“Come in,” said Jason.
A Russian soldier slid it open halfway and leaned inside. “Excuse me for bothering you. Colonel Krayevsky wants to have a strategy session after lunch at 1300 in the command car. She asked that you and your principals attend.”
“Tell the colonel we’ll be there,” responded Jason.
The soldier shut the door behind him.
“Let’s grab something to eat while we can.” Jason took Jeanette’s hand and led her out. As the two stepped into the corridor, Lilith whimpered. The two werehounds stared at him, their eyes pleading. “You’re included. Come on.”
Lucifer and Lilith rushed forward, pushed past Jason and Jeanette, and raced toward the dining car.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Sasha stood in the alcove at the end of the first sleeper where it connected with the command car, her gaze centered out the sliding exit door and onto the ground below as it rushed past. She wished the train would go faster so they could get to the Hell Gate, do their job, and move on to the next one. Sadly, things would pan out at their own pace and nothing she could say or do would hurry it along. Truth be known, Sasha wished she had not come along in the first place.
“I hope you’re not thinking of jumping,” said Father Belsario, who had snuck up behind Sasha without her hearing him.
“I’m not,” she lied.
“I’m glad to hear that. If you committed suicide, you wouldn’t wake up in Purgatory but in Hell.”
“I know.” Sasha debated whether to ask the next question. “What happens if I get killed by one of the demons?”
“Allowing the demons to kill you is still suicide.”
“I’m not referring to that.” Sasha faced Father Belsario. “If I die in combat with the Hell Spawn, can I opt not to come back to Earth?”
“You can, but the contract will be nullified. He agreed to excuse you from your time in Purgatory once you helped Jason with all the Hell Gates. If you back out now, you’ll be banished to Purgatory until you’ve served your penance.”
Sasha let her gaze fall to the metal floor. “It would be worth it.”
“You knew ahead of time you wouldn’t be allowed to be with him in a physical way.”
“I know that. It’s the . . . isn’t there any way you can get rid of the emotional attachment I feel toward him?”
“You know I can’t do that. Only those who go to Heaven are spared emotional burdens. It’s the rule.”
“Can’t you bend the rule?”
“It’s not my rule. It’s His.”
Sasha sighed and leaned against the door. “I didn’t volunteer to come back. You made me do this.”
“I understand. There are good reasons why I did.”
“You keep saying that, but you never tell me what they are.”
“You’ll find out in due time.”
“That sounds like the shit they preached in Catholic School. ‘Be a good and pure girl and someday you’ll get into Heaven.’” Sasha regretted her sarcasm. “Sorry, Father. I shouldn’t get mad at you.”
“You’re absolved this time,” he chuckled. “I understand your frustration. If you trust me . . . ”
“I do.”
“Then have faith. You will know all the reasons why you were chosen to come back at the proper time. Sasha.” Belsario waited until she made eye contact. “Right now, all you need to know is that Jason has taken on an impossible task to rid the world of evil, and he needs all the help he can get.”
“He has Jeanette.”
“It’s not enough. There are three people whom Jason loves and trusts unconditionally. His mother, but the trust was shattered when her calumny opened the portals. Jeanette, but in many ways, she’s still a child. And you.”
Sasha became excited. “When you say love . . . ”
“He thinks of you as his closest and dearest friend. And yes, at one point he hoped you would be intimate.”
The excitement drained away as fast as it had risen. “I blew that opportunity.”
Father Belsario placed his hand on Sasha’s shoulder. When he spoke, his voice contained a warmth and understanding she had not heard from him before. “Do you still love him?”
Sasha didn’t answer for several seconds. “I love him with my heart and soul.”
“Then show Jason how much you love him. If you can’t be with him physically, be there spiritually. He has a dozen friends who will support him and fight beside him. What he really needs is someone who will give him alternate advice, who will warn him when he’s overextending himself, who will tell him he’s letting his emotions dictate his actions. You’re the one with the ability to do that and whom he will listen to. That’s one of the reasons why I brought you back.”
“Who’s going to guide me in telling Jason what he should and shouldn’t do?”
Father Belsario pointed toward her heart. “You’ll find the answers in there.”
“You know it pisses me off when you’re cryptic like this.”
He chuckled again. “Then I won’t tell you that the Lord works in mysterious ways.”
“Please don’t.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m better,” Sasha lied.
“Good. Now come with me. Jason has asked us to attend a planning session with Colonel Krayevsky.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
When Jason and Jeanette entered the command car, it reminded him of the movies he had seen as a kid about Russia prior to the revolution when the aristocracy traveled in elegance. The walls were covered in red velour wallpaper. A strip of cherry wood stretched above the windows from one end of the car to the other, with smaller sets of three stained glass windows above each main frame. Ornately-carved cherry wood beams were placed along the ceiling at five-foot intervals and, between each beam, dangled a small crystal chandelier, now rendered useless by the lack of electricity. Polished, sand-colored hardwood covered the floors, marred in numerous places where the original furnishings had been ripped up to accommodate the car’s current role as a command post. The new furnishings contrasted sharply with the décor. In the corner near the door to Natasha’s quarters sat a white metal desk, scuffed and dented, with a worn black leather chair behind it. A rectangular table dominated the center of the car. On top of the table sat several maps stacked on top of each other. The top one showed Siberia, with a red line marking a path from Moscow to Lake Baikal. Melnikov and Dr. Ustagov were waiting for them in front of the table.
“Afternoon,” Jason said as they approached.
“Afternoon,” Melnikov said.
Ustagov grunted.
“I’m surprised to see you here,” Jason said to the doctor.
“Not half as surprised as I am. Thirty minutes before departure, I was told that I’m part of the expedition. I guess Her Highness felt she needed scientific expertise on this one.”
“We’ve not had a monarchy for over a hundred years,” said Svetlana as she exited her quarters and stepped up to the table. “If you’re going to talk about me, at least use an insult that’s contemporary.”
Ustagov’s shoulders slumped and he lowered his head. “Forgive me, Colonel. I didn’t mean any offense.”
“Yes, you did,” said Svetlana. “But that’s not important. You’re here because of your scientific expertise. Is this everyone?”
As if on cue, the door between cars opened and Haneef and Slava entered, followed by Father Belsario and Sasha. Haneef gave a slight bow to Svetlana. “Sorry, we’re late.”
“Is this everyone on your side?”
“It is,” answered Jason.
“Good.” Svetlana paused a moment. “I want to apologize for the rush, but I’m afraid it’s necessary. The doctor believes that the demony tried to protect the Moscow vrata following your success in Paris. If he’s correct, then I want to close down the Siberian vrata as soon as possible.”
“It makes sense,” said Jason.
“In that case, why didn’t we leave earlier?” Slava ask
ed.
“It’s a sixty-five-hour trip to Lake Baikal, if we’re lucky. Departing when we did means we will arrive at the vrata shortly after dawn. You do not want to be near that area after dark.” Svetlana took the top map and swung it around so it faced Jason and his team. “We’re in luck in two regards. First, there is very little between us and Lake Baikal, so the demony have little interest in this area. They’re all concentrated around the lake region.”
“How’s that lucky?” asked Ustagov.
“It means we don’t have to fight our way to the gate like we did in Paris,” said Jason.
“Or like we would have had to do in Moscow if Melnikov hadn’t found us,” Jeanette added.
Svetlana reached under the first map and pulled out a second one of the southern Lake Baikal region, which she placed on top. “The second piece of good luck is that the vrata opened directly on a spur line off the main Tran-Siberian Railway, thirty miles from Irkutsk. That means we don’t have to trudge over the tundra to get there. We can drive a train right into it.”
“Which explains why you have a second steam engine,” said Slava.
“Exactly. I had my men modify the cow catcher of the first engine with a reinforced platform for your anti-matter device. I have a crew up front who is maintaining the engine so it can move on a moment’s notice. When we get near Lake Baikal, we’ll transfer some of your team to the first engine, mount the device on the platform, and ram it into the vrata.”
“What about the crew aboard the train?” Sasha asked.
“They can jump off before impact,” Jeanette answered.
Haneef scrunched his face as he thought about that. “The train would have to be traveling slowly so that those who jumped didn’t get killed or seriously injured.”
“But you don’t see that as a possibility,” said Jason, his gaze locked on Svetlana. “You’re assuming there’ll be a slugfest to get to the gate. Why else would you modify the cow catcher to clear the tracks of things larger than a cow?”
Svetlana flashed Jason a smile of respect. “You’re right. Based on previous trips to Lake Baikal and the doctor’s observations, I’m expecting a klaster yebut when we try and get to it. Whoever is on that engine will be on a suicide run. However, isn’t the goal to close down the vrata at all costs?”
“It is.” Jason agreed with Svetlana.
“Why can’t we just let the first train run on its own?” asked Haneef.
“There are too many variables involved,” explained Father Belsario. “If we abandon that engine we lose all control over it. The Hell Spawn could try to remove the device, derail the train, block its path, or any number of scenarios.”
Jason nodded in agreement. “And with no one on that train, we’d be powerless to stop them.”
“Just so you know,” said Svetlana. “I intend to have two of my crew stay on that engine to provide support in case anything happens, so the sacrifice won’t be yours alone.”
“Thank you.”
“This is insane,” Jeanette protested.
“If you have a better idea, please share it,” Svetlana said it with no malice or sarcasm.
“There is no better idea,” Jason said after a few moments. “What you’ve come up with is our best option.”
“For what it’s worth,” said Melnikov. “Colonel ran this by me and my staff yesterday morning, and we couldn’t think of better scenario.”
“We’ll stay behind you with the rest of the train to provide cover fire and, hopefully, draw some of the demony off you.” Svetlana focused on Jason. “You’ll need to decide which of your team members will make the run on the first train.”
“That’s easy,” said Jason. “Slava and I will do it.”
“I want to be up there with you,” Jeanette responded.
“You should let me do it rather than you,” added Haneef.
Jason held up his hands, ending all further conversation. He made eye contact with Haneef. “No offense against you, but I’m in charge and need to be on that train in case things go wrong and snap decisions have to be made. Besides, if something happens to me and Slava, I expect you to take command and complete this mission. Are you okay with that?”
“You’re the boss.”
Jason turned to Jeanette. “We can’t afford to lose too many people out here. There are still three other Hell Gates to deal with after this. Understand?”
“Yes,” said Jeanette, fighting back tears.
“May I make a suggestion?” Father Belsario asked.
“Go ahead.”
“Maybe you should let Sasha and I ride the train into the Hell Gate. We can’t die. If something happens to us, we’ll be back a few days later so you don’t lose any of your numbers.”
Jason thought about it for a moment. “I still need to be on that train for the reasons I gave Haneef, but I would like you both up there with me and Slava. It might give us a slight advantage.”
Jason did not see the disapproving look Jeanette gave him.
“I have a question,” said Slava to Svetlana. “You said you’re expecting trouble because of your previous trips out here. What have you run into before?”
A little bit of Svetlana’s confidence drained away. “Not many types of demony come through the vrata. We’ve seen no dragons or giant insects, one Golem that guards the vrata, and a single swarm of mertvyye demony that wandered off into the tundra. What comes through regularly are ravagers, scores of them. The last time we were out there about two weeks ago we counted a pack of about forty.”
“Why just them?” Haneef asked.
“We don’t know,” Ustagov answered. “Maybe they’re attracted to the inhospitable terrain.”
“Or it could be that ravagers inhabited that particular portion of Hell where the portal opened,” added Father Belsario.
“That’s possible.”
“We know the ravagers need flesh,” said Svetlana. “They set upon the local population, what few there were. There is one small city and dozens of towns around the lake. Most of the people fled once the ravagers appeared. Those that stayed didn’t last long. The ravagers haven’t traveled far from the lake and, since their food supply has been wiped out, they are hungry and highly aggressive. I lost eleven men last time I was in this area, and almost didn’t make it back alive. If the doctor’s theory is right, if these things are aware of what we’re attempting to do and try to stop us, I’m anticipating we’re heading into a full-scale war.”
No one responded.
“It’s settled then,” said Svetlana. “We’ll meet again tomorrow afternoon before dinner to go over any final details. By the next morning, we will be approaching Lake Baikal.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Jason and Jeanette were the first to leave the command car. Lucifer and Lilith sat waiting for them by the door leading to the sleeper. The werehounds jumped to their feet upon seeing him, their tails wagging. He scratched behind their ears and led them down to his room. Opening the door, the two rushed inside, each scurrying to get a seat on the bench.
“Can I come in for a minute?” Jeanette asked.
“Sure.” Jason stepped aside. “Good luck finding a seat, though.”
“I’ll sit next to you.”
A knock sounded on the door. Jason called out, “Come in.”
The door slid open and Dr. Ustagov stuck his head in. Upon seeing Jeanette, he became embarrassed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had company.”
“It’s okay. What can I do for you?”
Ustagov stepped in and slid shut the door. “I’ve been watching you interact with Lucifer and Lilith the past few days. One of your people said they’re not real dogs but werehounds that came through the vrata.”
Jason became defensive. “Is that a problem?”
“Not at all. Do you have a minute?”
“Sure.” Jason pointed to the end of the bench.
“Thanks,” said Ustagov as he sat down. “How did you train them to be so docile?”
“I didn’t.”
Ustagov was confused. “I don’t understand.”
“As long as Lucifer and Lilith have been with me, they’ve never been wild. I picked them up on a search and destroy mission outside of Calais. They came up to me in this form and seemed friendly enough, and they followed me back to Mont St. Michel. I adopted them. Three weeks later, they morphed into werehounds to defend my team when it was attacked by soul vampires.”
“Interesting.” Ustagov leaned forward to examine Lucifer. The werehound lifted his head and wagged his tail. “And they don’t show aggression toward you or other humans?”
“No.”
Ustagov reached his hand toward Lucifer and paused. “May I?” he asked Jason.
“Go ahead.”
Ustagov stood and inched his way toward Lucifer, his hand open with the palm down. Lucifer stretched his nose out, sniffed the doctor’s hand, and then lowered his head to be petted. Ustagov scratched behind his ears. “These are the first werehounds we’ve ever encountered. They’re also the first zhivyye demony we’ve encountered that didn’t try to kill us.”
“It’s the same for me.”
Ustagov stopped petting Lucifer, much to the latter’s disappointment, and sat back down. “Do you sense their aura?”
Jason shook his head.
“Interesting.”
“Doc seemed to think . . . ” Jason paused. “Doc was a scientist like you . . . Doc seemed to think that the reason I can detect the aura of the mertvyye demony is because they were once human. He reasoned that the link is with their souls.”
“That makes sense. Tell me. Did you have a sixth sense like this before the opening of the vrata?”
“No.”
Ustagov sat back in the bench and stared at the wall for a moment, lost in thought. “Without studying you more, I can’t say anything for certain. However, it sounds to me like the opening of the vrata triggered your ability to sense whatever came through.”
“How come I don’t sense the aura of the zhivyye demony?”
“Probably because it’s harder to detect them since they’re not derived from humans. That doesn’t mean with practice you won’t be able to.”
Wasteland in Red Square Page 17
