Aetherial Annihilation, page 17
A tear trickled down Nightliss's cheek. "We absconded our duties, Justin, and the price for peace has doubled in the meantime."
"Neither of you absconded," Elyssa said. "Nobody could have predicted this."
"You're right," Nightliss said. "There is no choice but to move forward. Thank you for lunch." She flashed a sad smile and left.
I ran a hand through my hair. "I don't know if I feel better or worse."
Before Elyssa could answer, her phone buzzed. She flicked on the screen and read a message. "Looks like we have a lead."
I took her phone and scrolled down to the image of a crystoid. "I know what I'll be doing after lunch." The text above the picture said, Impact zone Changrim, North Korea.
Elyssa made a face. "Talk about a place I wouldn't want to visit."
"Well, with any luck we won't have to if this picture is reliable." I looked for the message sender, but it was blank. "Any idea where it came from?"
She shrugged. "I've been getting strange glitches since we have to rely on the nom cell towers." She put away her phone and rested her chin on my shoulder. "How are you feeling?"
"Much better." My muscles still felt sore, but with the return of aether to the Atlanta area, I actually felt normal again. "I just need to feed my Seraphim side, and I'm good to go."
Elyssa polished off her broccoli like a good girl. "Then let's pay the feeders a visit."
We took the levitator up to ground level and walked outside the barn toward an ancient stone church. The upper level looked newer than the rest of the building because it had been recently reconstructed. After Thomas split his legion from Synod controlled forces, they'd tried to assassinate him and blown up part of the church in the process.
Once used as a place to receive blessings from the Daelissa, aka the Templar Divinity, it was now where the Templars housed noms who volunteered other services such as feeding Seraphim. Katie, Ash, and Nyte, Elyssa's and my former high school friends, had tapped into older veterans and people with medical issues to form our volunteer corps. Templar healers provided health care unavailable to most noms, and people who'd abandoned hope once again felt healthy and valuable.
We'd moved some of the feeders to Atlanta, though many of them lived in La Casona, a pocket dimension located in Bogota, Colombia. Since most of the revived Seraphim had returned to Seraphina with Ketiss and the Tarissan Legion, there wasn't much call for their services these days.
"I wonder how Ash, Nyte, and Katie are doing in La Casona," I said.
Elyssa bit her lower lip. "I thought of them yesterday, but we've been so busy I haven't had a chance to reach out to them."
"Colombia should be a priority," I said.
"It will be if we get good intel." Elyssa tugged open the door to the church and we went inside.
An older gentleman with a scraggly beard met us inside the foyer. "It's a real pleasure to see you again, Justin."
It took a moment, but I recognized him. During our efforts to revive husked Seraphim, he was one of several nom volunteers who'd nursed the infants back to adulthood. "Abe, how've you been?"
"Mighty fine." He opened the doors to the former sanctuary, now a large open room with a few temporary partitions so Seraphim could feed in private. "We haven't seen much action since the war ended and all the Darklings left."
"Well, at least I won't have to wait in line."
He chuckled. "It'll be the other way around." Abe's smile faded. "I know you're probably busy, but while you're here, I'd like to talk to you about something."
I nodded. "Sure."
"A lot of feeder volunteers really enjoy this line of…work, I guess you'd call it." He shrugged. "If you want the gospel truth, I reckon a lot of the folks got addicted to feeding the angels. For some, I think it was like a drug—made them feel good."
Elyssa grimaced. "And now they can't get their fix?"
He nodded. "Some folks went looking for vampires, felycans, or any kind of super that needs to feed off humans. Most of 'em came back, real unsatisfied with what they found. The only ones who seemed happy were the ones who went to feed the demon spawn."
"I hope they weren't turned into sex slaves," I said. "There are unscrupulous Daemos who take advantage of noms."
"Well, the ones who stuck with the Daemos were the younger folks with a bit more steam in the engine, if you know what I mean." He winked. "While I'm being honest, I'll tell you that I miss feeding the angels about as much as the others, but not because I'm addicted."
Elyssa put a hand on his upper arm. "It gave you a sense of purpose, didn't it?"
Abe looked down, eyes sad. "Yep."
"What about joining the Templars?" I suggested. "I don't know how to do the blessing thing, but my mother could probably figure it out."
He shook his head. "Others might feel different, but I fought in a regular old human war. It was brutal, bloody, and devastating. I lost friends—hell, I nearly lost my sanity. It wasn't until your people recruited me from a veterans home that I felt like I was worth a damn again."
Elyssa put a hand on his arm. "You're always worth a damn to us, Abe. If there's anything we can do to improve things, we'll do it."
I glimpsed movement and saw people gathering at a door in the front of the sanctuary, many of them regarding me with delight. "How many feeders are there?"
Abe turned his gaze toward the crowd. "Well, just so you know, we gussied up our titles, so now we're called caregivers."
"I like that name," Elyssa said.
He looked up and tapped his chin. "At last count, probably two thousand or more spread across the world. I could contact Katie and ask her."
Katie had once been my crush. If not for bad timing on her part, she'd probably be just a not-so-fond memory of my days in high school. Instead, she'd grown from a whiney brat into a somewhat disciplined Templar. "Is she running things well?" I asked.
"Well, I got a newsletter from her last month." Abe snorted. "I think she might be getting bored too."
"Did any caregivers go with the Darklings back to Seraphina?" Elyssa asked.
Abe shook his head. "We were told to stay here for our own safety since Ketiss was gonna lead his folks into battle. Commander Borathen said he didn't think it would take Ketiss long to free Tarissa from Cephus, but seeing as how we ain't heard much for three months, I'd place bets that something didn't go according to plan."
"I assume you know about the crystoids," Elyssa said.
"You mean them crystal meteors?" he said. "We've taken to calling them crasteroids around here."
I gave Elyssa a smug smile. "See? I do come up with good names."
Abe chuckled. "Sorry to disagree, Justin, but crystoid sounds a heck of a lot better to me."
Elyssa smiled wanly but didn't seem to be in a joking mood. "We believe Cephus is the one who attacked us. Once we've gotten through this crisis, we're invading Tarissa with everything we have. That includes the caregivers."
A cheer arose from the gathering crowd at the door.
Abe grinned. "I reckon we'll be more than happy to invade with you so long as we don't have to fight." He turned toward his comrades. "Ain't that right?"
Whoops and shouts of encouragement met his statement.
"Well, with that settled," I said, "I'd like to feed."
The others stampeded toward me, and Abe shouted to slow them down. "I'd say we draw straws, but there ain't enough straws to handle this many people," he said.
"I have a number between one and a hundred," Elyssa said. "Closest one gets to feed Justin."
The number turned out to be three, and the winner was a curvy young woman who jumped up and down with glee when she won the Justin lottery. I ended up feeding from her and two others before I felt sated. By the time we left, I felt ready to take on the world.
"Let's do this!" I skipped across the yard toward the barn.
Elyssa grabbed my hand and skipped with me. "You're crazy, but I love you."
"I'm just plain crazy 'bout you, girl." I stopped and kissed her long and hard. "Man, I feel great!"
"Someone had too much sugary soul essence." She giggled. "Let's go conquer North Korea, babe."
"I'm on it."
A stoic Templar in the garage beneath the barn arranged for a portal back to the Grotto. We stepped through it and closed the omniarch gateway behind us. Shelton, Bella, and Adam stood before of the world map at the front of the control room, comparing it to the holographic map of the crystoid impact sites.
I shouted a greeting across the huge room. "Howdy, y'all!"
"Yo!' Shelton waved back. "C'mere."
"Hang on, gonna kill a crystoid," I yelled back.
"Gotcha." Shelton headed over, a confused look on his face. "You sure look chipper for some reason."
"He just fed," Elyssa explained. "We got a picture of a crystoid, so he's going to take it out."
"You'll need to anchor me when I channel," I told Elyssa.
"Just let me know when you're ready," she said, and waited outside the silver band around the omniarch so I could open the portal.
Using the image from Elyssa's arcphone, I willed the omniarch to open a portal at the crystoid in North Korea. The air shimmered and split, revealing a massive glowing crystoid on the other side. Something flashed through the gateway and wrapped around my waist. Before I could shout in alarm, it yanked me through.
Chapter 18
My hands and knees met unforgiving rocks at the edge of the impact crater. I identified what had pulled me through the portal—a thin steel cable with a weight on the end. A shiny black robot stood on the other end of the cable. It jerked it once more before I could gain solid footing.
I tumbled into the impact crater and rolled within inches of the shards. "You're gonna be sorry if I touch this thing," I shouted. I rolled to my feet and yanked the cable, but didn't catch the big fish at the other end as the slack end slid into the crater with me.
These damned robots are a real nuisance!
"Justin!"
I turned toward Elyssa's voice and saw her face for only an instant. A flatbed trailer with a sparkling gray wall raced in front of the crater, blocking my view. Elyssa's shouts abruptly stopped and I didn't have to ask why. The wall on the back of the trailer looked like diamond fiber, magic immune, and apparently a great way to block the aether beam from the crystoid. The wall toppled toward me.
The crater was a death trap, and the diamond fiber wall was the lid.
I leapt out of the pit and rolled away just as the wall crashed into place. A quick glance told me it was a thick steel slab with a coating of diamond fiber. Even with my super strength, I'd have a hell of a time lifting that thing.
Shouts echoed in the air. Soldiers garbed in dark green uniforms and the sort of warm furry hats Russians favored emerged from behind boulders, guns waving. These men were no Russians. The big red stars on their uniforms left no doubt that they were North Korean soldiers.
Without the aether beam to supply me, I couldn't magic my way out of this, and there were too many soldiers to fight even with my supernatural strength. Why the hell didn't I put on Nightingale armor? This quickie project had just turned into a longie. I held up my hands and looked for an escape route. In addition to the encroaching soldiers, I spotted several snipers perched on boulders. I might be super resilient, but my skin wasn't bulletproof.
It didn't take a genius to realize this crystoid had been a setup.
First, a robot was ready to lasso whoever opened the portal. Second, they had a giant steel wall coated with diamond fiber. Third, the soldiers and snipers were perfectly positioned to shanghai me.
Although it was night here, several massive glowing balls floating above illuminated the area like the sun. At first I thought they were the magical ones, but dark silhouettes barely visible through the glare revealed large blimps—airships.
I tried to channel Murk just in case there was enough aether diverted by the diamond fiber and into the air, but the barest flicker of ultraviolet vanished the moment it was born.
Meanwhile, the soldiers shouted at me in their language. Of course I couldn't understand a word. I decided to remain absolutely still in case one of them had an itchy trigger finger. Admittedly, I also thought the mastermind behind this trap might make an appearance. If Cephus himself stepped from behind a rock, I wouldn't be surprised.
Instead, a man with several medals weighing down his uniform stepped forward. "You get on knees!"
I did as asked. "How did you know I was coming?"
"You shut mouth." He took out two glittering strands of diamond fiber and gave it to another solider.
A ball of ice formed in my stomach. If these people secured me with diamond fiber, I'd never escape. My heart clawed frantically at my chest. Maximus, a rogue vampire, had kept me tied to a table for days while he fed on my blood. If the North Koreans had even an inkling of my supernatural abilities, they'd no doubt dissect me like a lab rat or brainwash me into becoming their country mascot.
Holy hell, I'm freaking out.
The soldier marched forward with the diamond fiber.
Heart slamming against my chest, I zoned in on the leader. Knowing what little I did about this country, I doubted they'd let me escape even if I took this guy hostage. At best, he'd be a diversion. On the other hand, there were so many guns pointing toward me from the circle of soldiers, they were more likely to kill each other if they started firing.
I waited for the soldier to reach me, then held out my hands.
He reached the filament toward my wrists.
I burst forward, slamming my shoulder into him. He flew backward, crashing into his leader and the soldiers behind him. Before anyone could put a bullet in my head, I rushed through the gap. Shots echoed. Bullets whined and pinged off rocks all around me. Despite the tall boulders nearby, the snipers on the cliff probably had a clear shot. Even if they didn't, they'd pin me down and the soldiers would recapture me.
Rough terrain and loose stone did their best to trip me. I crested a ridge and prayed I didn't find a sheer drop off on the other side. Fortune favored me with a steep wooded slope. Something slammed into my right hamstring. I flew forward and tumbled down the incline. Grasping desperately, I caught a sapling and stopped my fall. Fire blossomed in my leg. I felt a small hole in the back of my jeans and pulled back blood-covered fingers.
I'm lucky it was just my leg they hit.
The wound hurt like a bitch, but I was able to stand. Soldiers appeared at the crest and opened fire. I dodged behind a tree. Bark and dirt exploded from the impact of hundreds of bullets.
There wasn't much underbrush to use as concealment, so the moment I ran, the soldiers would see me. I waited until the gunfire stopped, and the sounds of marching boots perked my ears. I didn't need to peek around the tree to know they were on their way toward my position. I lined up my retreat vector with another large tree and ran. Pain exploded in my leg, but I refused to slow. My leg, however, had other ideas and dragged when I ran.
Gunfire shattered the air. A bullet grazed the side of my shoe. Another scorched the skin on my shoulder. I ducked behind the target tree and, without pausing, turned straight downhill, hoping the tree would grant me protection for a few more seconds. I finally reached a copse and dashed through a narrow opening between trunks. A hail of bullets peppered my newest refuge. Spasms clenched my right hamstring. Limping on my stiff leg, I continued forward.
The light from the airships flickered through the trees like a pursuing UFO, casting strange shadows and playing tricks on my eyes. I switched on my demon night vision, but the glare from the overhead lamps blinded me. I switched back to normal vision and nearly tripped as my leg locked up again.
"C'mon and heal already." I pressed a finger to the bullet wound and winced. "It's not even magic damage."
I continued forward for what felt like an eternity until I reached the bottom of the mountain slope. The rattling steel of heavy vehicles told me it was too soon to celebrate. I spotted a tank patrolling the forest perimeter. A man with binoculars protruded from a hatch in the top of the turret. In the distance, a jeep with a mounted machine gun drove back and forth.
They had me penned in tight.
A wide, muddy field outside the forest offered no concealment and would make me an easy target. Troop transport trucks stopped on a road several hundred yards away, and more soldiers piled out. The rustling sounds of pursuing troops served a stressful reminder that I couldn't dilly-dally here all night.
A thrumming noise sounded overhead. I looked up at the silhouette of another airship just before the massive globe on its underbelly flickered on. These people don't play around.
I heard more armored vehicles to my left, and imagined there were more somewhere to my right. I couldn't go forward or backward, and unless I learned how to dig like a troll, I couldn't go down. That left only one way to go, and it wasn't diagonally.
Drawing upon my demon side, I grew sharp black claws from my hands and feet. "There goes another perfectly good pair of shoes," I lamented as my new toenails punched holes in the leather. I found the thickest, tallest pine tree and scaled up it like a giant, furless squirrel. When I reached the top, I found a possible escape route.
Using a hand to counter the glare from the light globe, I spotted a mooring rope hanging from the side of the airship. Unfortunately, it was about twenty feet above my head. Under normal circumstances, jumping that distance wouldn't be hard, but with an injured leg and a wobbly branch beneath my feet, my chances didn't look good.
I looked around for a taller tree, but nothing nearby rose higher. The airship's cockpit wasn't visible from my vantage point, but the outline of something metallic above the light ball hinted its location. In other words, the pilots probably couldn't see me when I was directly beneath them.
A gust of wind raced through the trees. I grabbed hold of the trunk and held on tight as it swayed to the side. Something cracked, and I prayed it wasn't the branch I stood on. The turbines on the airship whined faster as it fought to maintain position. It lurched higher and the rope went hopelessly out of reach.
