by Rae Else
There were Order members posted throughout the city. If their group wore the veiling in a crowd, the repellent effect it had on humans would make them conspicuous. To go unnoticed by the Order units, they were going to have to take off their wristbands and use the human crowd as camouflage.
Janos had deemed the best route was past Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament. There were still crowds of protestors occupying Parliament Square, among which they could hide. The plan wasn’t without risks. The human populace of London had had ample opportunity to get to know their faces from the news bulletins over the day. But even a crowd of hostile humans was preferable to facing contingents of powerful arete. Hopefully the hats, hoods and shades would be enough to go undetected by both the humans and any passing Order members.
As they exited the tube at St James’ Station, they removed their wristbands and merged with the exiting crowd. Dan was the only one with a rucksack, in which he carried the tablet and Alex’s medical kit.
Dan and Alex had taken the lead and El noticed that Jim kept very close to Luke. Meanwhile, Robin walked alongside El but kept her attention on Luke too. They didn’t trust him. She didn’t like the way they treated him but supposed that, from their point of view, they couldn’t be too careful.
Dan was preoccupied, studying the second hand travelling around the face of his watch. Janos had sent a few precise timings to help them avoid Order members along their route.
His eyes travelled the street. ‘Three, two, one – Ten thirty-four.’
Every time he counted down, El tensed and checked her shades were in position. It was like he was counting down to the launch of a rocket.
A hubbub reached her ear and a crowd of people came out from a bar ahead of them. They joined the rear of the group, moving towards Westminster Abbey. The throng grew as they proceeded along the street until they reached a grassy square where a mass of people congregated.
For a moment, El was distracted by the Houses of Parliament; the Gothic spires pierced the night sky, at odds with the softly illuminated yellow walls. The day had retreated and the light of the streetlamps, spilling over the crowds, seemed pale in comparison to the grandeur of the lit buildings. The clock tower, Big Ben loomed over everything. When El spied the armed police officers around the building, she reined in her attention, focusing instead on the throng around them.
The square was filled with hundreds of people; the crowds were dotted with signs and banners, stamped with lettering that mirrored the eddy of discontent. “The climate is changing, why aren’t you?”, “Save Our Planet,” “Act Now or Swim Later”.
Police in high-visibility jackets were on the outskirts of the square and along the roads, forming lines down the street that ran alongside Parliament. The officers along the road held big shields: riot police, ready to hold back the crowd should they break through the erected barriers.
‘Where do we go?’ El asked.
Dan’s voice was low. ‘Janos has instructions, just follow my lead.’ He glanced at his watch, his eyes surveying the square as if looking for something in particular.
A cold feeling prickled down El’s spine. His voice was calm, and she wondered where they could possibly go in this stationary mass. Everyone around them seemed agitated. Premonitions filled her head: the protestors’ angry shouts about climate change altering to cries of terrorist as they were identified and hemmed in; police officers, training their weapons on them, their fingers hovering over the triggers.
‘What did Janos say?’ El asked, looking at the restless mob, billboards jabbing the air and voices spiking in dissent.
‘A crowd is very … suggestible,’ Dan said.
‘Dan, we can’t use manip—’
‘I’m not saying that.’ He started through the mob and they all followed, eager not to get separated.
Finally, they stopped amidst the throng, only a couple of rows from the front. El could feel the fervour of the protestors was heightened here. Their shouts were harsher, a few ringleaders bellowed every so often: ‘What do we want?’ The answering crowd cried, ‘Climate justice!’
The crowd took up a chant, ‘Hurricanes, storms and quakes. How much more can we take? The system must shake, shake, shake!’
Dan checked his watch before sidling alongside some of the staunchest protesters at the front.
‘Storms and quakes … the system must shake!’ He shouted, pumping his fist in the air.
Jim was the first to join him, rallying the crowd with violent shouts of the same slogan. He started to knock the barrier as he shouted. The protestors took up the call at the front and started to jostle the barriers too. Robin also started yelling.
El was being shoved forwards by protestors behind who were clamouring to be part of the front line. Luke widened his stance, bracing against the surging crowd that threatened to break upon them.
Dan reached for his rucksack, getting out a canister and handed it to Jim, who grinned.
Alex stepped forwards. ‘Dan, this is a peaceful protest. Someone could get hurt—’
‘Shut it, Gramps!’ Jim shouted, pushing Alex away from them. ‘Storms and quakes, the system must shake!’ He screamed at the crowd while cracking open the canister, before chucking it over the barrier.
A cloud of smoke burst from the can. Dan, Jim and Robin threw more smoke bombs and the street was enveloped in a cloud.
‘Let’s go!’ Dan shouted. ‘Storms and quakes, the system must shake!’ He pushed the barrier over and ran across. El and the others were propelled forwards as protestors muscled ahead of them. Lots of humans were following now, vaulting over the broken barriers and running down the street into the blanket of smoke.
Dan shouted, ‘Veiling – now.’
Rolling their bracelets on, they continued running, invisible to the crowds that now rushed along the streets. The most enthusiastic protestors were a few metres ahead of them, pushing and shoving as they met the line of police. As the mob in the middle grew, they broke the police line, and Dan and the rest of them marshalled through.
With horror, El watched as two men threw a policeman to the ground and started kicking him savagely. Robin kept a hold of Luke, who kept straining to look around at the humans. Alex halted, staring as another officer was tackled to the ground by a group of rioters. The humans started to pummel the policeman. Jim grabbed a hold of Alex and frogmarched him on. Dan’s hand was suddenly in El’s, pulling her forward too.
She was gasping by the time they reached the end of the bridge, out of breath and reeling from the shock of what they’d just witnessed. Ahead, a bus was pulling up and they quickly slipped on. They collapsed on the back seat: their temporary refuge, knowing that the kerykeion would hide their presence from the humans on the bus.
It was just as well: Alex raised his voice and glowered at Jim and Dan. ‘You incited a riot!’
Jim smirked. ‘Give it a rest, would you? We needed a way out.’
Alex’s scowl deepened. ‘Yes, but that wasn’t the way to do it. Couldn’t you think of anything better than smoke bombs? Just because you’re arete, doesn’t give you the right to—’
‘Enough,’ Dan’s attention flew from his watch, irritated by the disturbance. ‘Jim’s right. It was necessary. We needed to get through undetected. Besides, there was no manipulation.’
‘No there wasn’t, but that’s not the point. For all we know, that police officer could die. Didn’t you see the beating he got? It’s our fault … your fault, Dan.’
‘Those humans were on the brink of rioting,’ Dan answered.
Alex’s glare deepened. ‘You’ve gone too far.’
‘We got out. That’s what counts.’
‘I’m going to lose it with you, Daniel. I’m not going to stand by when you use humans as if they’re mere resources.’
‘Understood,’ Dan stated. ‘But right now I need to concentrate on the timings and the bus routes.’ He pulled out his tablet and opened a travel app.
They changed buse
s a couple of times as they made their way east. El was glad that they were hidden from the other passengers, glad she didn’t need to pay anyone any attention. But too often the memory of what they’d done absorbed her: the officers getting tackled and beaten in the riot that they’d instigated.
Their final bus took them to ExCeL in East London. When they got off the bus, El felt like a world-weary traveller, but they weren’t awarded any downtime. Dan, who had been enthralled by his tablet, got straight to briefing them.
‘Janos has arranged for us to tag along with a human called Simmons. He’s lending us his jet and crew but getting on isn’t going to be easy. The Order are doing sweeps of every car that comes into the airport. The only advantage we’ve got is the element of surprise and Janos’ timings.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘I’ll have to give you the rundown on the way.’
In front of the conference centre, Dan approached a man in a suit. ‘Mr Simmons?’
‘Yes. Call me Andrew. You must be Mr Pinton.’
Dan nodded but looked at his watch. ‘We’re short on time.’
‘Of course,’ Simmons said. ‘Please, we’ll make our way to the plane now.’ He gestured to a black people carrier with tinted windows.
Another human, built like a tree, got out and opened the rear door for them.
‘El, Alex,’ Dan said, ‘you’re in the back.’
El frowned. Dan was definitely getting bossier. He surprised her further by clipping the seat back into place, despite there being another available space in the back with her and Alex.
‘We can’t waste any time with someone being stuck in the back,’ Dan said. ‘The rest of us will squeeze into this middle row. Natasha, you first, then Luke.’
Robin and Luke practically had to share a seat when Dan and Jim got in after them. Simmons sat in the front, along with the beefy driver.
‘Right,’ Dan said in a hushed voice, turning around to look at them all. ‘When we get to the barrier, there’ll be an Order unit on guard. Four of them. When they check the car, we’re going to jump out. I need you, El, to manipulate the driver and get to the plane as quickly as possible. Get the pilot to start the plane—’
‘Hang on – I can fight,’ El argued. ‘I want to.’
His expression was resolute. ‘These are Janos’ instructions. He wants us to make sure that you get in the air. Remember, he needs you to make an alliance with Helena.’ He looked around at the others. ‘We have a few minutes to disable our opponents before the Order will detect our power and send reinforcements.’ Dan continued hurriedly. ‘According to Janos, there’ll be an arete of each element in this Order consignment. The best thing we can do is to go on the offensive.
‘Natasha, Luke – the drakon and typhon should be your side of the car. Natasha, get Luke access to water first and then take your opponent out. Jim, the ladon will be on this side of the vehicle. You go for them, I’ll take the hydra. I want you each to disable your opponent. Remember – the aim is to make sure the plane gets in the air.’ He passed his rucksack over to El. ‘Keep this safe and contact Janos as soon as you can.’
El stared. He was talking as though they might not be travelling with her.
As they turned into the private terminal, Dan fell silent. There was a white barrier before them, with a booth to the right. The beefy driver lowered his window.
‘Evening, sir,’ a voice said from outside. ‘Due to the recent terrorist threat, there are extra security measures in place. We’re checking all cars and passengers. If you would, please ensure the locks are off.’
The click of the locks sounded and El held her breath. She heard footsteps moving to both sides of the car. Both rear doors snapped open. Dan and Robin lunged out first, swiftly followed by Luke and Jim. There were a few thuds before El remembered what she was supposed to be doing.
‘Driver!’ she shouted.
The beefy man turned around.
‘Get to the plane. Quickly!’ She stared into his eyes, willing her urgency into him and hearing her command answered as fuel flooded the engine, the car reversed and then powered through the barrier.
Simmons began to scream. El called to him, drawing his eyes and calming him so that the only sound was the powering engine and screeching tires. Something flew down ahead of them with an almighty crash. El squealed as the driver swerved and she swivelled to gawp back at the crushed car that they’d narrowly avoided. She looked up as if she could see through the roof, dreading that something else was about to be propelled at them. With a jerk, the car came to a halt and El stared through the windscreen at the jet standing calmly on the tarmac.
She flashed her eyes at the driver and Simmons, instructing them to board the plane. Unclipping the seat in front of her, she shoved it forwards and jumped out. Alex followed, pulling on the backpack Dan had left. They both ducked instinctively as a colossal crash rang from behind them. Had another car been tossed? Craning her neck, El saw water gushing up from the ground near the security booth and spreading into the sky.
She caught a glimpse of Luke through the water as he repelled it. There was a fleeting view of his opponent: a tall, dark-haired man, but the onslaught of water soon obscured him. Flashes of light illuminated the night sky, their reflections bouncing off the blanket of water in the air. Presumably the light show was from Dan and the other drakon flinging fire at each other, but they weren’t within view.
El and Alex hurried onto the plane. With a flash of her eyes, El ordered the air hostess who greeted them to take a seat and ignore what was happening. In the cockpit, her gaze latched onto the pilot’s and he instantly started the plane’s engines.
‘Leave the plane door open,’ she said as she strode through to the cabin to peer out the open door. ‘They’ve got to get on board.’
There was another deafening boom and a cloud of rubble obliterated their view of the entrance to the terminal. Either Jim and the other typhon were still throwing cars or the two ladon were tearing open the earth. For a moment El found herself thinking about the Olympia. At least there only certain materials were destructible: the walls and floors were reassuringly solid, protected by a coating of empousa blood.
Alex was looking out too, even as the plane started to draw around. ‘I think Natasha took out the other ladon—’
There was a deep rumble and reverberation and El gazed out wondering whether Alex had spoken too soon. The ground was being gouged away near the terminal building. El could see the enemy hydra, being forced back as the earth gave way. He was using the water to support him and carry him to safety.
As the plane started to manoeuvre onto the runway, they caught sight of Luke and Robin running towards them.
El charged through to the cockpit. ‘Stop, stop, stop!’
As the plane slowed, El came back into the cabin. Luke and Robin were running alongside. Robin was struggling to keep up but Luke nimbly took hold of her and propelled them up the stairs and into the cabin. Jim was soaring through the air towards them with Dan in tow. Not far behind, were another pair of flying figures, one who was projecting fireballs.
El returned to the cockpit and stared into the pilot’s eyes. ‘Take off now. Keep the door open.’
The plane started drawing to the runway again, picking up speed. Alex hurried into a nearby single seat and buckled in. Robin sat down on a couch. Luke was at the plane door, holding onto the wall. El felt unnerved just looking at his precarious position but she had to see what was happening outside too. She pitched towards Luke, who grabbed hold of her.
The walls of the plane began to judder. El looked out as a fireball shot past Dan and Jim towards the plane. She traced its energy, feeling its form, moulding it with her eyes. She felt its edges, pushed it in upon itself and extinguished it. The plane ploughed further down the runway, the distance between the aircraft and Jim widening.
Another fiery orb hurtled towards Jim and Dan. Jim propelled them out of the way but the gulf between them and the plane grew even larger.
‘They need help,’ El shouted to Luke above the roar of the wind. ‘Hold onto me. I need to lean out.’
‘Careful!’ Alex shouted from his seat.
Luke held El around her waist, gripping the plane wall as she leaned out the door. She concentrated on the next hostile blaze aimed at Dan and Jim. It boomeranged back towards the enemy drakon. Dan managed to angle his gaze back too, adding his own power to El’s. The flames reached the enemy drakon and engulfed his arm. Both he and the enemy typhon fell to the asphalt, their bodies tumbling in a heap that was soon out of sight.
As the plane lifted, El’s stomach somersaulted and Luke drew her into the safety of the plane. Jim and Dan weren’t going to make it.
El felt the powerful current of air that ensued before Jim and Dan were thrust through the plane door. With the force of the gale, Luke and El were thrown back onto the floor, while Jim and Dan landed in a heap in the aisle.
Over the buffeting wind streaming into the cabin, Luke was the first to shout to the pilot. ‘Shut the door!’
However, the force of the oncoming wind was interfering with the mechanism. Jumping up, Jim used the air currents to force the door shut. As he secured and locked the door, a hush fell.
‘Jesus Christ!’ Alex exclaimed, unbuckling his belt and pitching over to pull El up off the floor. ‘Are you alright?’
El’s heart still raced but she got to her feet, ‘I’m fine,’ she said, smiling, trying to reassure Alex who was wide-eyed.
‘Bagsy the couch,’ Robin piped up, wrestling out of her leather jacket, kicking off her boots and putting her feet up.
Jim lurched down the cabin and collapsed into a single seat. El followed, feeling unsteady with the weird slope of the plane as it continued to climb in altitude. She sat down in one of the double seats on the other side of the aisle, shuffling to the window. The ground shrank below as buildings with twinkling lights stretched out and then dwindled until a network of glimmering beams lay beneath.