“Three whole weeks, huh?” Tristin looked amazed to know that so much time had passed while he’d been imprisoned. “I hadn’t realized it had been that long.” Which made sense. Keeping track of time when you were in a place that offered no sunlight and no news from the outside world meant knowing how much time had passed was nearly impossible. Even someone like Samantha would have been hard pressed to track the passage of time in that situation.
“Yes, well, a lot has happened since you were arrested for treason,” Samantha said, looking to continue. She took a deep breath and, upon blowing it out, began to tell Tristin about what he’d missed. “This may come as a shock to you, but about one week after you were arrested, every single Executioner stronghold in the entire world was attacked by several hundred low and middle-class demons―”
“What!?”
“Don’t interrupt me!”
“Sorry.” Tristin rubbed the back of his head as Samantha scowled at him. “I just didn’t, I mean, I did sort of expect something like this to happen, just not so soon. It’s a bit of a shock.”
“I imagine it would be,” Samantha allowed, calming down so that she could continue her story. “I believe they acted more swiftly than you had anticipated because of the information you managed to find on their network. I don’t think they realized you had actually downloaded it onto a USB drive,” she added after a moment’s thought. “But I’m positive that they were acting in haste on the off-chance that you did have a way of getting that information to me.”
Undoubtedly, their enemies knew that if Samantha had managed to acquire the information that detailed their plans, then she would have alerted the other Executioner strongholds and bases. That would have meant the Executioners would have had time to either prepare for imminent attack or abandon their base before an attack could take place, thereby nullifying the plan to destroy the Executioners before they knew what hit them.
“I was fortunate enough to survive the attack on the base in Los Angeles, and I managed to get out with a few other Executioners. Thanks to the information you provided, I was also able to learn about their plans. That said, most of the other bases were not so lucky.” Samantha paused for a moment, pensive as she worried her lower lip. “I had tried to get out a warning to the other strongholds, but I was too late. Many of our bases were attacked and destroyed before I even managed to send the message.”
“Do we know if anyone managed to survive?”
Samantha shook her head. “We do not, but I doubt there were any survivors. Demons are nothing if not thorough when it comes to killing those around them. They do not stop until everybody in their vicinity is dead.” Demons were a relentless species, one of the few who could be classified as truly evil. Their entire purpose was nothing less than the subjugation or eradication of all mankind. “Only Leon and Sif managed to survive the attacks and escape, taking a mere handful of Executioners with them. But by the time I had managed to find them, all the others were dead or dying.”
She still remembered how she’d found Sif and Leon, surrounded by a horde of middle-class demons, bleeding and battered and bruised, with dead bodies lying all around them in varying states of dismemberment. There had been a swathe of destruction leading from where they’d fled, showing that they had been fighting a running battle in their attempt to escape. Had Samantha been a few minutes late in finding them, it was incontrovertible that they would have died that day.
Tristin raised a hand up to the back of his neck, giving it a strong rub as he closed his eyes and sighed. “So out of all the Executioners, only Leon, Sif, and a small handful of Executioners from our Headquarters managed to survive?”
The three powerful warriors all shared a look before turning back to Tristin.
“We’re unsure,” Samantha admitted. “We have no way of knowing how many truly survived. All communication between the Executioner strongholds has been cut off. We were unable to get word out to the others, which leads me to believe no one else escaped. Even Sif and Leon only managed to escape because of their own prowess on the battlefield and luck.”
Leon and Sif were both exceptionally powerful warriors, renowned for their great strength and ability. Alone, they were more than capable of taking care of just about any threat they faced short of the higher-class demons and monsters like No Life Kings, Ancestors, and those few supernatural beings that managed to claw through the ranks of their respective species. They hadn’t earned their titles and rank for no reason.
“It is possible that others survived,” Sif decided to add her own input. “Especially if there was a member of the XIII with them at the time. That being said, I doubt anyone who did not have one of us with them is still alive. When the demons invaded our stronghold, they were teleported directly inside, past our defenses. They were like a swarm. They just kept pouring out of these red portals, running over everyone, tearing people apart with hands, swords, and teeth. I’ve never seen anything so horrible in my entire life.”
Sif shivered, the act causing Leon to walk over to her and place a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, so small and vulnerable in that moment. No longer was she Sif, The Destroyer of Men. Instead she simply looked like a helpless little girl. Seeing people you had literally grown up with get torn apart did that to a person.
“Sif and I were lucky,” Leon added. “We weren’t in the area where the portals were opened, and we heard the screaming well before the first demon reached us. I think that might be part of the reason we were able to escape. We must have gone through at least two hundred demons before managing to make our way out with the few other Executioners we were able to save. And yet even then,” Leon clenched his free hand into a fist, “even then, they followed us. The rest of our group were all killed, and we were the only ones left. We might have very well died that day, were it not for Samantha’s timely arrival.”
All eyes turned toward Samantha. Tristin was grinning.
“That’s my boss lady. Smart, strong, and super sexy,” he said, giving the ravenette an exaggerated wink.
Samantha’s right eye twitched. “Prison must have rid you of any sense of tact, Tristin. You were never this bold, or this stupid, back when you were working for me.”
“Um, yeah, let’s go with that explanation,” Tristin said, nodding. “It sounds better than any explanation I’ve got.”
“So what do we do now?” Sif stared at Samantha, her eyes once more those of a hardened warrior.
“The first thing we need to do is get back to base,” Samantha said, “I want to make sure the Executioners I managed to bring with me have everything set up at the safe house. After that, we need to start gathering allies.”
“I doubt there are many allies left to be gathered,” Tristin commented, sounding at least a little more serious now that they were talking about their plans. “If what you all said is true, then there’s likely less than a dozen Executioners who managed to escape when the demons attacked. And none of them will be in North America. Aside from you, Sif, and Leon, the only other XIII member on this continent is Christian.”
“Speaking of Christian, just where is the little guy?” asked Leon. “I would have expected him to be right by your side.”
Samantha shifted, uncomfortable as Leon and Sif stared at her, expectant looks in their eyes. “Christian is... gone.”
“You mean...?”
“He’s not dead,” Samantha said when she saw the looks of disbelief directed her way. “However, he will not be able to help us here.”
“But why?” Sif looked honestly confused, even if it was hard to tell because of the generally cold facade she often put up. “Was he injured?”
“No. He wasn’t injured, at least to the best of my knowledge.”
“Then why can’t he help us? I’m not sure I understand. Christian has always been one of our most loyal and powerful members. Ever since he started working as an Executioner, he’s always done his best for the cause. It’s how he managed to climb through the ranks i
n such a short amount of time. I can’t see him just dropping out of contact and leaving you high and dry.”
“That’s because you don’t know the whole story behind his departure from the Executioners,” Tristin said, gleeful, his eyes twinkling with amused merriment and his mouth stretched into a Cheshire grin.
“Tristin,” Samantha said, a hint of warning in her voice.
It was a warning that Tristin ignored. “Christian found himself a girlfriend.”
“Tristin!”
“A girlfriend?!” Eyes widening, Sif and Leon looked between the now glowering Samantha and Tristin with his sunny disposition. Of the two people whose mouths were agape with astonishment, it was Leon who managed to find his voice and actually ask the question that was burning in their minds. “You’re telling me that Christian, straight-laced, morally incorruptible Christian Crux, found himself a woman?”
“And not just any woman,” Tristin added, his ever-present grin widening to the point where it split his face in half. “He’s got a―”
“That’s quite enough out of you, Tristin Baluf!” Samantha hissed, her tone sibilant, poisonous, and angry. “You need to learn when to keep your mouth shut!”
Under that glare, which was harsh enough to burn just about anything in its path, Tristin found himself shrinking back. She watched as he quivered, eyes wide in fright. Samantha wondered If the young man even realized he’d gone too far, or if he was just afraid of being on the receiving end of her sword.
Knowing Tristin, it was probably the latter.
“Now hold on, Samantha.” Leon held up a massive hand, forestalling her glare at Tristin. The other male sent him a thankful look, which he ignored. “I think we’ve got a right to know what Tristin’s talking about. A lot of rumors about Christian had been circulating before the demons attacked. All of them were far-fetched and unbelievable. This would go a long way towards clearing that up.”
“What’s it matter if we clear this up now?” asked Samantha. “Christian Crux is irrelevant to our survival. He is no longer one of us, and I doubt we’ll be seeing him any time soon. If he’s not already dead, then he’ll have gone into hiding, and with Bishop Vertrou chasing after him, I doubt he’ll show himself.”
“But if the Catholic Church is after him, then wouldn’t he make a good ally?” Leon argued his case. “I’m a damn good fighter, and you and Sif are unbelievably strong and capable warriors, but Christian is the only one among us who’s defeated a high-class demon in single combat. Having him on our side could prove to be invaluable. If nothing else, his presence would raise our morale.”
Samantha struggled with herself, debating whether or not she should inform them of Christian’s betrayal. It was not something she liked to think about. Out of all the people in the world, she had never imagined he would betray her, especially in the way he’d done it, by running off with an inhuman creature.
And yet despite her anger toward him, Samantha still desired to protect his reputation. If Leon and Sif learned that Christian had run away with a succubus, his standing would be sullied in the eyes of his former companions. She didn’t want that. Even though he had betrayed her and the Executioners, she had no desire to see the reputation of the young man she respected get run through the mud.
Then again, was what he did really a betrayal? With everything that Samantha had learned these past three weeks, could she truly, honestly say that Christian had betrayed them? Yes, he had run away with a creature they had sworn to kill, but it was beginning to look like the Executioners had been played for fools long before she or Christian had ever joined the secret branch―former secret branch―of the Catholic Church.
Samantha pressed a hand to her face, her eyes clenched shut and her teeth grit in irritation. She was no longer sure of anything anymore. She was no longer convinced that she could say with absolute honesty what was right and what was wrong. Her faith had been shaken, her beliefs cast in the mud. Everything she knew, or thought she knew, appeared to have been lies passed through the lips of a man―a monster—whose silken words were like a poison, slowly eroding everything that was good and just and righteous in this world.
“Samantha?”
A hand on her shoulder caused Samantha to look up. Tristin stood before her, looking mildly worried. His blue eyes, holding slight bags underneath them, a sign that he’d not gotten a good night’s sleep in a while, stared down at her in concern.
“I’m fine,” she said, waving off his hand and standing up. Tristin stepped back, allowing the woman to get back to her feet. Upon rising from her chair, Samantha, her raven hair falling about her body like a wreath, gazed upon her two compatriots. “I suppose you do have a right to know why Christian is no longer with us. He is your―was—your companion as well. I just...” Samantha bit her lip, hesitating. “I simply do not want either of you to think any less of him when you learn about his reasons for leaving.”
Leon and Sif shared a long, powerful look at each other. They both seemed to realize that what Samantha had to say was big. Maybe it was not as significant as several hordes of demons simultaneously attacking and ransacking every Executioner base in the world, but it was big enough that it could fundamentally change the way they thought about someone, a person they both knew well enough to consider a respected comrade, if not a friend.
“Samantha, me and Sif just had our base overrun with demons that were summoned by another demon disguised as a Clergyman. I doubt there is anything you could tell us about Christian that would make us feel anymore betrayed or confused than we already are.”
“He is right,” Sif added, her voice solemn. “Christian was never one to do something without a good reason. If he left the Executioners, then it must have been something he felt needed to be done.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Samantha muttered, then sighed. Maybe her own perception of Christian was being colored by her own personal betrayal. She knew that, realistically speaking, she and Christian would have never worked out. She was older than him by several years, his superior officer, and before she’d become the commander of the western US hemisphere, she’d been a former Warrior much like himself. That justification didn’t really help her feelings on the matter, but it might explain why she felt so jaded by the experience.
She shook her head. When had things gotten so complicated?
“The reason Christian is no longer with us is because―”
Samantha’s words were cut off mid-sentence as an intense feeling, a wave of vile, repulsive energy, washed over them. A thrill ran down her spine. Her skin crawled. The feeling of her heart quickening pumped adrenaline into her veins.
Everyone went wide-eyed as the feeling of being covered in a layer of tainted power overcame their senses and left them reeling.
Leon’s startles eyes were wide and unfocused. “That’s―”
“―Demonic energy,” Sif finished, her expression grim.
Demonic energy, often known by many different names depending on the country a person was born in, was the energy utilized by demons, denizens of the underworld. Most people were not sensitive to the energy because it was foreign to the Earth. It was a power that did not manifest itself in a form that could normally be felt by humans. Only those who had been trained to sense it, like Samantha, Sif, and Leon―or those who were naturally sensitive to such energies like Tristin―could detect when the energy was being used.
Samantha ran over to the window and looked out. It did not take her very long―less than a second, in fact—to discover the source of the taint, or at least discover what the repugnant feeling that surged over them was for.
Everything looked almost exactly the same as it had. The streets were still there, the cars were still there, there were still people walking along the sidewalks, but that was where the similarities ended. The images were blurry and unfocused. Crimson seeped across her vision, obscuring everything around her. It was similar to looking at a roll of film before it developed.
Tu
rning around, a grim feeling settling on her shoulders, Samantha looked at Leon, Tristin, and Sif. All of them were wearing the same expression as her.
“Something just set up a barrier,” she said, though it didn’t really need to be. “They’ve found us.”
CHAPTER 6
Barriers were a unique ability that only certain types of demons possessed. These demons, once having been believed to be the resurrected souls of sorcerers and sorceresses, were a type of upper-class demon. They were not on par with beings such as the Demon Knight Abaddon the Destroyer, but they were infinitely more powerful than a middle-class demon.
Executioners ranked them as A-ranked threats.
This particular barrier that had been cast was one that separated a specific area of the human world and placed it within another dimension: limbo. Once the barrier was put in place, it was impossible to break free unless the demon who cast the spell was killed.
“This really, really sucks,” Tristin bemoaned, holding his hands to his face. “I just managed to escape from prison, and not even a day later, those stupid marionettes are coming after me.”
“Don’t forget they’re coming after us as well,” Leon said.
Tristin ignored him. “What did I do to deserve this?”
“Shut up, Tristin!” Samantha snapped. She turned away from the window and looked at the three people in her room. “Sif, put your gauntlets on.” Sif nodded and moved over to her bed, pulling a case from underneath it. Samantha then turned to the pretty boy of the group. “Tristin, do you have your gun?”
“No. I left it in the car. But it wouldn’t matter even if I had it with me. You know how bad of a shot I am. I’m more liable to shoot one of you guys in the head than I am my enemies.”
“Dang it,” Samantha swore, but did not dispute Tristin’s claim. The man was a horrible shot, and everybody knew it. The last test he had taken had been given the grand score of -10 because he almost shot the person administering the test. “In that case, Sif and I will have to protect you and Leon on our way to the car.”
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