Desolace Omnibus Edition

by Lucian Barnes

  As he neared a huge well in the center of the city his fears were confirmed, but it wasn't the others who were in danger. Hearing the sound of breaking glass he spun his head around to witness an overwhelming number of tiny creatures pouring from the frames of every structure in the vicinity.

  ***

  Hearing the crash of breaking glass, Katie's head snapped up. Squinting toward town she couldn't make out what had caused the noise, but she was sure it wasn't something Edward had done. He wasn't much more than a speck to her from this distance, though from what she could tell he was still on his horse, which looked to be standing in the middle of the street leading from one end of the city to the other.

  "Do you think we should get closer so we can see what's going on?" she asked, turning toward Brian, but he had already begun to move his mount closer to the city. "I guess that means yes," she murmured, looking down at Jack's haunted eyes. "Let's go see what kind of trouble we can get ourselves into."

  Pushing her pommel forward, she followed after Brian. So as not to leave Jack to fend for himself she kept the mechanical horse's pace to a minimum, which caused her to fall well behind Brian after only a couple of minutes.

  ***

  It wasn't long before the street was literally crawling with tiny, disgusting-looking creatures. If Edward dared to dismount his horse the tops of their heads would likely have not even reached his waist, but as he watched them closing in he couldn't even begin to imagine the size of the force arrayed before him. There seemed to be hundreds of the ugly things dancing maniacally in the street, closing in on him from all sides.

  Panicked, Edward quickly glanced in the direction of where he'd departed company with his friends and saw one of the metallic horses rapidly approaching. He couldn't tell who the rider was from this distance, though he fervently hoped it was Brian. He was likely the best hope for getting him out of the jam he'd gotten himself into.

  Feeling something tugging on his boot, Edward looked down. A twisted green face with long, pointed ears, laying flat against its skull like an angry dog, stared back at him. It grinned up at him, revealing a mouth filled with long, razor sharp teeth, gnashing them together hungrily as if Edward was the main course it desperately craved.

  Thrusting his leg away from the horse he launched the creature through the air, its tiny, outstretched arms grasping in futility to hold onto Edward's booted foot. The impish creature struck the ground a short distance away, sending up a puff of dust. Before the small dust cloud settled he was struggling with several more of the pint-sized demons which had sprung into the air and latched on to Edward's clothing, saddle, and horse.

  They quickly began clawing, scratching, and biting, tearing huge, gaping holes in his cloak in an effort to reach his flesh. Swinging his arm wildly, Edward managed to repel a few of the pesky creatures, but for every one he shooed away it seemed two or three more would take its place. If he didn't find a way to get a little breathing room, and fast, the hellish monsters would overrun him in a matter of minutes. There were so many of the tiny demons upon him now that it was impossible to concentrate long enough to use a spell.

  ***

  Despite the fact the old woman was fighting for control over her body and trying to move forward to help her son, George forced her to stay in the shadows of the enormous tree. Inwardly he was almost dancing with glee as he watched the ravenous demons attacking the man on the horse, but the distraction had almost cost him control of the body he was in. Seeing the familiar sight of the mechanical horses entering the town to help gave George a pang of longing, wishing he could be reunited with his trusty steed. The only hope he had of that was if the tiny demons, some reminding him of the creatures in the movie Gremlins, were victorious. A victory which wasn't etched in stone just yet. He would have to wait for the battle to play out before he made a move.

  ***

  The closer Brian got to the center of town where Edward was fighting a losing battle, the harder it became for him to breathe. His breaths were coming in short, ragged gasps and his eyes were utterly useless, completely clouded over, forcing him to use the inner beacon of his senses to guide him closer.

  Within seconds he was near enough to the fight to hear the screeching voices of the creatures, some shouting in annoyance and others cackling with insane delight. Letting the pommel slap backward into an upright position his mount immediately stopped, the forward momentum almost sending Brian into flight. Somehow he managed to stay in the saddle.

  His mind swirled as he tried to figure out the best course of action now that he'd inserted himself into the situation. Having never attempted using his holy fire in an area where he wasn't trying to obliterate everything inside, Brian hesitated, remembering how his last helpful spell had turned out.

  Breathing as deeply as he could muster, Brian attempted to calm his thoughts in hopes of finding the answer to his dilemma. Do I risk killing Edward or do I use my gift to create a diversion? Instinct was telling him to go with the latter, not willing to entirely trust his magic after the incident with his attempt to heal the horse.

  ***

  Katie's phenomenal vision allowed her to see the horde of tiny creatures swarming around Edward. Panicking as she watched the scene unfold before her, she glanced quickly down at Jack. "I'm sorry. If I don't get close enough to help Edward, and fast, he might get killed," she told the wolf, hoping she wasn't making a huge mistake and sacrificing the well-being of one friend for another.

  Thrusting the pommel forward as far as it would go, the beast rapidly closed the distance between herself and the battle. Within seconds the metallic creature skittered past Brian, who seemed to be summoning one of his spells. When she was about halfway between Edward and Brian, Katie jerked back on the pommel, raising an enormous dust cloud as the machine backpedaled to comply, its legs flailing in the opposite direction like a car being suddenly thrown into reverse.

  When her forward progress stopped she let go of the pommel and allowed it to snap straight upward. Quickly she snagged the bow from her back and, despite the pain in her broken hand, took aim. Loosing one arrow after the next, Katie rapidly went through her supply of projectiles, but not before she had landed a good number of head shots and dwindled the forces arrayed against them.

  Knowing the fact that she could retrieve her arrows after the battle did nothing to calm her nerves, but since they were all used up for the time being Katie had to resort to other methods if she hoped to help any further. Quickly she ducked her head between the drawstring and the bow, swinging it around so it was on her back, and drew Jack's sword from her side with her good hand. Raising it high in the air in her fist, she screamed out a war cry and pushed through her pain to nudge the pommel forward with her broken hand, charging headlong into battle. As she did, Katie saw the thing she dreaded most happen before her eyes. Edward's horse collapsed beneath him, spilling him to the ground. Instantly, he was engulfed in the mass of impish creatures.

  Arriving moments later, Katie swung the sword as low as she could reach but still hit nothing. Fucking things are too short! Allowing the pommel to snap into an upright position, she kicked her leg over the top of the machine and hopped to the ground.

  ***

  Clutching the willow tightly, Victoria's fingers began to bleed as her nails dug into the bark. Her son had just disappeared from sight, the demonic creatures incapacitating his horse, which was probably being torn to shreds along with Edward at this very moment. She tried to move toward the fight, the maternal instinct within her wanting to make sure her son was all right, but the entity inside her was unflinching. As soon as he realized what she meant to do, George stopped her. A smile that was not her own spread over her face.

  ***

  Suddenly the day exploded into newly found brilliance as the building behind Katie, which at one time housed a general store, erupted into flames. Taking a quick glance over her shoulder she saw Brian's arms falling to his sides, his torso slumping forward. Great! Why does he always bl
ow his entire wad when he casts a spell? Hasn't he ever heard of moderation?

  When Katie turned her attention back to the monsters before her she saw that Brian's distraction had worked on them as well. They had turned their heads as if they were a singular being toward the conflagration, a look of fear crossing their tiny faces for the first time.

  Not all, but some, fled down the alleyways between other buildings, scampering to get out of harm's way. With most of them still entranced by the burning structure, Katie hacked her way through them with the sword, sending tiny limbs and grotesque looking heads in every direction. After a couple of minutes the trance was broken and the demons realized their numbers had been severely reduced by the crazed woman with the sword.

  Scattering, they chased after the others who had already fled the battle allowing Katie to finally get a glimpse of Edward.

  With every bit of energy he could muster, Edward propped himself up on one elbow and focused everything he had left in him, sending out a streak of lightning from his outstretched palm. Several, maybe as many as twenty-five, demons were scorched by the bolt of electricity before they could get to safety. The effect of his spell was different for some of the fleeing creatures. Some were turned into blackened husks, their corpses smoking as they collapsed to the ground. Others were set ablaze by the jolt of lightning which ricocheted between them, and still others exploded, sending tiny bits of gore in every direction.

  Since the attack now seemed to be in full retreat, Katie turned her attention back to Edward who had fallen into the dirt, groaning in agony. His cloak was in tatters and blood flowed freely from several lacerations visible through his torn clothing. "Give me a sec, I'll be right back," she whispered frantically, hoping as she left his side that she could find something useful inside the saddlebags of the severely injured horse laying on its side nearby.

  As she began searching the contents of each bag for anything which might be useable as a bandage Katie heard Edward's voice, but couldn't make out what he had said. Returning to his side a couple of minutes later with the only items she could find, a tunic and the twine, Katie knelt down beside Edward and began to patch up his wounds to the best of her ability.

  "Stop," he moaned incoherently, the blood loss leaving him on the edge of consciousness. "You have to catch them before they get away." He raised his arm weakly and pointed toward the space between the buildings.

  Turning her head to make a quick check of her surroundings, Katie saw Jack hobbling around the corner into an alley, trying to do his part since he'd been late getting to the scene of the battle. "Lay still," she softly scolded. "Jack is taking care of them, now let me tend your wounds."

  "But, Jack can't ..." Katie sighed in frustration, knowing she had to hurry before Edward lost too much blood. At least he passed out so I don't have to listen to him complaining, she thought.

  ***

  Jack hobbled up the dusty street as fast as he could on the makeshift appendage Katie had lashed to his body. It hindered him from moving as quickly as he would have liked, but it was still better than trying to get around on three legs. Everyone had done their part to thwart the attack of the demons, everyone except him, and now he was determined to pull his weight at any cost.

  Shuffling around the burnt corpses of the tiny creatures and stepping through splattered gore, Jack made his way down the alley toward the rear of the building. There were a lot of panicked screams and high-pitched shouts still coming from somewhere just out of sight, but he fervently hoped he would be able to get his licks in before they got away.

  Rounding the corner moments later, Jack found the source of the commotion. About a hundred feet from him there were a good number of the pint-sized demons scrambling to get aboard an odd looking platform with metal wheels. A man was standing nearby, helping the creatures that were too short to make it up by themselves.

  Stalking toward the man, Jack growled, snapping his jaws viciously in hopes of getting him to back away. When the man turned to face him, Jack saw a flicker of red light coming from his eye sockets and realized he was up against something that wasn't mortal. He'd seen the same deadly glow come from the mechanical beasts that Katie and Brian rode, telling him it was a machine standing before him and not a human.

  Once the last of the tiny demons were aboard the railcar, the cyborg turned back toward the building he had been hiding next to, disguised as one corpse among many, ignoring the threatening snarls and bared teeth of the wolf.

  Realizing the stacks of bodies against the rear of the structure could be like the man he was eyeing, Jack was torn about what he should do. Go after the little ones, or after the cyborg? Deciding he could do more damage against a force, which was attempting to flee, Jack moved in on the platform.

  Behind him a hollow, mechanical laugh drifted to his ears as the cyborg flipped a switch on the outer wall of the building. The railcar hummed to life and quickly shot down the tracks, leaving Jack wondering what had just happened.

  ***

  As Katie continued to rip the tunic into useable strips to bandage Edward's multitude of injuries she heard a strange laugh resonate between the buildings, echoing and bouncing from the vacant structures, making it seem as if the sound were coming from every direction. Shortly thereafter she heard a thumping, metallic screech; a noise reminding her of the not so distant past, of home. If her ears weren't playing tricks on her she would swear the sound was made by a train, but she'd never seen anything of the sort during her time on Desolace.

  Frantic barks began coming from the alleyway and moments later Jack came into view, hobbling toward her as fast as he could, almost as if death itself was on his tail. Glancing quickly up the street she noticed that Brian was regaining consciousness, slowly sitting up in his saddle and looking around as if he were in a daze.

  As the clacking of the railcar faded into the distance Katie began to hear the sound of stomping footsteps, reminding her of the first time she'd lain eyes on one of the mechanical horses, near Haven when her bus driver had passed by them on his way south. It wasn't Brian's steed, which was standing completely motionless, or her own, that was only a few feet from her, unmoving. So what was causing the sound she heard?

  In seconds Katie found out, and it was definitely not what she expected to see. Marching from the alley between the burning building and the dilapidated structure across from it was something which looked human at first glance, but as it drew near she could see small patches of skin missing from its face, revealing a surface beneath that was more reflective than bone. It was then, and only then, that Katie caught a glimpse of the fiery red orbs within its eye sockets, burning like they were concealing a bonfire behind them.

  With Jack now beside her, Katie stood protectively in front of the mangled, unconscious form of Edward, and drew the sword on her hip, brandishing it as menacingly as she could manage. Inwardly she prayed to whomever would listen. I doubt I can do this on my own, so I'm pleading with whatever God is in charge of this world ... please help me! I'm a hunter, not a warrior. I need all the help I can get to protect the people I care about. The prayer fluttered through her mind like a soft autumn breeze; there one second, gone the next.

  As the cyborg approached, Jack circled to one side in hopes of creating a distraction Katie could use to her advantage, but the machine didn't slow or even glance in his direction. Snarling like a rabid dog, he lunged forward. Clamping his teeth into the cyborg's soft, outer flesh, Jack whipped his head back and forth violently.

  Firmly gripping the hilt Katie swung the sword, but it didn't have the effect she was hoping for. Instead of the blade biting into the flesh and severing the appendage it had struck, the metal reverberated, sending a tingling shock wave up her arm. As the cyborg reached out to grab her, Katie ducked its clutching fingertips.

  Swiftly pulling back the sword, she dodged to the side leaving Edward temporarily exposed. Grimacing in agony, she grasped the hilt with both hands this time, swinging the blade like a baseball player a
ttempting to crack in a home run. A shower of sparks cascaded into her face as half of an arm fell away from the cyborg's body and landed on the ground beside her, its fingers reflexively opening and closing as if it had a life of its own. The excruciating pain in her broken hand caused her to lose her grip on the sword, which landed directly behind her attacker. Tears sprung to her eyes as she tried to tune out the pain.

  Forgetting about the helpless man on the ground before it, the cyborg turned toward Katie. As it spun in her direction, Jack was propelled through the air like a rag doll, landing awkwardly beside Edward and rolling through the dirt for a few feet. Tufts of synthetic flesh flew from his jowls as he shook his head to clear the fuzziness caused by his head hitting the ground.

  As she scrambled through the dust, attempting to circle around the cyborg, Katie was distracted by the sound of more stomping feet. Great! Like dealing with one of these things isn't hard enough! Chancing a quick look toward the alley, a sigh of relief escaped her lips when she saw the source of the heavy footfalls was friendly.

  Brian didn't feel entirely like himself as he hopped down from his steed to help Katie, but at this point he was sure she could use his assistance no matter what he had left to give. His eyes were still glazed over quite a bit, but since the departure of the lesser demons he had at least gained some of his eyesight back, along with his ability to breathe more freely. Thrusting his spear with as much force as he could muster, Brian connected with the cyborg's skull, causing sparks to shoot from the side of its head.

  As the cyborg turned its head to face him, the sun sank below the horizon, leaving the glow from the flaming structure behind him as the major source of light. The fire danced in the machine's red eyes as it grinned maliciously at Brian. "So, you're the special one," it hissed in a hollow voice as if it could somehow see into Brian's soul. "Perhaps I should keep you around for the master to play with."