The Fallen

by R. L. Drummond

  Tellan growled as Belial met him blow for blow and a heavy knee was driven into his side that stole the breath from him. Tellan rammed his fist deeply into Belial’s stomach, but when the demon retaliated with a forearm smash into his cheek, his vision exploded into spots of light. It became a struggle of strength against strength as the pair fought for domination, a vicious fight that saw them both reeling with bloody noses and bruised eyes. Had he not been injured already from the battle above Tellan would have been swifter in his retaliations, but when he realised that Belial had manipulated his arm into a tight shoulder lock, he knew then that his time within this desperate fight had run out.

  A cold horror leapt into Tellan when he felt the strain against his elbow joint and upon the loud snap that reverberated deafeningly throughout the cellar, he grunted in blinding agony. He felt himself shoved back onto the ground and upon the mercilessly punishing shin Belial sank down onto his throat, blood throbbed deafeningly in Tellan’s temples.

  “You should have given her to me, Tellan.” He heard Belial admonish through a pounding pulse as he gripped the taught leg that held him unforgivingly. Tellan gurgled helplessly when the demon cruelly pressed deeper against his throat, denying him of breath, and Tellan despaired of the flashing lights that blinded his eyes.

  “You already failed to protect Baldur,” the demon’s taunts floated through darkening vision, ignoring the fingers that raked his powerful thigh desperately, “and soon I will take Reya from your dying hands!”

  A sudden clarity born of protective rage dawned within Tellan’s mind then and he growled defiance as he gripped Belial’s leg with newfound strength. Before the demon could react, Tellan whipped his legs upwards and enveloped Belial’s neck with an iron hard grip, locking his ankles together firmly for purchase. Belial grunted as he was driven onto his back, but a sharp tug on Tellan’s dislocated arm was enough to weaken the tight hold he had upon him and Belial was suddenly over him once more.

  “Enough!!” Belial roared and with one last, colossal fist that smashed powerfully into Tellan’s jaw, the angel collapsed senselessly in the cold cellar dust.

  Belial retrieved his Abyssal long sword that had been abandoned during the struggle, and the demon frowned in irritation at his opponent’s delirious form. Good…He thought derisively, but not good enough. He knew that he should kill the Asgardian now, but with Jenko having been given at least a five minute head start, there was the risk that he would lose the trail on Reya…and that particular prize was of greater value to him than another dead angel.

  Belial burned his silvery gaze towards the gloom of the tunnel that stretched before him, a yawning mouth of darkness that held no fear for an Abyssal being such as he. His eyes were like lightning in the smokiness of his face as he stepped over the threshold and when he spotted the trail of Asgardian blood that bloomed brightly within the cavernous tunnel, he began to run eagerly with a triumphant snarl.

  Within the cave Jenko grimaced as he gripped his side with a trembling hand and staggered against the wall; the wound was far deeper than he had earlier anticipated and his vision had become lighter than he knew was healthy. He gulped in air as he doggedly stumbled along and ground his teeth with fierce resolve, Come on, Jenko…you made a promise. You stupid fool.

  With that self-admonishment Jenko’s stumbling stride became a run again and even though his lungs burned and his injuries ached, all that flooded his mind was reaching Reya in time. When the tunnel’s roughly hewn ground finally gave way to stone flooring, he gasped in sheer gratitude and pushed the safe house’s heavy wooden door open with a bloody palm.

  “Reya!” He called breathlessly and when he saw her wide violet eyes amid the dusty gloom of stacked crates, he felt a tremendous instinct to weep for joy.

  Instead he staggered silently through the doorway with a weary wave of greeting and bled upon the floor, and Reya’s hands flew to her mouth with a gasp at the sight of his injuries. Jenko’s reasonably upright stance dissolved as soon as Reya rushed towards him and her outstretched arms were all that stopped him from total collapse. She gaped at him then, completely taken at how this man that she had instinctually felt was irritated by her could have fought so hard for her safety. The deep slashes that scored his torso, the cut in his arm and the horrifically deep looking puncture in his side; Reya had never seen so much blood before…it was a wonder to her that Jenko could stand at all.

  “Are you alright?” She asked his bloodied face worriedly as she took some of his weight and Jenko looked at her askance.

  “No, of course I’m not. I don’t usually look like this.” He answered bluntly and he gave her a facial sigh when he realised he had offended her with the flippancy of his response.

  Reya looked behind him with hope in her eyes, but all that met her gaze her was the whispering breeze within the darkened tunnel. “Where…where is Tellan?” She asked.

  Jenko’s eyes fluttered momentarily as he considered the possible reality behind Reya’s question…what if Belial…

  “He’s right behind me, but we can’t stay here.” He blurted firmly. He then grasped Reya’s shoulders and pushed her away slightly before he turned back towards the heavy door he had come through. He braced a shoulder against the solid wood and with a silent internal curse, he held his breath and pushed with what strength he had left within him.

  Reya watched him with an open mouth for a few moments until she finally swallowed and said, “I’m not leaving him.”

  “Tellan’s a big boy, he can look after himself.”

  “But–”

  “Reya, don’t you get it?” Jenko snapped suddenly and he paused momentarily in his struggle with the door, “It’s you Belial’s after! Me and Tellan, we aren’t important!”

  Reya balked at the statement Jenko had all but barked at her in his haste to close the hefty door and she watched him briefly as he struggled against the extra strain such a simple action took on his wounds.

  “Don’t say that.” She whispered, horrified that he had said such a thing to her with such stark bluntness, but her eyes couldn’t ignore the fresh splatters of blood that dripped between Jenko’s planted feet.

  “Get used to it, sweetheart.” Jenko grumbled with a grunt and internally cursed himself for the bloody fool idea he had had of installing a reinforced door here, “You’re going to hear a lot of that sort of thing.”

  His grunt escalated into a snarl of effort as he pushed the door nearly closed, but when a heavy force suddenly slammed it from behind so harshly that he was knocked back, Reya screamed instinctually.

  “Reya, get back!” Jenko barked and in spite of how valiantly he redoubled his weight against the door, the sheer strength that was forced against it from the other side violently dislodged his efforts.

  Jenko stumbled backward and as he reached behind himself to keep Reya from view, Belial pushed the door open with a near dismissive snarl at its not inconsiderable weight. Jenko swallowed momentarily as he tried to disguise the mild limp that afflicted him and he lifted a bloody sabre in a defiant guard that did not waver in its resolve. He then glowered at the stalking demon with grim determination; if Belial was to take Reya from him, he resolved to himself, then the demon bastard would fucking well have to work for it.

  Belial bared his jagged teeth in a snarl of challenge at the sabre that was pointed aggressively at his heart, but when he spoke next, his voice was raised beyond Jenko. “Come with me, Reya.” He said and his deep tone echoed through the gloom like a struck bell.

  Reya peered cautiously over Jenko’s shoulder and even as she shifted slightly to look at the demon that watched her with a tiger’s hunger, Jenko pushed her further behind the protective shield of his body.

  “Surely you don’t want Jenko to die too, do you?” Belial asked her predatorily.

  “W–why are you doing this?!” Reya cried.

  “Leave her be, Belial!!” Jenko roared over her plaintive question.

  “Step aside, Asgard.” Belial r
umbled as he prowled before Jenko, and Reya gasped fearfully at the raw power that exuded from him with an aura of oppressive darkness.

  Jenko impetuously spat blood on the ground and over Reya’s fearful whimpers, he replied fiercely, “Like the man said: that’s not going to happen.”

  “Even in your prime you were no match for me.” Belial goaded through a feral snarl. “Have you forgotten that night, Jenko? How easily my blade went right through you?”

  Jenko grinned in wicked retaliation. “You’re not the only one who knows a few dirty tricks to win a fight, Belial. This is my turf you’re on. Careful where you tread.”

  “You are badly wounded, Jenko…” Belial endeavoured threateningly and with a dangerous narrowing of his eyes, he hissed, “Be sensible.”

  Jenko huffed a laugh and retorted, “Sensible? Ha…I may be wounded, demon, but I am far from defeated.” He then lifted his other sabre and his stance projected the incredible strength and tenacity that had awarded him his position in the Line of Baldur.

  He bared his teeth in undiluted aggression and snarled, “And I am no common soldier. You…will not…have her.”

  Belial’s lip curled in derision as he glowered at Jenko. “You’d be willing to die protecting her?” He asked darkly.

  “Come a little closer and I’ll give you an answer.” Jenko growled threateningly and Reya couldn’t help the tears that streaked down her face in utter fear.

  Aggression crackled in the air like electricity and as Belial stepped forward with his fearsome long sword raised in answer of Jenko’s challenge, a roar of enraged retribution erupted from behind him. Belial turned at the very moment Tellan crashed into him heavily and as the demon tumbled onto the floor, Tellan’s mighty bastard sword smashed downwards in a deadly arc. Steel barked against the floor as Belial rolled away hastily and, in spite of how groggily Tellan’s head spun, he doggedly followed his enemy. A flare of clarity pounced upon his mind when Belial ended his roll beside a stacked set of crates and without hesitation, Tellan leapt forward, tipping the crates over with a shout. The tumbling crates shattered devastatingly across Belial’s back and as Tellan staggered back terribly, Reya gasped at the extent of his injuries. His dislocated right arm hung limply as he hefted the weight of his bastard sword in his off hand, and as he huffed breath laboriously, Reya could see that his face was bloody and bruised.

  Belial rose ominously from the splinters and debris of the shattered crates with the wrath of the Abyss blazing in his eyes, and in that moment, Tellan resolved himself to the death he knew awaited him. He looked at Reya briefly and his eyes were filled with sadness at the terrible grief Belial’s campaign had inflicted upon her.

  “Take her, Jenko.” He commanded hoarsely through a bruised jaw and torn lip as he turned back with ferocious resolution towards his nemesis, “Keep her safe.”

  “Yes, Sir.” Jenko answered grimly as he sheathed his sabres and gripped Reya’s hand purposefully.

  He gently guided Reya toward the safe house’s front door, but when she realised that his intention was to leave Tellan on his own with her father’s murderer, she struggled within Jenko’s firm grip with a cry of anguish. He grunted when he felt her hand tug away from his grasp and as Reya leapt forward for her uncle, Jenko’s heart leapt into his throat.

  “Reya!” Jenko barked at the same moment Belial surged forward with his murderous long sword raised, and Tellan’s heart felt as though it would explode in fright at how closely she had moved towards the demon prince.

  Belial snarled and reached out for Reya even as Tellan selflessly stepped forward to thwart his path, only inches away from the long sword that gleamed with deadly intent. Jenko leapt for Reya himself and as soon as his hand closed around her wrist, the fingertips of her other hand reached out desperately for Tellan’s shoulder.

  With the barest touch upon her uncle’s battered overcoat, a sudden flash of searing blue light flared so brightly within the safe house that Reya gasped in fright. But when the brightness faded as quickly as it had come, Belial’s descending long sword bit deeply into the floor with a barking clatter that resounded through the air. Belial blinked through the intense flash of after images that burned through his eyes like the harshest of sunlight and when his vision finally cleared, his eyes widened in shock.

  Only he stood in the safe house now, entirely alone…and Belial realised with a blooming rage that the whelp had somehow tapped into the gift her father had blessed her with. The gift that had called to the demon prince through her nightmares and promised him the power he had avariciously desired for so long. Slipped through his fingers within the blink of an eye.

  The violent scream of frustrated rage that echoed through the air swore the deaths of all that would cross Belial’s path, but the threat fell on deaf ears; for Reya and the others had miraculously disappeared far beyond the threat of the demon prince’s wrath.

  A coil of blue light and the rush of wind heralded the abrupt arrival of Tellan, Jenko and Reya and as she fell wheezing onto her knees at the immense pressure that assailed her lungs, the two men staggered with mouths agape in shocked familiarity of what had just happened. The chill of dusk burned into Jenko’s strained lungs as he leaned on his knees and his breath clouded moisture against the darkening sky. Tellan’s eyes were wide as he cast his gaze along their surroundings; they were outside now and high upon a cliff that overlooked the coast, far from Ilema and Belial both. Waves lapped gently against the rock face below and among the grass underfoot were tiny white wildflowers that blossomed with a heady fragrance. But such beautiful surroundings were entirely lost on Reya, for she had curled up into a ball amid a smattering of boulders and whimpered terribly as she clung to herself.

  Jenko turned towards Tellan with his mouth wide open in ominous shock and he flickered his incredulous gaze between his companions, while his convoluted mind screamed of the implications behind what had just happened.

  “Are you kidding me? Are you fucking kidding me?!” He screamed and as he spun in a circle, anger crackled from his clenched hands terribly.

  Tellan simply stared at Reya as she retched on the ground and his hand trembled upon his mouth from the heavy gravity of the inexplicable event he had witnessed. So…He thought numbly as comprehension finally descended with cold clarity upon his mind, this is why Belial came…

  “What…what just happened?” Reya quavered from the floor. Her body trembled terribly as she stared at the ground, still on all fours after the oppressive shock of whatever it was that had just happened.

  “Tellan!” Jenko rapped with such reproach in his tone that Tellan’s eyes jumped towards him, “What the hell is this?!”

  Tellan gulped briefly as his apprehensive eyes slowly dragged back towards Reya’s hunched form, “It…it would seem that…a gateway was opened–”

  “Yes, I noticed that when she fucking pulled us through with her, thank you very much!!” Jenko shot back angrily, the force of his voice overpowering Reya’s plaintive whimpers. He then swiped a hand across his face and shuddered as the impossibilities of what had just occurred slammed into his reason, “What the….how?!”

  Reya’s mouth worked as she processed what Jenko had just said, “I…I did this?” She asked Tellan in stunned horror.

  Tellan frowned in empathy as he looked upon her then, so lost she seemed within the fragile cocoon of melting ice and warm steam that always accompanied any planar gateway. In that moment his sensibilities flooded back to him and he rushed forward to hold her with his uninjured arm. “Are you alright, Reya? Have you been hurt?” He asked her gently.

  “What the fuck, Tellan?!” Jenko all but screamed, “Is that all you’ve got to ask?”

  “Jenko, look at her!” Tellan rebuked as he gathered Reya protectively into his arms and the harshness of his face pulled Jenko out of his shock long enough that he could finally see Reya was truly traumatised.

  She doesn’t know…He suddenly realised and he rolled his eyes with a snarl of irritation
, Well done, Jenko. You and your big, bloody mouth!

  “Uncle Tellan?” Reya wailed fearfully and her fingers clawed her uncle’s overcoat as she clung desperately to him, “What…what–”

  “Shh…it’s alright, Reya. You’re safe now.” Tellan soothed as he held her close against his chest.

  “I don’t understand!” She whispered and Tellan’s throat convulsed at how pale her face had become. Opening a gateway took a heavy toll on any who walked the planes…but those who had the ability were planar beings, not mortals. He couldn’t even imagine the awful strain her body must have gone through to summon the immense energy such an event needed. The force of it would have killed any other mortal…not only was Reya an impossible child, but now she had awakened an impossible ability…

  “That’s not important right now, my love.” Tellan replied thickly and he rocked her gently in encouragement for her to calm down, “You’re safe. That’s all that matters.”

  “Is he gone?”

  “That’s for sure.” Jenko muttered dryly under his breath, his hands placed upon his hips as he nudged a small pebble with his toe.

  “Damn it, Jenko!” Tellan hissed with a flare of anger. But when he spoke to Reya again, his voice became calm, “It’s alright, sweetheart. You don’t have to worry about him.”

  “Okay.” Reya replied quietly, her drained voice muffled by Tellan’s overcoat. All he could do was rock her gently and stroke her hair, his dislocated arm leaving the attempt at soothing her inept and fumbled, but eventually Reya’s breathing deepened and she fell asleep in his protective embrace.

  “Jenko.” Tellan whispered and motioned for his comrade to take Reya.