

  Ethan’s voice sounds on the loudspeakers outside. “Thank you all for joining my Touch The Tech Event.”

  Something in Ethan’s voice sets my nerves on edge. My warrior sense goes berserk. The monitor before me crackles to life. On it, I see a live video of Ethan that’s being broadcast from the H-E TV Channel.

  The man has his own television channel? Why am I not surprised?

  An older white guy in a gray suit acts the announcer. He holds a microphone in his left hand, while his right presses on his ear piece. Beside him, Ethan stands beside him in his gas station onesie. All around, crowds are streaming and cheering.

  The old dude announcer stares lovingly at Ethan. “What an amazing event,” he says into his mic. “I didn’t think people could learn to love Hunter Enterprises any more than they already did, but boy oh boy! You can sure feel the excitement here.”

  Ethan grins his gap-toothed Chiclet smile. “It’s certainly been another triumph for H-E.” His beady eyes widen. “But wait! What can this be? Are those actual demons at my event?” He points across the tarmac, and sure enough, some of the gray-skinned Armageddons are strolling about. These must be some of the ones that transported back after we hovered them away. Argh. Even worse, the humans can see them.

  And they’re freaking the fuck out.

  Screams resound from the monitor. People rush about in every direction. Their terrified voices reverberate through the tank as well.

  Lincoln and I share a shocked glance. “He didn’t…” I can’t even finish the sentence. It’s one of the basic rules of the after-realms that humans do not see angels and demons. That would take away their free will.

  “He did,” says Lincoln. “Ethan combined humans and Armageddon clones in order to make something that would be visible to the mortal world. I should have suspected something when we saw the gray Armageddons. An accurate clone would have had stone-smooth skin that was much darker. These had flesh that was almost human.”

  “So Ethan wants humans to see demons. The bigger question is…why?”

  On the monitor, I see Ethan grab the microphone from the announcer. “There’s no need for panic. As you know, Hunter Enterprises has suspected demonic activity for some time. We have imbued a protective substance into all the black metal products we create. They’ll soon flare up with a bit of dark fire. Don’t worry—it won’t burn you. But it will make you ready to accept what happens next.”

  My stomach sinks to my toes. I have a yucky suspicion what happens next. It’s got to involve all the high-tech weaponry on this tarmac.

  Sure enough, small plumes of black flame erupt throughout the crowd behind Ethan. I remember seeing all the black magic hardware on the vid screens from Times Square, including the runway models’ jewelry and the swimmer’s breathing apparatus. Hell, even my doc’s stethoscope in the hospital was made of the stuff.

  Now, it’s all flaring with dark fire. A moment later, everyone turns eerily calm. The crowds stop screaming. On my monitor, all the faces turn toward Ethan. Pure adoration gleams out from their eyes.

  Lincoln shakes his head. “Even the announcer’s microphone flared up for a moment.”

  I rub my neck as I think. “But none of the equipment lit up.”

  “He’s casting a spell on every human who’s got H-E tech.”

  “In other words, he’s casting spell on everyone.” I grip my neck so hard, I wonder if I’ll bruise. “What is his plan here?”

  On the small screen, Ethan opens his arms wide. “Behold, my Razor Guard! Now, not all of you have been exposed to the glory of H-E. But those of you who know me, realize that when I speak, I am infallible. My Razor Guards can protect you from the upcoming demonic invasion…and yes, millions of demons will be upon us soon!”

  At these words, most of the crowd stands dumbfounded. I watch onscreen as a few dozen humans start to race for the exits. They are quickly apprehended by the Razor Guards.

  I tap the screen with my fingernail. “His spell doesn’t affect everyone.”

  “Maybe some humans don’t have tech from H-E in their lives. That’s how he spread the magic.”

  I nod, remembering the images I saw at Times Square. “Humans use jewelry from H-E, ventilators, you name it. But no system is perfect. Most people will believe anything Ethan has to say, though.”

  Once again, the Ethan on my monitor opens his big yap. “My Razor Guards will now restore order and protect you from this terrible demonic threat. Prepare for them to temporarily take over all governments until we have the situation well in hand.”

  I smack my lips. Temporarily? He’s so full of it.

  “Now some of you may not be as familiar with Hunter Enterprises. That’s understandable. In fact, to you my Razor Guards may seem a bit daunting. But never fear. Our troops are undergoing training. Soon, every last one of you will be compelled to love them as much as you would, say, an angel.”

  My mouth falls open. That’s his plan to catch the extra humans who weren’t affected by his spell. “Love them as much as an angel?” I repeat. “Ethan is saying that because he plans to remove our angelic power and place it into the Razor Guards.” I let out a low groan. “He hasn’t given up on draining us, you know.”

  Lincoln rubs his neck slowly. That’s one of his moves that means he’s thinking something over. “Still, the fact that Ethan doesn’t have our angelic influence isn’t stopping H-E from trying to take over the human world.” Lincoln looks at me over his shoulder and grins. “That’s why you’re going to come up with a plan.”

  “Me?”

  “You always do.” He winks. “Dazzle me, Myla.”

  His confidence makes my smile broaden. Closing my eyes, I spin my thoughts through every angle and approach. Finally, one option does appear in my mind. It’s been an idea that’s been rattling around in the back of my head ever since I felt that ethereal warmth on my palm. It happened back in the laboratory when I thought about Iggy. It was almost as if I could feel his hand in mine.

  What if he was trying to reach out to me?

  If so, we could certainly use Iggy in this fight.

  It’s a long shot, but when do I ever have anything else? Keeping my eyes closed, I call out to Iggy with my soul.

  “I need your help. You must find my father. Tell him you need more time to mourn me. Get the gates of Heaven and Hell closed again. Come back to me on Earth. I need you, Iggy. Only you and I can fight this together.”

  My palm warms with the sensation of Iggy’s touch. I open my eyes, ready to see him standing before me.

  Nothing.

  “About that plan?” I ask.

  “Yup.”

  “I may need another minute.”

  Lincoln looks at me over his shoulder. “You can do this, Myla.”

  An idea occurs. It’s simple, beautiful
, deadly. I raise my pointer finger. “We could drive the tank over to Ethan and blow him up.” I make a psssh noise to dramatize this option.

  “That’s a last resort. If we blow up Ethan, escape is next to impossible.”

  “That’s never stopped us before.”

  “We’ve never faced a challenge like this before. The problem here is bigger than getting rid of Ethan. Hunter Enterprises has now cast a spell on a global basis. Humans everywhere want his Razor Guards to rule them. Do you have any idea how long it would take for the thrax to clean it up with good magic?”

  I wince. “A long time?”

  “Weeks. And who knows what will happen in the meantime? The ones under his spell could turn on the humans who aren’t affected. This could cause a world war.”

  The words hang in the air. World war. I hug my elbows. “Okay, no shooting Ethan with a tank.”

  Think Myla, think.

  “Maybe it will help to list our assets,” offers Lincoln.

  “Good idea.” I count off our inventory on my fingers. “First, we’ve got a tank, which we can’t use to blast Ethan. We’ve already discounted that plan. Second, we could go back to the laboratory, but I don’t know what that would do there. Third, we could go outside. There’s a tarmac filled with machinery and—Oh crap!” My monitor becomes filled with bodies of Razor Guards, and they march across the tarmac and start boarding every piece of equipment. A knocking sounds on the top of our tank.

  “Ethan 1073-J reporting for duty with my team!” The knocking continues. “Who locked down this tank? That wasn’t authorized.”

  Crap. My pulse speeds more quickly. “Moving on.”

  Lincoln starts rewrapping the black bandages over his face. “I like the tarmac direction. What else did you see there when you first arrived? Do you remember anything we can use?”

  My eyes widen. “Cissy.”

  Lincoln pauses. “I don’t follow you.”

  “There’s a tent on the tarmac. It holds the access monitor for CHUCK, the master computer that runs everything for Hunter Enterprises.”

  Lincoln nods slowly. “That could be good. Go on.”

  “When we first got here, I was looking for you. Cissy and Zeke explored the rest of the event. Cissy got into CHUCK and did something with the computer to lock it up or whatever. Later on, Ethan captured Cissy, Zeke, and me.”

  “That was right before Ethan brought you to the lab where they were holding me.”

  “Right. Cissy had put some kind of block on the computer system. While I went to the lab, Ethan sent both and Zeke off to fix whatever she did to CHUCK. Maybe we can do something to the system, too?” I don’t add the obvious point that beyond turning it off, I have no idea how to use a computer.

  Above our heads, the pounding on the tank’s entrance portal grows louder. I shudder. We don’t have a lot of time here.

  “Wait a moment.” Lincoln taps his chin. “We might not need to do anything to CHUCK. Knowing Ethan, he’s probably keeping Cissy and Zeke close by, in case she did something else to the computer and he needs her to fix it again.”

  “And we did hear Cissy’s voice on the intercom a few times.” Hope sparks in my chest. “I bet she’s still in the computer tent.”

  The knocking sounds again at the top of the tank. “Open up!”

  “There’s a lot of chaos with the Razor Guards on the move—” starts Lincoln.

  “If we can get Cissy back on CHUCK, maybe she can do something to stop all this,” I finish.

  A series of clicks sound as the portal atop the tank starts to unlock. Lincoln turns to me. “They overrode the locking mechanism. You better get your bandages in place.”

  Above our heads, the portal swings open with a long creak. I’ve just finished setting my last bandage in place when a Razor Guard sticks his head in. “What’s going on down here?”

  I shrug. Now that I know all the Razor Guards are Ethan clones, I’m not going to risk talking.

  Lincoln clears his throat. “Thank you, Ethan 1073-J. The portal was indeed malfunctioning but has since been repaired. My colleague and I ran a diagnostics test, and this unit is ready for service.”

  My brows lift. Diagnostics test? That’s a nice touch.

  Lincoln starts to rise from his chair. “We’ll get out of your way now.” The Razor Guard still has his head stuck down the portal hole. Lincoln lowers his voice. “If you would step back, I could leave.”

  There’s a long moment where the two stare at each other. Even with bandages over his face, it’s a really bad idea to get into a staring contest with my Lincoln. Ethan 1073-J backs off. Lincoln and I crawl our way out of the tank.

  Outside, the tarmac at LaGuardia looks just like it did on the small tank monitor inside. A dark sky stretches overhead. Tall spotlights cast a daylight glow onto the ground. Razor Guards march in neat rows over to different pieces of war equipment. Mortals stand immobile, staring at a point across the tarmac.

  Ethan.

  They stare so lovingly at the guy, I’m not sure they’re even breathing. Somewhere a baby cries its head off. Must be one of the few beings left at LaGuardia who weren’t affected by Ethan’s black metal. Huh. Maybe the guy hasn’t gotten around to making enchanted binkies yet.

  Lincoln and I climb off the tank. I quickly scan the grounds and find the place where the CHUCK tent is located. I gesture in the direction, not trusting anyone to hear a woman’s voice from a Razor Guard.

  Lincoln nods, and we head off in the direction of the tent. Beyond finding Cissy and hoping we can somehow stop this fiasco with a computer, I really don’t have much of a plan B, especially since there’s been no response from Iggy.

  Maybe something will occur to me along the way.

  I ignore the little voice inside the back of my head that says two words: fat chance.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Lincoln and I speed-walk across the LaGuardia tarmac. The place is like something out of a nightmare. There are people everywhere, but it’s super quiet, except for the stomping of boots and the growing chorus of screaming babies. The air smells of airplane fuel and dead fish, probably a combination of all the H-E tech getting ready to take off…along with the nearby Hudson River.

  “All guards report for duty. All guards report for duty.” All around us, Razor Guards pour out of the different exhibit tents and race toward the tech lining the runways. My heart lightens. Hopefully, the tent holding CHUCK will get emptied out, too.

  Hey, a girl can hope.

  We quickly locate the tent in question—it’s is a long and low structure made of black fabric. Beside it there stands a platform overflowing with satellite dishes and mini-towers made of mesh-like metal. I’m guessing they’re for communications, but what do I know? All that really matters is what’s inside the tent anyway.

  Please be there, Cissy.

  There’s a sign on the entrance flap: “Razor Guards Only.”

  Perfect, that means we won’t have to deal with the possibility of human collateral damage. This plan is looking better by the second. Lincoln and I step inside the tent. It takes a moment for my eyes to adjust to the low levels of light. These bandages are a bitch to see through, even in the best of conditions.

  What I see makes me smile.

  The huge tent is all but deserted. There are rows of tables, all of them covered with Ethan’s stupid toys. The far wall of the rectangular tent is one massive monitor. A small table sits before a monitor that holds a keyboard and what looks like a black ball. Whatever. That’s not what’s important.

  Nope, the big news is that Cissy’s sitting before the small table, typing away at the keyboard. A pair of guards stands behind her. Sweet. Zeke sits off to the left-hand side of the massive monitor. Another set of guards flank him as well. My bestie’s boyfriend looks pretty beat up, but still conscious. Considering how things could have gone, I consider Zeke being awake and alive a mark in the “good for us” column.

  Lincoln and I pause just inside the tent’
s entrance. When Lincoln speaks, his voice is so low, only I can hear him. “I’ll take the guards on Zeke.”

  I take care to whisper as well. “I’ve got the ones with Cissy.”

  Walking in sync, we march across the tent floor. Considering how we both look like good little Razor Guards, no one says boo as we approach. A few of the guards look over their shoulders at us, shrug, and go back to staring at the far wall monitor. For this first time in hours, I feel the thrill of a good fight coming on. My mind slows down and goes into battle mode. There is nothing but these two guards and the attack vectors to take them down. I’m vaguely aware of Lincoln tightening his gloves.

  Wait a second, gloves?

  It takes me a moment to remember that Lincoln can mush Ethan’s magic metal like it’s putty. He’s been working on the “Hulk smash” style boxing gloves that he formed while we were back fighting Armageddons in the laboratory. Since then, he’s been smooshing them down into what look like sleek black leather gloves.

  I’m sure they still pack a wallop, though. Just because the black metal is mushy to Lincoln, that doesn’t mean it isn’t deadly to everyone else.

  It’s enough to make me almost feel sorry for the Razor Guards behind Zeke.

  Almost.

  Lincoln and I march over until we stand just behind the four guards. Zeke’s guards turn around.

  “Shouldn’t you be assigned to a vehicle?” asks the far left guard.

  Lincoln shakes his head while my tail taps the shoulders of the two standing behind Cissy. They can’t see my tail, being that they’re human and all, but they will feel the tap on their shoulders. Sure enough, the pair slowly turn around to face me.

  I pull off my Nazi hat and loosen the bandages on my face. “You have a choice between getting quietly tied up or killed.” I cup my hand by my mouth. “By the way, that’s my best friend and her boyfriend you’re holding, so I’m really pulling for death in your case.”

  Cissy swivels around in her chair. Her lip is bleeding, and she has a bruised cheek. For the record, now I’m really itching to kill.