Legions

by Karice Bolton

  “Evacuations would be more risky. Pulling something off like that without any humans figuring out seems almost impossible. We would have to help their memory out, and in those numbers I’m not sure we could do it as timely as we would need to. I honestly think that we’ll be up there to attempt to extinguish the flames. I think that’s our best bet. I’m just waiting to hear that from Cyril. I’ve already contacted about 700 of us locally who could get up there and fight.”

  “So, we are going to have to fight to get these fires to stop?” My stomach began twisting in knots. This kind of battle seemed far larger in scale than anything I’d dealt with before. Sadly, I knew it was nothing compared with what we could be facing in the future, but regardless, it frightened me. A huff escaped, alerting Athen to my worry.

  “There will be a lot more of us than them, sweetie. I promise. We wouldn’t attempt it if we knew we couldn’t win it.” His calming, green eyes immediately began to soothe my worries. “Plus, I’ve seen your sweet fighting skills, hun. You’re better than all of us.”

  “Haha, very funny!” I said, taking my hand back.

  “I kind of feel like this is my fault.” I blurted out.

  Athen’s eyes were full of confusion. I knew on the outside of it, it might seem like a stretch that I was responsible, but it seemed pretty matter of fact in my world.

  “If we hadn’t split, they wouldn’t have been up there alone. The demons might not even have attacked.” It was hard for me to say it aloud.

  “Regardless of location, they would have found a way to get to us.”

  Athen had gotten up and moved to stand behind me, hugging me from behind. I needed that comfort so badly. I didn’t even realize it until his arms continued to keep hold of me.

  “This will be over soon, my love.” He whispered so quietly I almost didn’t even hear his words, the very words that I needed to hear.

  Closing my eyes, I did my best to focus on the needs of our family, feeling as blessed as I had in a long time. Having Athen here was everything I needed to maintain my strength, and began planning for whatever might be in store for us.

  “So do you believe Cyril when he says he hasn’t been approached yet by Azazel?” I asked Athen.

  “Yeah, I do. I don’t think what you saw has happened yet.”

  “So there’s hope we can divert it or change it somehow then?”

  He shook his head in agreement as his cell began receiving text after text, giving us the signal that the time has come.

  ***

  The amount of smoke that was hovering in the air was beyond anything the TV images showed. How many blazes the demons had been setting was unclear, but it had to have been a ton. We had called in help from everyone in the Northwest who could come as quickly as possible. The fires hadn’t been burning for long at all, but so many were being set; the destruction was building and we didn’t want to waste anymore time on their plan.

  Being in the presence of the demons’ wickedness put everything that was ahead of us in perspective. Because of the work that the fire teams were able to achieve, the road back up to Whistler had been opened so the evacuations were beginning rapidly. However, since our goal wasn’t to evacuate but rather go in and fight the true source of the flames, we knew we wouldn’t be able to take our car. We were going to have to get in by our own abilities. We left our car in Squamish, and Cyril and Arie were meeting us along the railway tracks so we could plan next steps.

  It was such a wonderful sight to see Cyril and Arie land together, holding hands. Obviously, my visions didn’t set them apart. Hopefully, it made them only stronger. We had to protect each other no matter what.

  “Arie!” I squealed, squeezing her with all of my might. I was so happy to see her again.

  “Are you doing okay?” I asked.

  “Yah, I think. We’ve been working nonstop up there making sure the flames wouldn’t get near the village. We’ve been on watch so whenever a new fire was started, we were able to put it out immediately. It’s getting really tiresome, though. We’re all worn out. That’s why we need you guys and the back-up.”

  Nodding, I grabbed Athen’s hand, completely understanding their exhaustion.

  “Well, we are surrounded. They are waiting for the word from us to swoop in, so to speak.” Athen said grinning. “How many of the demons do you think there are?”

  “I honestly don’t think that many.” Cyril stepped in. I think they are just quick. I’m guessing no more than 75 or so.”

  “Really. That’s good news, cuz there’s about 700 of ours waiting for our call.”

  “Nice. Let’s get on it.” Cyril echoed. “We were able to figure out where they were all congregating at. That’s what took us the longest, and why we didn’t want to call you up here too soon.”

  “Awesome, then let’s just do it.” Athen announced.

  Hearing those words began to send fear through my body. I hadn’t met up with this many demons at once before. Knowing we had the numbers we did, waiting for our directions should have calmed me, but it didn’t. The fear of losing Athen again was beginning to overwhelm me. I focused on the gratification that I had gotten so many times before when fighting these creatures, hoping that would replace the fear.

  “Honey, you’re going to be fine. I’m going to be fine. We’ve got this. Don’t let your mind go there.” I nodded, knowing he was right.

  “Let’s get going shall we?” Arie asked.

  I watched her take off towards the heavens, with Cyril following right behind her. Athen let go of my hand, and he shot into the air next, pausing only to look back at me and call my name. The adrenaline began pumping throughout my body as I let my body head towards the treetops as well.

  I heard Athen’s call go out for all of our fellow comrades. I wasn’t sure if he was channeling it to everyone or if it was actually going through the airwaves. It was intense as I began hearing all of the responses coming back directly to him as well. The many octaves of voices signaling their participation in the expected battle was exhilarating.

  We were only moments away from the camp that the demons had made. Not all would be here since they were still starting fires as fast as they could, but Cyril and Arie had our friends back in the village ready and waiting to scope out where the stragglers were at so we could pounce.

  The air was far thicker with smoke as we began our descent back towards the ground and our target. They had a makeshift camp set up, and it looked like their plan was to spend very little time in it. We circled the camp one last time to gauge the activity, when one of the minions came flying from the north readying himself for an attack against Cyril.

  I directed my focus on my new target, flying as fast as I could to reach Cyril’s side and do my best to fight. Seeing the chain dangling from the minion, I yanked on it as hard as I could, allowing a scream to escape into the air, alerting the camp below that they had visitors. Ripping the chain out of the minion, the black mist immediately began releasing into the air.

  “Nice work, Ana.” Cyril said as he shot down to the ground to begin the battle.

  The wind was shifting behind me as I felt our support arriving. One after the other began landing in the campsite, immediately demolishing whatever and whoever was in their range of sight. I took a deep breath in as I attempted to land myself without wiping out or causing a disruption. Right before my feet hit the ground, a minion slammed itself into me, ramming me into the hard earth.

  The minion had my hair pinned back on the ground, ripping each strand as I attempted to move. My legs kicking at the creature as I scanned for the piece of metal that I’d become so accustomed to seeing. There didn’t seem to be any this time. Seething in anger, I reached my hand over the minion who had now begun grinding his foot into my shoulder but creating the perfect opportunity for me to grab his ankle and trip him up just enough to create an imbalance. His other foot lightened its hold on my hair so that I was able to roll my body far away from my attacker. The drug of victory was
now pumping through my entire body. He came barreling at me, and my body lifted over his as his arm reached into the empty air. Spinning around in the air, I landed on his shoulders, snapping his neck as quickly as possible. Feeling his body crumple to the ground, I knew I was in for another bumpy landing as I crashed to the dirt below.

  Standing up quickly to gauge our success. I saw hundreds of our kind landing and squashing the minions as quickly as they came. Athen came up behind me, scoping out my victim, turning to me completely impressed.

  “Nice. He wasn’t like the others.” He said before taking off again.

  “Tell me about it.” I yelled after him.

  The minions were being discarded as quickly as they appeared. Arie had let the others in the village know of our success, and they began attempting to flush the stragglers back to the camp. This win was close to being ours, it was only a matter of timing.

  ***

  We were in our home in Whistler, trying our best to rest up a bit from the day’s feverish activities. The Hemlocks outside were lightly swaying with the breeze that was beginning to come up. Now that we had defeated the minions and their efforts, the last few remaining fires were being put out. On our way back up to the village, I was amazed at how little of the forests leading up to the village had been harmed. Compared to the images on the news, what was right before me, looked like a little brush fire. The larger fires were set off in the hills and that seems to be where the news crews were able to get with their helicopters.

  Even though it was spring, I had one of our throws wrapped around me. The chilly mountain air was never truly gone, regardless of the season. Cyril was making us all some tea before Athen and I headed back home. We left Matilda back at the house, knowing we had to get back to her the same day. In hindsight, Athen felt far more confident about our victory than I realized.

  “You’ve got to come back down with us. Ana’s got more to tell you. Azazel’s ready to meet with her - with us. It’s gonna be big.” Athen told Arie and Cyril.

  “Should we really though? With her other visions?” Arie asked.

  I wondered that myself but told myself that knowing what was lurking in the shadows for Cyril was half the battle.

  “I think for this, we should all be together. She has seen Azazel come to her in her dreams.”

  I shook my head in agreement to what Athen was relaying from my dreams.

  “Okay, well. I guess we’ll drive you back to your car in Squamish and meet you back down south.” Cyril announced, his grin as large as I’d seen it in a long time. I think he felt better knowing we were willing to trust him by our side and not be as plagued with worry that he was going to turn against us like my vision.

  “I’ve got some girl items I want to talk with Arie about anyway, so I think this was perfect timing.” She looked at me allowing a few of her thoughts to slip over to my mind, none of what I expected to hear.

  I shook my head in agreement, fearing what she might be wanting to divulge.

  “Awesome! I’m glad we are back as a unit.” I chuckled, throwing a pillow at Cyril.

  Thankful that they were coming back down with us, I decided not to mention that my vision called for everything to happen tomorrow. Since Athen didn’t mention it, I decided I wasn’t going to either.

  Chapter 33

  The clanking and clashing began getting louder and louder with every moment that whipped by. I was hoping my family would arrive soon. I knew who I was about to meet. I wasn’t sure I was as ready for it as I needed to be. I had no idea how to prepare for it in the first place. Instead of the usual ice-cold temperature I was so used to experiencing with the arrival of the Legion members, an intense heat began to surface alongside of my body. The rumbling and clashing was beginning to vibrate the ground I was standing on. The earth was beginning to shift and give as he got closer and closer. As I was scanning the beach, boulders, and mountainside looking for this creature, I wondered what I should be expecting – just one creature or several?

  I looked down at my legs, realizing I still had the black leather leggings on from the woman I shapeshifted on earlier as practice. I still hadn’t completely gotten the hang of things. Sure that she was probably wearing my outfit, I wondered how on earth I could be caught dead in this mess of a look -the black leather leggings were only accentuated by a wonderfully tacky silver top, and black stiletto boots. I was certain some could pull off this look, but I wasn’t meant to, especially on a beach. I did my best to distract myself from the overwhelming amount of fear that was beginning to surface by wondering what Athen would think of my new look.

  A loud buzzing, like an amplifier hiked up too loud, began rattling my eardrums. It matched the same rhythm as the clashing and clanking that I was growing accustom to. The disorienting effect washing over me created an uneasiness that would only be solved with the arrival of my family.

  To my horror, I finally focused in on Azazel. He was flying low enough beneath the clouds now that I could see he wasn’t alone. He looked as wretched as I feared. My heart fell with the realization that he was going to make it to me before my family did. I glanced quickly over my shoulder one last time to see if by any chance Athen was there to help, knowing I wouldn’t dare turn my back on this monster once he arrived.

  Azazel swooped down to the beach, walking before he even touched the sand, his silver hair swarming in the wind. He was dressed in an all black leather trench, dripping in silver metal chains, I did my best to push down the feelings of defeat that were already surfacing. As he came closer, I realized that the silver chains were attaching minions to him like stray dogs. Those other beings I saw in the sky were these poor chained-up beings. It was utterly disgusting to see. Standing only a few feet from me now, I began to feel the tiny beads of sweat beginning to form at the base of my neck from the overwhelming heat that was rolling off of this demon. Now was my time. I could no longer play the innocent.

  “What is it you want, Azazel?” I stared directly into his black, hollowed eyes. The desire to fight him was building in my veins. I wanted a fight. I wanted to destroy this demon and all of the creatures connected to him.

  “The kiss of death. How does that sound for romantic?” His voice raspy, yet strong and exuding victory before I even had a chance to be defeated.

  “From who?” I asked, repulsed by the being that was standing before me.

  “I think you know the answer to that one, my Ana. If I couldn’t have your mother, the way Remiel, your father, did. Then shouldn’t I get the next best thing …her daughter - don’t you think, Ana?” He paused for several seconds like he was debating whether or not to utter the next few words. “Your sister, Lilith, agrees with me.”

  The anger was rising beyond anything I could control. I chose to ignore his Lilith comment. I knew I couldn’t defeat this demon by myself, not with my lack of experience compared to his – not yet anyway. The chemicals had been fully released and I wanted to satisfy my craving. I needed a fight.

  Of course, he had planned it this way by destroying me 5o years earlier, making my family run in circles trying to bring me back to them. It wasn’t the humans who were pawns in this world he created. It was us he had been playing games with. It was me. Countless families losing loved ones all because of me. I was no longer going to be a pawn in his depraved game of chess.

  “You won’t get that satisfaction, Azazel.” I hollered at him, wanting victory at this very moment.

  “I think we both know you could come with me right now and solve this entire little problem we have here. Don’t you agree? You are even dressed for the occasion - black leather and silver. How perfect can you get? Some things are meant to be.”

  I truly cursed my utterly lacking shapeshifting ability now.

  “You know, Azazel, what I can’t believe is that you would let a mortal woman have that much control over you - thousands of years of hatred building for a woman, my mother? That seems pretty pathetic. You don’t strike me as someone who wants to be s
een as pathetic. I get that you never forgave my father, Remiel. But his falling in love with the same mortal woman who loved him back actually saved you. Don’t you think it is punishment enough that my father is stuck in between worlds? You were saved from that atrocity because you were never with my mother!”

  “You don’t understand revenge very well do you, Ana?”

  The weight of mankind’s possible destruction was a crushing feat to digest, all because of my father and mother’s love affair.

  “I guess I don’t.” The longer I spoke to him the better the odds that my family would arrive. Azazel’s minions were getting restless. I knew they were hoping for a fight. I knew they were hoping for blood.

  “Say I come with you. Then what? The fight’s over? I doubt that very much. What assurance would I have?”

  Azazel’s fingers were as gnarled as all of the others - his nails tinged brown and dreadfully long. Getting impatient, he began rubbing his hands together.

  “So, Ana. What’s it gonna be?” He seethed through his clenched teeth. He didn’t answer my question.

  “I think you know the answer to that one. You don’t understand revenge very well do you, Azazel?” I smiled. My family was near and so were others. I could feel them.

  “If you don’t come with me, I promise you that a war like no other will ensue.”

  “I’m willing to take my chances.”

  They had arrived. Thousands of them. He was surrounded. The hillside behind him was a constant landing strip for my kind one right after the other. To my right, hundreds of Fallen Angels marched through the sand to come stand by my side. Taking in a deep breath, I felt Athen’s hand rest on my shoulder from behind. My family was here, and they had brought friends.