Wrath of Angels, page 10
part #4 of Sins of Angels Series
“What can I do for you, Captain?”
“I need to find someone. She passed through this station a while back.”
The old rahab shrugged. “Lots of people do. But if you want a manifest, you need a warrant. You know that.”
A warrant? Most places didn’t even bother asking Sentinels for warrants. It only served to irritate the officers, and everyone knew a Sentinel could easily obtain one. Except for right now. Maybe that was what the rahab was thinking. Or maybe he was just trying to hold on to fragile regulations in an off-rotation time.
David scratched his head, then pointed out the door behind him. “Do you see what’s going on out there? You think this is the time to worry about station regulations or any of that shite?”
“This station is owned by Manna Products, Captain. We are under their sovereignty.”
So that was it. The Conglomerate must have told its people to cease cooperation with Sentinels.
Well, there were two ways he could handle this. He’d start with the way that didn’t involve leaving the poor emi unconscious on the floor.
“All right, man, listen to this. A person I care a lot about is missing, right? You probably have people in the same situation. Now, I need to find her, and I need to do it right now.” David slapped a credit chip down on the desk. That was the language these Conglomerate types spoke. Sure, it might be worthless when the universe ended, but damn him if he wouldn’t die rich.
The rahab gnawed on his lower lip a moment, then made a sucking sound. “It’s off the record then?”
“Aye.”
At last the old man nodded, typed something on the console, and handed him a data chip. “Off with you, then.”
David nodded at the man, then rushed back to the Wheel of Law. His thoughts were a blur. Here was the lead he needed. Bless the greedy bastards of Manna Products.
Along the way through the Wheel, he exchanged salutes and perfunctory personal exchanges. None of that mattered right now. David burst through the door of his quarters when he finally arrived.
He plugged the data chip into his personal console. It contained a manifest of everyone who had passed through the station in the last three months. Manna kept excellent records; he had to give them that. Trust a corp to always manage the bookkeeping. Never let a single credit slip away.
“Scan all records for Rachel Jordan.”
A second later, she was displayed. Arrived on the Wheel of Law and departed some days later, on the Anthem.
“Query Sentinel database for all records on the Anthem.” A readout popped up on his display. “Summarize.”
“The Anthem is a Unicorn-class transport ship commissioned by Quasar Industries in 3034 EY. It passed through a series of private owners and is now registered to Captain Degana O’Malley.”
“Pause.” O’Malley? “Any relation to Thomas O’Malley?”
“Degana O’Malley is Thomas O’Malley’s younger sister.”
David slapped his desk. That was it. Rachel was still working with the damn Seekers, wasn’t she? Which meant she had probably gone back to Eden.
And so that’s where the Wheel of Law was going too.
25
“That is not to say that man must never find himself armed with harrowing weapons of apocalypse. The ability to destroy planets and stars, denied humanity to preserve the species, may one day become a necessity for the very survival of man.”
Sefer Raziel, translated by Dr. Rachel Jordan
THE CONDUIT
Sometimes Knight actually missed living on the Ark. It had been so quiet. The massive angel ship had housed a crew of only a few people, which meant he could walk for hours without seeing another person. There was a kind of peacefulness in that.
Here, on board the Wheel of Law, everywhere he went there were Sentinels. And despite himself, he now respected them. But he missed his private dojo and his long walks through empty halls. Now, walking down the corridor back to his quarters, he passed another pair of officers. They offered him a terse nod, and he returned it.
Phoebe had been right, of course. Most Sentinels resented him being made an officer over them. They saw their route to duty—through the academy, rising through the ranks one by one—as the only true way. They didn’t care about his time in the Gibborim, or that he had effectively been special forces for another military. And he couldn’t blame them. How well would Gibborim react to similar intrusion into their closed ranks?
Knight buzzed his quarters. Even before the door opened, he knew something was wrong. The tortures Raziel had put him through had honed senses he’d never understood.
Inside, Phoebe sat on his bunk, head in her hands. Her fingers weaved through her pink-white hair like she was trying to massage tension out of her scalp.
She didn’t look up as he approached and sat down beside her. Knight had the sudden urge to jam a knife into whoever had put the girl in such a state. No one would ever hurt Phoebe. He would never allow that.
He slipped his arm around her and took hold of her scalp, his fingers replacing hers in the massage. Even her head was comfortingly warm.
She moaned slightly, and her head slumped.
“What happened?” he asked.
“They, uh …” She sighed and then pulled out of his grasp. Phoebe turned on the bed to look into his face. Her icy blue eyes scanned about, like she was looking for something. “I was trained on Hazaroth, at the academy, you know? Ezra and me.”
Right. Except her brother washed out and became a pirate.
Knight watched her face, unsure what to say. Every day he thought he knew her a little bit better. But in times like this, he never had the right words. They always seemed to lurk on the edge of his mind. Other people had it so damn easy. To have grown up in worlds and times that taught them how to comfort others. To have had parents to give them an example to emulate.
“We just got word … the crew doesn’t even know yet. The angels destroyed Hazaroth, the academy … everything. I, uh … I guess they wanted to make a point about the price of defiance.”
“God … Phoebe …” What could he possibly say to that? Hazaroth had to be a mixed memory for her. She’d lost her brother, but she’d also become a Sentinel there. And despite all the horrors that had happened to him on Gehenna, if the whole planet just disappeared, Knight would still grieve for it. It was where he had come from. It had brought him here. Whatever he was now, whatever good had arisen in him, it was at least in part because of where he came from.
And Phoebe had lost that.
She still had her homeworld—although even now she must be worrying over that. The angels had destroyed New Rome, the capital of Mizraim. Next they had taken out the Sentinel academy. The message was all too clear. There was no alternative to submission.
There would be no compromise, no negotiation.
Knight drew Phoebe into an embrace and held her close. What else could he do?
Rachel would know what to say. She should never have left. Her decision to release Gavet without consulting anyone was beyond reckless. It was … selfish. Arrogant. All the things Knight himself had once been.
So how much could he blame Rachel for it? She was the one who had helped him find himself. And now, she was angels-knew-where, on her own. Maybe David knew, but the captain had shown little desire to discuss things with Knight.
He blew out a long breath. “You’re not alone.”
She chuckled, her shoulders shaking in his arms.
Damn. He still didn’t have the right words.
“Sometimes you surprise me,” she said. “Just when I think I have you all figured out, you finally manage to say the right thing.”
“I … did?”
She pulled away and punched his shoulder. “Yup, yup. Don’t make a habit of it. I might die of shock.”
You’re not alone. It had been the right thing to say? It had just seemed so … obvious. Of course he would stay by her side. “Whatever comes, I will be here for you. You know that, right?”
She leaned back against his chest, then pulled him down onto the bunk. She wrapped his arm around her side and lay there. Being pressed against her warmth was like curling up in front of a heater—comfort seeping through every centimeter of his body.
“Yup, yup. I know it now.”
Her warmth settled deep inside his chest, until he wondered if it wasn’t more than just the heat of her body. He had never been able to tell Shirin just how much he felt for her. He had never been able to say the words aloud. He had killed some of the fiercest enemies in the universe. He had fought an angel with his bare hands. And the thought of trying to say it now left his stomach fluttering …
He pressed his face close to her ear. “I love you.”
“Hmmm. Obviously. What’s not to love? Void, I love me too. I mean, I’m adorable.”
She hadn’t pulled away. He’d told her—he’d finally said it. And she was still right there in his arms.
“Hey,” she said a moment later. “You know, I love you too.”
A long, deep sigh escaped him. And he let himself breathe, truly and freely.
26
“Do not attempt to understand the cosmos. The attempt is not sinful, merely folly.”
The Codex, Book of Shamsiel
THE CONDUIT
The Anthem was much smaller than the Sentinel ships Rachel had recently been on. The crew quarters were tight enough to feel oppressive, especially with all that had happened in the past few days. The bridge really only had room for the pilot and co-pilot. Thus, Rachel found herself with Degana above one of the three cargo bays.
A large window let them look out at the shimmering walls of the Conduit as it streamed by. A person who stared long enough at it could get lost in that maze. It unfolded for prophets in streams of probability, allowing for navigation. Rachel wasn’t the best at it, and she certainly had no mood to concentrate on that now. Rather, she turned away and paced along the catwalk.
Ten meters below, the whole bay was packed with crates from Manna Products—enough to supply a whole damned colony in the Eden system. The angels had taken mankind’s homeward from them, but Seekers like Degana were working hard to get it back to them.
“Thomas used to talk about you, you know,” Degana said. “About how much you inspired him. About how brave you were.”
Rachel glowered, then leaned against the rail, staring down at the crates. “Had I been less brave, several billion people might not be dead now.”
“You don’t know that.” Degana put a hand on her shoulder. The hori’s touch was warm, even through Rachel’s coat. “The Lazarus Group was already decoding the Sefer before you even got involved, right? So QI, Jericho, and maybe even Asherah were already looking for the Ark. Sooner or later, someone would have found it regardless.”
“Maybe. But I’m not certain the Conglomerate would have woken those monstrosities.”
Degana snorted. “Yup, yup. Sure they’d have left well enough alone and ignored all those frozen angels. That sounds like the corporate suits I know. Please. Whether it was a true believer or some executive like Gavet trying to squeeze some extra profit, someone would have woken one of them. And then the psionic interference would have begun. Next thing you know, thawed-out, pissed-off angels, flying about the universe again.”
Rachel shook her head. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But this is my mess, and I’m going to clean it up.”
“How?”
“I’ve lost the Ark. But somewhere, there has to be more information on the true nature and capabilities of the angels. I think that’s part of why they took us from Eden.”
Degana frowned. “Yup, yup. Had absolutely nothing to do with the psychic ghosts.”
“I haven’t forgotten that. But if the emotions of the fallen hold some of their memories … what if there was something there the angels didn’t want us to know? Whatever it is, I’m going to find it, Degana.”
“Uh huh.” The hori scratched her head. “And then what, Rachel? What is it you even think you can do?”
Rachel swallowed. She almost couldn’t believe what she was going to say.
Almost.
“Degana … I … I have no choice, really. The angels have declared war on mankind. So it’s time we did the same to them. I’m going to go to Eden and find whatever it is they don’t want us to know. And, then I’m going to destroy the angels, once and for all.”
27
“For into the Expanse did the angels cast all that was wicked in the universe, leaving it the realm of damnation. And thus should man never tread into the paths of Nod, for to do so is to court with demons of the shadows.”
The Codex, Book of Azrael, on the Expanse of Nod
TRIANGULUM GALAXY
Try not to think. That was the key.
Apollo stood before him, face still covered by a hood. Caleb kept his own eyes forward, doing his damnedest to focus only on the task at hand. Not to consider his family, who Apollo already knew to use against him. Not to think of Rebekah and risk making her a target, too.
Not to consider what he’d gladly do to Apollo given half the chance.
No. Think about what the man was saying. Nothing else.
“The Asheran ship will arrive later today. You are to go aboard and take command. You will take the ship into the Expanse of Nod and meet with the Sons of Cain. They will assist you with a another task.”
The … Expanse? Angels had forbidden access to the Expanse since … well, forever. Rumors and legends persisted there, stories of ships vanishing into the void. The Expanse was the domain of pirates and madmen—those beyond even the fringes of civilization. And the Sons of Cain were the worst sorts of pirates. Ruthless disciples who idolized a legendary murderer. They preyed on any they could and retreated to a space not even Sentinels dared to tread.
And that was where Apollo wanted him to go. Into the void. To meet with some off-rotation gang that would likely slit his throat and sell his insides for a few credits on the black market.
Not to mention the last chairman died out there.
And he had absolutely no choice. Apollo had made that clear already, and Caleb couldn’t afford to push the issue. Not while the Asheran—if that’s what the man was—had Caleb’s family as leverage. If Caleb had been able to take the Ark … no. Don’t think it. He glanced at the man, still unable to penetrate the darkness under that hood.
“Is this really a wise course?”
“Do not question me, Gavet. Go, and be prepared for an important mission.” At that, the man turned and left Caleb’s room.
Caleb collapsed on his bunk. Angels above, what had he gotten himself into? Any illusion that he was in charge of his company had fled. Somehow, somewhere along the line, Apollo had taken control. He had made Caleb the chairman of Jericho and rendered him nothing but a puppet.
Caleb, be a good little dog and fetch the Ark.
Caleb, make an alliance with Asherah.
Caleb, go feed your liver to pirates in forbidden space.
He ought to blow Apollo away as the scientist got on a shuttle. But … never. The man would see it coming. So don’t even think it.
Bile rose in his throat, and he stumbled over to the washroom. He vomited into the toilet. His stomach continued to heave, even when nothing remained. And despite himself, he felt wetness building in his eyes.
Fucking fantastic. Here he was, chairman of Jericho, one of the most powerful men in the universe, puking and weeping like a teenage girl. He slapped the sink.
Which accomplished nothing except making his hand sting. He pulled himself to his feet and washed his mouth, then his face. There was nothing to be gained from self-pity. He had wanted to build a luxurious future for himself and his family. He wanted power and the perks that went along with it.
Well, now he had it all.
And along with it, he had gotten the intrigue and deception and sickening games that must always dwell in the halls of the mighty.
So be it. He had brought this fate on himself, and he would see himself through it. Off this ship, away from Apollo, at last he would be free to think. Maybe the pirates would kill him. But if not, if he was free from the Asheran for even a little while, maybe he could make a plan. Find a way to win his freedom forever, without the man reading his thoughts.
Of course, maybe Apollo had heard that thought right this moment.
So what if he had.
Fuck you, you sick bastard!
Had he heard that? Caleb suddenly felt ill again. Angels, what if the man had heard it? He wasn’t free yet. And worse … the real clutch of the whole situation … he needed Apollo. If the angels won, they would likely destroy Caleb and Jericho and quite possibly his family to boot. And he’d be damned before he let anything happen to Ayelet or James or Miriam. He would get in bed with the Adversary itself before he would let the angels harm his family.
The door to his room buzzed.
Shit. Apollo had heard his mental tirade, hadn’t he? Well … face the future, Caleb. For the moment, they needed each other. He needed Apollo to stop the angels, and the man seemed to need Caleb and the authority he supposedly commanded. So it was time to start acting like a partnership again.
He waved open the door, but it wasn’t Apollo who strode in. Rebekah.
“I thought you might be lonely,” she said. “I hadn’t seen you all day.” She began to unbutton her top in slow, sensuous motions.
Caleb watched her, his pulse quickening. He willed himself not to scan through her clothes. No spoiling the show. He needed the reprieve, didn’t he? Didn’t he deserve one, after all he’d been through?
Yes.
Yes.
He rushed over to her and yanked her top apart, snapping buttons in the process. He flung her onto the bunk, and she laughed. And he took her, pouring his fears and frustrations into her. And she just kept laughing, nipping at his ear.
