The Second Book of Babylon

by Barry Reese

  “We both know the lie in that, witch!”

  “Do we now?” said Alecto. “We are three and you are one! The blood debt between us has long been paid. You are nothing to us now!”

  The Silver Knight gripped Alecto by the throat and smashed her against a burning wall. The weakened barrier shattered into bits, raining down fiery debris upon the Fury’s form.

  As he struggled to finish off Alecto and Megaera, the cosmic spirit of retribution failed to notice Tisiphone approaching from behind. The Fury summoned a burst of eldritch power, preparing to assault The Silver Knight from behind. The fingers of her right hand glowed brightly and Tisiphone was confident that this attack would, once and for all, end Gideon’s possession of Marcus Black.

  That killing blow never came, however, as the Fury instead cried out in pain and alarm. She felt a sudden jab in her chest and looked down to see her own spear protruding from her flesh. It glowed with unholy power and she wailed in alarm.

  The Silver Knight whirled about, staring through the rapidly spreading flames. The Furies, sharing in the pain of their sister, were fading now—their energies were being drawn into the spear.

  Standing in the doorway was Eugene Allen, holding his sizzling hands out in front of him. Burned by contact with the spear, Allen had fought through his pain to save his friend.

  He had reluctantly followed The Silver Knight into the burning structure, his booted feet brushing against the spear that The Knight had tossed aside. It had been instinct that had led him to his brave act and he didn’t regret it, despite the fact that his hands felt like he’d shoved them right into an oven.

  Tisiphone pointed a finger at the soldier, her words echoing as she faded into nothingness and the spear clattered to the floor. “Mortal! You will be cursed for this. When the age of magic is restored, the Furies will walk once more... and your family shall bear the brunt of our vengeance!”

  Eugene staggered back, stung not only by the words but by the blinding pain that would haunt him for the rest of his days. “What have I done... ?”

  “Something greater than you know, Eugene Allen.” The Silver Knight picked up Allen in his arms, carrying the man outside just before the building collapsed. The soldiers outside parted in shock for the armored man. No one tried to stop him as he carried Allen away from the others, setting him gently down upon the ground where no one else could hear their words.

  Marcus felt his mind reasserting control of The Silver Knight form. He was more than a little scared, considering he’d never lost command of his body like that before.

  Focusing on the injured man lying in front of him, The Silver Knight asked, “Pal... you okay?”

  Eugene’s eyelids fluttered and he held his hands against his body. The scent of burned flesh was strong. “I... said I owed you one, remember?”

  “Paid back with interest, Allen.” Lowering his voice, he added, “I just hope you don’t end up regretting it.”

  ***

  Jennifer let out a sigh. “Okay... I remember now. Or, rather, Gideon does. When he heard you telling that story, it came back to him. It’s funny—even though he has all these memories now, they’re so jumbled up that it’s hard to sift through them and find what he wants.”

  “That’s because he’s had so many different hosts,” Fisher replied. “Makes it hard to separate out his experiences from theirs. Plus, all that time in the void makes memories fade with time.”

  The sorceress nodded, making a mental note not to let her own time in the Void do that to her. She glanced up at the clock on the wall and swore under her breath. “I gotta run, Fisher. Byron wanted me to help him with some kind of ceremony for the magicians who were killed. He thinks their spirits need to be put to rest.”

  “A wise idea.”

  Jennifer kissed the immortal on the cheek as she headed toward the door. Fisher looked surprised—and more than a little touched—by the gesture. “Crash here if you want, okay?” she said. “After the ceremony, I’m going to let Gideon out to play. He wants The Furious bad. I think he blames himself for all this: Dan’s death, the Allen family curse, me being bonded with him...”

  “Do you think he should feel guilty for any of those things?”

  Pausing for an instant, Jennifer bit her bottom lip. Then she shook her head. “No. Daniel was a grown man that made the decision to sacrifice himself. And Eugene Allen made his own choice, too. As for me...”

  “Yes?”

  A smile spread across Jennifer’s face. “I don’t mind this as much as I thought I would. I feel like I’ve got a real purpose—and that’s not a bad thing at all. At least not in my book.”

  Fisher watched her exit the apartment. He grunted in surprise, amazed that life was still capable of surprising him at this point in his existence. Yes, indeed, you are a special one, Ms. Black.

  ***

  The Astral Plane

  The spirits of the slain magicians floated like gossamer strands of webbing, each transparent to the point of near invisibility. They had been some of the most powerful entities on Earth and yet none of that power could save them from death.

  Their mortal forms were being laid to rest on Earth but their spirits... their spirits still floated here, blocked from moving on to whatever planes of the afterlife awaited them.

  Byron and Jennifer would soon produce a spell that would allow these spirits passage to the other realms... and, if their spell worked as it should, it would reawaken the frozen form of Nathaniel Caine.

  The Catalyst still floated in his field of stopped time, clinging to life by the flimsiest of threads.

  The most powerful of all the world’s mages should have been back on Earth, tapping into the ambient energies that now surrounded all aspects of human life.

  Instead, he was unable to assist Jennifer in what was to come.

  Chapter X The Fast and the Furious

  Jennifer shivered slightly, smelling the coming rain that threatened to turn this nocturnal ceremony into a total wash in more ways than one. She was sitting cross-legged on the damp soil, a few candles flickering brightly before her. To her left, Byron the Enchanter floated, invisible to all but his former apprentice. The aged wizard looked as tired as Jennifer felt.

  “Again, my pupil,” he murmured.

  Jennifer sighed, closing her eyes tightly. She could still hear movement all around her but she tried to ignore it. Since the Barrier had gone up, the amount of magic—already prevalent since the merger with the World of Shadows—had increased exponentially. While this made it easier for Jennifer to manipulate the forces of nature, it also meant that the undead were now prowling the passageways of the cemetery, frightening away the curious on a nightly basis.

  “Byron... it’s not working.”

  “Impatience is a sign of weakness.”

  Jennifer opened her eyes and glanced at her mentor, seeing the familiar signals of disapproval in his expression. “I’m not being impatient... If I were, I wouldn’t have spent the past three and a half hours working at this. The magic that Damian used to trap the sorcerer’s spirits is too strong... I can’t pull them through.”

  Byron floated back and forth, his intangible body passing through a large tombstone. “I was convinced that now was the proper time. Perhaps if I alter the central spell somewhat, bring in some more of the Atlantean magicks and mix them with the wild sorcery that’s so thick in the air here...”

  Jennifer stood up, feeling a twinge in her lower back. After spending most of the day listening to Fisher’s tales of the past, she’d hoped to finish Byron’s ceremony quickly. She understood the importance of helping the wizards’ souls move on but her primary interest at this point was reawakening Catalyst. This spell, according to Byron, should have accomplished each.

  Inside, she felt Babylon itching to get out. He wanted to fly so badly, and strangely enough, Jennifer wanted to let him. We’re merging more and more every day. I’m starting to enjoy Gideon’s nocturnal escapades.

  The sudden
glare of cosmic energy made both Jennifer and her ethereal mentor glance about. The armored form that descended from the sky was too familiar to Jennifer, who had faced this being as both friend and foe.

  Byron muttered a curse under his breath, adding, “What in the names of the seven Hells is that?”

  Jennifer clenched her hands into fists, holding them tightly against her sides. She could feel Gideon in her mind, urging her to remain calm, assuring her that this entity was no longer a threat to them, but she still erred on the side of caution and readied a defensive spell against any sudden attack.

  The new arrival glared at her as his cosmic energy faded somewhat. He was taller and more broad-shouldered than Babylon, and his armor was as black as night, though the Caucasian lower face that was exposed and the blue piping of his armor kept him visible even in the gloom. “You itchin’ for a fight, girl?”

  Jennifer relaxed somewhat, growing more comfortable as the man dubbed Retribution made no threatening moves. “Sorry, Michael. Just jumpy, I guess.”

  Michael Bolan knew full well why Jennifer had greeted him so uncertainly. He’d been on both sides of the fence, after all... first as a law-abiding cop that had slowly slipped down the slopes into fascism, then later as the retribution-dealing monster that had gone from being Babylon’s most bitter enemy to a sometimes ally. “Who’s the guy playing Casper?”

  Jennifer looked over her shoulder, seeing that Byron had returned to work, trying to tweak the spell. “That’s an old friend of mine... I’m kind of surprised you can even see him. Most people can’t.”

  “I’m not most people. I need to speak to Babylon. I’ve been waiting for him to come and find me but he hasn’t... so I ended up tracing his energy signature.”

  “We’ve been busy.”

  “I’m sure. Look, The Furious is here in London. That’s why I’m here, too.”

  Jennifer’s reply was directed toward her mentor. “Byron, I have to go. You understand?”

  The aged wizard nodded slowly, tugging on his beard as he contemplated what changes needed to be made to the spell. “Go if you must. I shall find you if you are needed.”

  Jennifer frowned. “You’re welcome,” she whispered. Her next thoughts were washed away in a rising cascade of pain as her flesh began to vanish beneath quickly spreading cosmic metal. Her body altered, becoming thicker and taller, taking on a masculine shape as she surrendered control to the spirit that dwelled within her.

  In seconds, the young beauty was gone, replaced by the cosmic spirit of retribution—Babylon.

  “We must free Stacy of this horrible curse,” Babylon said. “She is an innocent in all this.”

  Retribution took a second before replying, formulating his response. “We can try but she’s in real deep... the best thing we might do is end it for her.”

  “No killing! Do you understand?”

  With a shrug of his shoulders, Retribution answered, “Fine. We’ll play it your way... for now.”

  ***

  W.H.A.T. Headquarters

  Amber Greene tried to ignore the fact that James Heathrow’s third eye had fallen to the desktop and was slowly inching its way to the floor, leaving behind a trail of greenish goo. It was a difficult task, as her gaze kept gravitating to the disgusting object. Like so many others, her boss had been drastically altered after the Barrier had gone up. Heathrow had found himself the recipient of a third eye, which had formed in the middle of his forehead. The new orb seemed to have a mind of its own, frequently attempting to flee its owner... what it wanted to do was unknown, though much speculated upon at the office.

  Amber tried to smile reassuringly even though she felt increasingly queasy. “I’m sorry, sir. Can you repeat that?”

  Heathrow sighed. “Amber... why are you doing this? To me? To your career? Is there something going on with you that I need to know about?”

  “I don’t know what you mean, sir.”

  He leaned forward, apparently not noticing that his escaping eye had slithered all the way down to the floor. “You’re a bright, vivacious young woman. You could own this organization by the time you’re thirty-five—if you apply yourself. But if you continue to go off on these wild flights of fancy instead of doing what is asked of you, none of that bright future will come to pass.” Sighing, Heathrow held up a piece of paper that was obviously one of her reports. He shook his head and said, “I assign you to follow Jennifer Black and what do you do? Become embroiled in a minor battle between Babylon and some bloody criminal called The Furious. And your reports! They sound like some kind of pervy romance novel! ‘Jennifer Black is lovely, with a warm, sensuous laugh that enchants all that hear it.’ What is that?”

  “It’s part of my profile of the subject,” Amber responded, color rising to her cheeks. She’d written that report in the middle of the night and she obviously hadn’t realized that her appreciation of Jennifer’s beauty had crept into her work. She’d never admit that to Heathrow, of course.

  “It’s garbage!” Heathrow rose from the desk, moving around to sit on its surface, closer to Amber. By pure chance, his foot missed squishing his third eye by mere inches. “Amber. Please. Be honest with me here—have you become compromised on this case? Are you able to separate yourself from the subject?”

  The sudden opening of Heathrow’s office door made both of them jump in surprise, saving her from having to respond. A security officer looked sheepishly in, but he didn’t bother apologizing. “Dr. Heathrow! Engagement Team Beta is back—and they caught him, sir! He’s a tough one!”

  Amber hurriedly followed Heathrow as he rushed down the hall. The third eye, forgotten in the sudden rush, continued to slither away to possible freedom. “James?” she asked. “Whom did Beta go after?”

  “I was going to tell you about it, Amber, but we never got around to it. Since you were having issues with the Black investigation, I focused on Mr. Galahad on your behalf.”

  Amber ignored whatever he said next. She was staring at the sight that greeted them as they rounded the corner. John Galahad was there, shackled at wrists and ankles. He had a collar around his neck and was being pulled forward by it, as if he were a mad dog. His face was a bruised and bloody mess but he managed to look at Heathrow with defiance.

  Heathrow grinned and punched the air in triumph. “Yes! Now we have one of the Babylon hosts. We’ll be able to study him at our leisure and hopefully discover the armored being’s deepest secrets.”

  Amber said nothing though her stomach continued its slide into nausea. She had no real reason to feel protective about Jennifer but in the weeks that she’d been studying her, she’d become infatuated with the girl. If James was willing to brutalize Galahad like this, he’d be willing to do it to Jennifer, too...

  ***

  The Museum of Pagan Antiquities

  The Furious strode through the empty halls of the museum, soaking in the displays that reminded it of its long existence. In its mind’s eye, it could see the rush of ancient armies and smell the stench of battle-shed blood.

  Here, The Furious felt strangely at peace. In this new world, so rich in magic and mysticism, The Furious was very powerful—but it was not the world that the Furies had once known. Besides that, they had never been confined to a single host before... the sensations of being amalgamated were odd and frightening.

  “You have shed innocent blood.”

  The Furious paused, hearing the barely restrained anger in the voice of the new arrival. The entity turned slowly, its eyes narrowing at the sight of Babylon. The armored hero stood not more than ten feet away, his right fist glowing with spectral energy. “Gideon,” The Furious said. “You came... how sweet.”

  “You slew the security guard.”

  “And you state the obvious.” The Furious moved forward with languid grace, its movements betraying no concern for its own safety. “Do you feel distressed at the Allen woman’s servitude? She certainly does... but she no longer fights us. She has begun to enjoy our punishing of men.
”

  Babylon waited, allowing The Furious to come so close that the villain was able to reach out and touch his chest, caressing it like a lover. “Your former host—the Higgins boy—he loved this woman, didn’t he? Did you love her as well, Gideon? Surely you must have, sharing so much of his mind and body as he lay with her at night. Did you watch every caress he made and wish that it was your fingers instead of his?”

  Babylon grabbed the wrist of his enemy, holding it tightly and pulling the entity closer to him. “Silence! You will not profane the relationship that Daniel and Stacy shared!”

  Cosmic energy snaked out from the hero’s form, wrapping around The Furious like long tendrils. The villain felt its form growing painfully warm and it twisted in an attempt to free itself, but Babylon’s strength was too great. “Stop!” The Furious screamed, still trying to wrench itself free. “Stop this! There is no sin! What we do is sacred! We seek punishment and vengeance for women that have been wronged!”

  “You have long ago lost sight of your mission,” Babylon replied, his voice firm. “What you do now is for your own sick pleasures. I judge you guilty... and the guilty shall be punished!”

  The Furious suddenly unleashed a burst of powerful energy in a last-ditch attempt to save itself. The cosmic spirit of retribution was thrown away from the villain, losing its grip.

  Staggering back, The Furious looked close to collapse. It had not lost its hold on Stacy Allen but it was visibly weakened.

  Retribution emerged from the shadows, charging The Furious from behind. He struck the villain with a powerful blow that sent it to its knees.

  “Leave her alive!” Babylon warned.

  “I know what I’m doing, Babylon. Don’t lecture me!” Retribution drove another fist downward but this time The Furious rolled away, avoiding the blow.