During the flight Cheyne made an important call to the Library of Aegis.
“Sweep through the histories containing all the hierarchy demons,” she told them. “We have to find a way of tracking down these artefacts before they do. Somewhere, there’s a legend or a text or something that tells us where to look. At least, I hope so. It’s all we’ve got.”
Paris glittered like a land of stars as we banked overhead. The plane thudded down, wings tipping and swaying rather scarily just before the wheels hit, and taxied into Charles De Gaulle. Within thirty minutes we were in a taxi and headed through the dark for the heart of Paris. As soon as she managed to get a new signal, Cheyne called Leah Aldridge.
“Where are you now?”
“What? Who the hell’s this?” Leah sounded put out. “You bloody well woke me up. And how did you get this number?”
Cheyne pouted and played for time. “You don’t remember me?”
“What? Portia? Is that you?”
Cheyne gambled and stayed quiet. After another few seconds Kinkade took over.
“We stayed as long as we could. By midnight the gig and the after show were pretty much dead and everyone wanted to burn off their energy. The performances leave you with a million doses of excess adrenalin that so need draining. Usual way is a party, so that’s where we went.”
“Did you track Beelzebub?”
“Until we left. He waited.”
Cheyne figured out the timings. “So he’s had four hours to himself. Let’s hope he’s still there. Leah—thank you.”
“Of course. You should come to meet me before you go. This body—this person—could be useful to you.”
Giles leaned forward in the back seat. “Are you offering to help? Through her?”
“Come to see me . . . tomorrow . . . if you survive tonight.”
The call clicked off. Giles sat back with a huff. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, you ass.”
Tanya spoke up. “I wouldn’t call Kinkade the gargoyle an ass. Not to his face anyways.”
“Why? He’s inanimate. What’s he going to do? Talk about me?”
Belinda grunted. “He might sic his Victoria’s Secret model on you.”
I laughed. “Is that supposed to be a punishment?”
Belinda frowned at me. I ignored the look. I hadn’t totally forgiven her for giving Ken Hamilton a lap dance yet. Truth be told, I hadn’t even had time for one myself. Something to look forward to.
*
Outside the Louvre the taxi dropped us off, the French driver no doubt having one or two private thoughts about the English and American lunatics that had taken over his car. Though pretty and somewhat stunning, the surroundings suddenly felt very cold and very dangerous. The glass pyramid shone like a beacon, the surrounding museum lit only where cleaning crews plied their trade. Cheyne headed toward the pyramid and we all started off after her, but then Belinda stopped and stared.
“Ah, crap.”
The tremor in her voice made my hair stand on end even before I saw the nightmare vision that had been watching us all along. It crouched at the very top of the glass pyramid, a menacing black effigy of horns, demonic wings, and blazing red eyes. I would have thought it an early Halloween decoration, only the wings were slowly moving and the eyes blinked. When we all stopped and stared it rose up on two impossibly tall spindly legs.
“I am Beelzebub. I am Legion. I am laden with a dark and magnificent duty. I feel the blood that pumps through your hearts and now, it is mine!”
The wings unfurled to their fullest extent and then, there above the Louvre and the shining lights in the heart of Paris, over the great square and visible from the Champs Elysees, there came swooping one of the most powerful beings in existence—Beelzebub, demon of death. I should have stood tall, I should have confronted it, but my deepest instinct was to flee, to get the hell out of there and cower in the farthest corner. My eyes must have been wild, because when Belinda turned and spotted me she reached out and held me in a grip of iron.
“We stand together,” she said. “We fight.”
I nodded frantically, my heart triple-timing.
The creature’s arc took it higher and then down into a headlong dive. Wings buffeted the air. A screech like the coming of ruin stung my senses. I saw its tongue. I saw its teeth. I saw fire spitting between its jaws. Like a living dive-bomber it zoomed between us, claws raking, forked tail whipping to and fro.
We scattered, diving every which way. One of the tails smashed Giles across the head, making him cry out and smack his forehead against hard stone. A raking talon snicked past my face, so close I could feel the breeze of its passing. It had come within a hair’s-breadth of flaying my cheek to the bone. Fire spat and spurted to the ground, not gouts of flame but small spatters as if they were leaking from the demon’s innards, a by-product of its anger. The flagstones sizzled. The right wing slammed into Belinda, knocking her off her feet and sending her sprawling. At the extent of its dive the demon swooped up into the air again, suddenly vertical.
And screeched with bloodlust and glorious rage.
We regrouped. The attack had come so fast it was more than breathtaking, it was overwhelming. Cheyne was already on her feet, a chant pouring from her mouth. Giles was groaning but thankfully conscious. I stared up at the ascending monster, fists clenched tightly enough to crush horse chestnuts.
“Logan!” Belinda cried. “Logan! Your power!”
I remembered who I was. The power swelled in my chest, mostly a reaction to my fear of this demon. I saw Natalie crouched at my side, head in her hands and tears rolling down her face. Some kind of protective instinct took over. I was a guardian now, one of the Chosen, and my given power demanded that I step up and be counted.
Tanya and Belinda stood in a kind of frustrated powerlessness. They were warriors, hand-to-hand fighters, and Beelzebub wasn’t giving them the chance to get in on the action. It was up to Cheyne and me to bring him down.
Beelzebub spun at the top of his flight, swept over in an arc and came again—arrow straight. The hellfire eyes pinned me. Much too soon I unleashed my steadily mounting energy, shooting everything I had at the plunging beast. It rotated in mid-air, evading the power blast completely. This was no arrogant, conceited beast with mighty delusions and a god complex, this was a superior warrior. It dived under my blast, leaving it to shoot high into the sky and fizzle among the clouds.
Cheyne fell to her knees, ignoring the approaching monster. She stared at the ground, every ounce of concentration going into the spell she was trying to weave. How she knew where Beelzebub was I don’t know, but she rose at the same time he fell upon her . . . and was wreathed in black flame.
The demon struck then recoiled, shrieking. Its jaws snapped together beside her head again and again, like a petulant dog at the end of its leash. Cheyne didn’t even flinch. Fire spat from the thing’s mouth, fizzling against and running off her shield, striking the paving flags and burning there, reflected in the many glass parts of the pyramid.
At another hard stare from Belinda I again thought to gather my power, this time funneling it more carefully.
Beelzebub whipped at Cheyne’s shield with its spiny tail, screaming each time it struck, but making the witch flinch and sweat.
“Can’t . . . hold . . . much longer, guys.”
Beelzebub roared, pulling away slightly and spreading its wings. The terrible eyes never blinked, just regarded us with pitiless fury. I saw agonizing death and the lowest depravations in that nightmare glare and assembled all my power. At the last moment, shaking, terrified, I felt a kind of balm fall over me—a calming moment that helped focus my power.
What the hell?
No one could be helping me. Not Belinda, not Tanya or Giles. Not Natalie who wept on her knees, eyes pinned by the demon’s. And certainly not Cheyne, whose strength was waning by the second. The witch had turned pure white, every limb shaking with strain.
But I didn’t have time to wait. Caref
ully, I flung my arm toward Beelzebub. A streak of energy blasted straight into his midriff, causing a screaming gyration by the dragon-like creature. It twisted hard, head down, then rotated back up, mouth wide. It appeared stunned.
I wasn’t done yet. Again, with precision, I threw out my other arm, unleashing another flash of power. I tried not to show that my reserves were already depleted. Without Johnny to help this was no longer a bottomless source of energy. I stood tall and strong; well, as tall and strong as I dared in the face of a hellish demon.
But I had Belinda at my side. And others around me. I was part of a great team.
Beelzebub reeled from my newest attack. The clean, clear fire exploded against his skull, totally obliterating him from sight for a few seconds. Even his hell-spawned screech was lost beneath the sound. Cheyne let her shield drop and stared hopefully.
The demon dropped from the sky.
Not necessarily a good thing.
Belinda pushed us aside. The great beast crashed against the flagstones, limbs and wings squirming, kicking and flailing as it tried to right itself. The head darted left and right. I stared in utter amazement and admiration as both Belinda and Tanya waded in. Belinda ducked under a kick and hit hard at the thing’s thighs. Tanya struck at its stomach, both women staying well clear of the deadly skull. Once grounded, the demon’s wings were its Achilles heel. They were fragile, thin. Belinda stepped on one of the spines that held them together and crushed hard. Tanya stomped on the skin of the wing itself, breaking right through. Beelzebub shrieked and tried to roll.
I dropped to one knee, exhausted. But even then I could feel the power inside me, needing some kind of release. The feeling unnerved me. Could it fire me up from inside? Immolation didn’t sound like a nice way to go. I wanted to help, but lacked the physical energy. As I knelt there I felt the power diminish.
Natalie crawled to my side. “Are you all right?”
“I think so. But damn, that is one scary bastard.”
“Thank God Cheyne was prepared this time.” Natalie’s eyes filled as she said the words, her husband’s death never far from her mind.
I touched her arm. “We will avenge him.”
She sniffed. I whirled as Beelzebub’s scrambling’s grew more frantic, I heard Cheyne shouting something about the artefact.
“Find it. We must find it to have any chance!”
Then, with a burst of horrendous strength, the hierarchy demon surged up like a fiery black dawn, all rage, fire and destruction. Tanya bore the brunt and was hurled off her feet, sprawling against a wall. Belinda fell to her knees but pushed against the fury, still trying to stay up close with the creature.
“Our glorious reign will soon begin,” it growled, the sound of a thousand knife-blades grating together. “Bow down now and learn your rightful place, pathetic humans!”
I tried to get up, but the creature flexed its huge wings and started to rise up. The downdraught staggered us all and rattled the glass that covered the pyramid. Nearby parked cars started bleating as their alarms were triggered.
Beelzebub took flight.
I stared up, my eyes filled with powerless despair as it streaked away, deep and insane laughter rumbling from the depths of its belly.
Belinda shook her head. “That’s another artefact lost. If we don’t pull this together, guys, we’re gonna be in a world of hurt.
Literally, I thought.
TWELVE
Emily Crowe stood tall atop a high outcrop, surveying her kingdom. Around her Death Valley spread in all its archaic splendor, truly a land from ancient times and the one best suited for her task.
Not only that but the final artefact, the one that would be hardest to procure, lay not far from here.
And she was not alone. Melissa, her trusty sidekick, sat at her feet, staying silent until spoken to. And now, standing on the valley floor a few feet below her, were two great hierarchy demons—Baal and Belial. They were here to facilitate and help, to make doubly sure everything went to plan. They were here to lend support and add their infinite power to Crowe’s brilliant strategies. They were here to initiate the beginning of hell on earth.
Melissa hugged Crowe’s leg. Crowe kicked her off with a snap of disgust. Baal looked up at her, the black holes that were his eyes swimming with visions. Crowe had already begun her call to arms. Many people were starting to arrive at Death Valley, and they were gathering in groups.
They had brought tents. Camper vans. Coaches. They had come on foot, by car. They were following her call right down to the bare bone. Summoned by dreams of violence, drawn by malicious thoughts of terrible intent, they followed their hearts, ending up in Crowe’s backyard. She remembered all the songs she used to sing, all the verses she had written that had seemed so innocent at the time.
“Carry me down, by unholy light, let’s quit this town, and visit hell tonight.”
And more. Chanted back at her by their legions of fans. No doubt some were here right now.
Oh, the corruption a rock band can cause . . .
She laughed. Dozens of people heard her and looked up, faces glowing. Baal and Belial had them now, wrapped in their spells, and if any of these people had been harboring second thoughts, if any of them had been a little unsure of why they were here, those thoughts were long gone now. Two hierarchy demons were more than enough to control their minds.
Crowe gazed across the vista. At the far end of their little site more vehicles were already arriving. At that moment, she saw something new.
“Ah. Good.”
Coming down the hills, threading through crevices and fissures, were the creatures of hell, all summoned to this place. This was the staging area, the place from where the invasion would commence. The creatures would gather in their thousands after entering through the open hellgate.
Small and large, ferocious and sly, dim-witted and clever, they came, held in check by the wills of Baal and Belial, and even Crowe. She was not without demonic powers—a fact the recently obliterated residents of the trailer park would attest to if they could.
“Guests,” she said, her voice amplified by her powers. “Welcome to the final venue of the tour that heralds the demise of the humans and the rise to power of a new god!”
A ragged cheer went up among the gathering crowd. The more feral supporters started running to the front.
“I’m your GI cocktail, your Lidocaine. Follow me, listen to me, your anesthetic to world issues. I will bring you a new world! Hell.” She smiled. “It’s already here!”
More shouting, cheering, and now even prostrations from the people in front. Baal and Belial moved among the worshippers, laying their hands on the necks of the men and women. Crowe shuddered as she realized what power those demons held, how they could snap each person’s neck in a millisecond, and just how much she envied and desired that power.
“Our time is at hand. Soon, all the crosses will be inverted. The clergymen ousted for their sly sins. The churches will come crumbling down! A burning pyre of priests will light up the skies, day and night. We will warm our hands over their ashes. My people, my friends, follow me down and never look back. Follow me down and reignite the rage in your soul. Follow me down and get your fuckin’ evil on!”
Like the rock star she was, Emily Crowe raised her hands and basked in the glow of adoration. Melissa crawled at her feet. Her fans—her subjects—screamed in joy. The great hierarchy demons stretched impossible smiles across their almost-human faces, teeth glittering.
The show was about to start.
THIRTEEN
Ken felt the weariness set in. After the skirmish at the grand bazaar the little group had wasted no time escaping from the fifth circle of hell and heading down to the fourth. Constant trudging wore them all down, even the Ubers. Felicia explained that it wasn’t necessarily tiredness that assailed them, more the lack of stimulation and, for her at least, the constant knowledge that every single step led her further from choice and freedom.
Lili
th showed no signs of tiredness. She seemed happy to part of the group, expectant and a little excited even, but harbored that terrible fear that her demon guard would eventually find her. The fear blighted her every thought, her every cheery moment. It always came back to the fear.
Ken put one foot in front of the other. The fourth circle of hell was a fearful land. A cloying dark was lit only by blinking lights in the sky that looked unnervingly like the eyes of crocodiles. Barren wasteland surrounded them. A stinking, snaking stream crisscrossed their path, its waters a heady poison.
And unseen things slithered in the dark, always present.
Ken spoke only once, his voice not much higher than a whisper. “Y’know, one thing has surprised me from the start. Nothing has attacked us yet. And we’re in hell. Does that not seem a bit odd to you?”
Lilith said, “Dementia attacked us.”
“Well, yeah, but she’s the wild card. The crazy. What I’m saying is that not one of hell’s creatures has sniffed us out or made a challenge. It’s . . . weird, though not unwelcome.”
“I’ve been thinking the same for many miles,” Eliza surprisingly agreed with him. “And I do not think it’s because you travel with three powerful vampires.”
Ken tried not to sound sarcastic when he said, “Oh, really?”
“No. It could be that we are compromised and our destination is known and somebody or something wants us to get through. Or,” she paused, “something else entirely.” She glanced at Lilith.
Ken saw it. “How did you get through safely?” he asked her.
“I don’t know,” she said quickly. “But I have lived here for . . . a long time.” She shrugged. “Maybe I just smell like they do now.”
Felicia wrinkled her nose. “Believe me, you don’t.”
“Well, maybe it’s something else then. A kind of radiation. They sense that I am one of them and they leave me alone. I can’t explain it any better than that.”
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