Tattered Souls (Broken Souls Book 1)

by Richard Hein

  Kate charged. Her fist whipped up and caught me on the cheek. I staggered back more in shock than pain. Well, no. There was plenty of pain to go along with it too. Kate could throw a hook better than I. She lunged in, fists testing the air in a quick staccato. She wasn’t swinging with precision, but those tiny fists weren’t something I was eager to take on the chin. I swore, batted one out of the way and spun to dodge the second.

  Beside us, Michael charged like lightning, like a dam cracking and releasing all its stored fury at once. He stepped across the statue in the center of the plaza, one hand battering the twisted centerpiece out of the way with a negligent flick of a wrist, stone shattering and tumbling away like a discarded cloth on the breeze. His molten blade lashed out at Christina, tracing blazing lines across my vision a dozen yards long in a breath. For the first time, she moved, fading back as her fingers twitched. She almost didn’t make it, and I could see surprise crack the stoic mask she wore. Shards of pristine amethyst thrust up from the ground and met each of his attacks, too fast for me to see. How was she able to know where each strike was about to land? All I saw was a blazing blur, gold and white and red as the creature flashed through the air. Each crystal shattered in turn, buying her a second to slide away once more. Francis took to a knee and began firing rapid bursts from his absurd weapon, aiming for Michael’s legs. While the Archangel seemed too powerful for the paltry shots to have much effect, once or twice a lucky concussive force knocked the creature’s foot astray, giving Christina an extra second of breathing room.

  “I know it’s still you,” I growled. Kate flung a fist at my throat, and when I managed to get an arm in the way, she folded it and rolled in with an elbow that caught me in the shoulder. I threw my arms around her and powered forward, dragging her across a dozen steps to the nearest building and slammed her against it. “Come on. It’s me. Samuel.”

  “I know,” she said and slammed a foot down on top of mine. I gasped as pain came knocking on the door to my senses and danced off of it, just in time for the surprisingly deft woman to wrap an arm around my shoulders and ram her other fist right into my gut. Twice. “I’ve ached to do this for a while now, Samuel.”

  I shuffled back, but Kate didn’t give me a moment to pause. She charged forward again, hands going for a grapple. I made to reach for one of her hands, but she was ready for it. Her hands drew back, curling into fists.

  “Sorry about this,” I said, and decked her full in the face.

  Kate took it pretty well, so I followed it up with a kick for good measure. A pathetic, weak kick she caught as she lunged forward. The beautiful crystals above spun as I tumbled onto my back. Kate followed, throwing herself onto my chest and her fist into my face. My head bounced against the stone, and a white flash filled my vision.

  “Your parents, Kate,” I mumbled. Her hands curled around my jacket and hauled me up. “Your headaches. Michael had to have been shaping you for years. It’s not possession, but it’s… it’s something else. You’re still you, though. You can push through all his crap.”

  “You talk too much,” she said and hammered me back down to the ground. My breath exploded out of me like a pathetic Old Faithful. I couldn’t even groan. “You control and twist and only give what you think is necessary. It sickens me, Samuel. Maybe if you’d been open, maybe if you’d shared…”

  Everything ached to move. I pushed a weak hand against her to roll her off, but she grabbed at it and twisted. I was surprised at how little it hurt. Kate used it as leverage, yanking me up onto my side as she rolled off behind me, curling my arm behind my back and slamming me over onto my stomach. I had a great view of Daniel and Francis kneeling side by side as they fired bursts of purple light at Michael, but he was the inexorable tide and was not to be daunted by such simple things.

  The Archangel’s wings unfurled as he leapt up a dozen feet and hurled himself at Christina. The Boss frowned and lifted a hand. The ground bubbled up around her, enveloping her aged form in a perfect dome. Michael’s blade sunk deep and carved downward, parting through it like it was made of paper. He lifted a bare foot and kicked apart the remains. Shattered chunks or rock fell away, leaving Christina exposed.

  “Children’s tricks,” the Archangel said, lifting its sword. “Just stand there and face reality with a little dignity already. You can’t fight His will.”

  Christina smiled. “I’m not fighting,” she said with a shrug. “I’ve just been waiting for this place to size you up a little.”

  The ground rumbled. Another shard of amethyst punched up from the ground, as large as a bus, right beneath Michael’s feet. It enveloped him, semi-corporeal, gliding over his body. Michael twitched, throwing himself upward, but the crystal reacted with speed, flashing to completion and fully encasing him. I could see his startled look within the refracted surface of the crystal.

  His sword winked out as Christina stepped up to place a hand against his prison.

  Daniel and Francis spun and hit the last remaining angel with simultaneous bursts from their twisted guns. The creature flared from existence in a puff of black haze and a piercing shriek. I glanced around, but the other one was nowhere to be seen. Daniel had smoked it on his own. Despite the pain searing at my shoulder, I smiled.

  “Good teamwork, guys,” I said into the ground.

  Kate shifted above me, and the pressure lessened on my arm a fraction. I could breathe a bit easier, which was nice, even if it was cold stone.

  “Teamwork?” Kate whispered.

  The crystal encasing Michael pulsed once, a golden radiance filling it a heartbeat before it detonated. Christina spun away like a flesh tumbleweed. Jagged hunks of crystal pattered down and shattered around us as the Archangel stood amid the ruins of his prison, eyes smoldering with golden fire. He pointed at Christina, and his blade of liquid steel grew from his hand with a slow, menacing speed. Shadows fled.

  “Now?” he said softly. “See, now I’m pissed.”

  My mind raced. Kate was still in there, locked beneath the surface of her own thoughts like a lake frozen over with ice. My words had triggered something in her, dragging her to the surface to claw at the barriers the Archangel had placed there. I couldn’t fight my way in, but maybe I could give her a foot-hold to fight her way out while the creature was distracted with Christina. The thought sickened me and gave me a flicker of hope at the same time. Disgust draped around me, but I’d take any chance to get her back from the brink.

  “Kate,” I whispered, frantic as Michael advanced on the supine Christina. Francis charged, battering at Michael with his now useless weapon. “We’re a team, right? You were looking for your place, your calling? Here with me.” I licked my lips. They tasted of dirt and ash. “You trust me?”

  “I…” she said, frowning. Her fingers on my arm let loose. “You kept things from me, Samuel. Lied.” I twisted beneath her, flipping onto my back as she straddled my stomach. I saw a glimmer of recognition swim to the surface in her eyes, and die again. She leaned in and curled warm fingers around my throat.

  A gray haze filled my eyes, warm and pleasant. I’d been wrong when I first met her. Those tiny hands certainly could choke me. I needed something to distract her, to knock the bond between Michael and her off track long enough for her to assert control. With a little luck, she could break free for a moment.

  “I’m sorry for this,” I wheezed as nails dug into my skin. I hauled back a fist and slugged her in the face. Given how she leaned over me, elbows locked as she ground the life out of me, it wasn’t a good angle, but her cheek reddened. Kate’s head rocked, black hair drifting out like a sheet on a clothes line in the wind. The stoic expression melted as anger filled her eyes.

  “Come on Kate,” I whispered. “How about it, partner? Come on back.”

  I heard her take a shuddering breath as she released her hold on me. Kate collapsed to one side and I sucked in sweet, refreshing air. “Okay,” she whispered, voice very distant, “but maybe I get to be Batman for a change?”
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  I let out a whoop as I surged to my feet and threw my arms around her. Kate’s eyes shimmered with tears as she shook her head and tried to push me away.

  “He’s still in here, Samuel,” she whispered. Her voice was tortured. Frantic. “I… I can feel it.” She pressed a hand to her temple. “I can feel him.”

  “I’ll take what I can get for now,” I said quickly. I gave her shoulder a squeeze. “We’ll fix it. I promise.”

  Her smile was the greatest thing I’d seen in many years. “I know.”

  Kate and I turned to face the Archangel Michael.

  Chapter 18

  I jogged over and snatched up my fallen Victorian squirt gun and spared a breath to grab Kseniya’s. Kate grabbed it from me, and the odds were slightly more on our side. With a nod to Daniel, Kate and I stepped up beside him. “Cross the streams,” I said, hefting the ungainly weapon.

  Three streams of lavender light flashed across the courtyard. In that brilliance, I could see the bodies of those that had fallen in the shadows. The blasts hit Michael as his sword swept out at Francis, and could have been oddly-colored laser pointers for all the good it did. His flaming sword slipped through the air. Francis twisted, and the sword parted the gun in his hand. The device detonated in a flash of lilac and brass. Francis tumbled away, the acrid stench of burned flesh heavy in the air. Smoke trailed from his clothes as he lay in a twisted heap.

  “It is finished,” Michael said, rounding on Christina. “The end of Sanctuary is to save humanity. You’re all too damn stubborn to see anything but your insignificant lives. There’s a bigger whole you’re not a part of.”

  “What salvation?” Christina’s glare could have melted stone. “We protect the world, you damned asshole. We stop the sort of stuff you’re doing here.”

  Michael drew himself up. “You will undo the world. You seek to protect, but God has seen what ends will come of your means. The world will be snuffed right out, see. All because of you. This must end.”

  “The OFC will survive,” Christina said. “It must for the likes of you. Little else matters beside that.” She sounded winded, chest rising and falling quickly, but she stood as regal as ever as she faced the Entity. Francis staggered to his feet, angry, seared lines crossing his face. His suit was a charred mess. She took a breath, smoothed her jacket, and looked past the looming Archangel, ignoring him. “Samuel,” she said, nodding at me. “It’s time for your Plan B. Best of luck. I truly am sorry everything falls to you.”

  Her words froze my marrow. I swallowed and nodded, grabbing at Kate’s hand. With a bellow, Francis flung himself at the Archangel, flames erupting from flesh and cloth alike as he curled crushing arms around the creature. I dragged Kate away.

  “Run, Daniel!” I shouted. The Archangel blocked the path back to our universe, but I needed to head deeper into Sanctuary. Our footsteps echoed to the endless night. Michael’s molten blade cast harsh shadows across the courtyard as it swept through the air behind us. I heard the brief sounds of a struggle, a pained grunt, the sound of sizzling flesh and then silence.

  Something slammed into my mind, a softball sized hunk of sensation at the base of my skull. I staggered and went down, dragging Kate with me before the shattered door to the main hall. Lightning flooded my nerves, and for an eternal moment, I couldn’t breathe. The sensation pressed against my mind, as if some vast thing was trying to pound a square peg into a round hole in my consciousness, and then it passed.

  “Ow,” I muttered as Kate and Daniel hauled me to my feet and dragged me through the door. I stumbled forward on liquid legs. My knuckles were little peals of thunder as they cracked, fists shaking. For a second, I almost turned back, but the time for fighting was over. Christina was dead, and we were all that was left. I could save Kate and Daniel at least. Maybe even Sanctuary itself.

  “Where are we going?” Kate asked. Her face was wan, focused on trying to keep me from tumbling again, ignoring the carnage around us. Cubicle walls had been cleaved through by supernaturally sharp weapons. Chairs and bodies lay strewn about, reduced to their elemental parts. The rows of tables against one corner had been broken by some impossible force slamming down through them, all save one that looked pristine. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

  “You are,” I said. “We’re heading to my Plan B. Wonderful, glorious Plan B will save you two.”

  “How, exactly?” Daniel asked. We dashed past the rows of frosted glass that led to the personal offices. Few had any glass left.

  “There’s an Entity here that controls this place,” I said as we hit the stairs. “Asleep, missing its higher brain functions, but holding this place together. We’re going to find it and finish the job. Christina didn’t call me crazy, so I’m thinking it’ll work.”

  Kate gave a whistle. Daniel stumbled against the polished wooden railing and spluttered, but I grabbed him by the vest and slung him down a few steps. Distant behind I heard the shattering of wood and metal as Michael joined us in the building. We wouldn’t have long.

  “Sanctuary will collapse!” Daniel protested. “Everything will be lost. All our research and archives will—”

  “It’s already lost!” I shouted. “You and I are all that’s left, Daniel. We are the OFC. We collapse this bubble reality, I exorcise you two—”

  “What?” Daniel asked.

  “Oh, don’t worry,” Kate said. “It’s perfectly safe. I already tried it on Samuel once. It almost worked, too.”

  We dashed between the heavy tables and the bookcases full of so many centuries of accumulated knowledge that would be lost. It pained me to lose it, but the alternative was to let Michael keep Sanctuary, and that wasn’t an option. There were no bodies down on this level at least. It seemed that everyone had flooded upward during the attack. I had held out hope that a few interns might have hidden out, but the halls were quiet.

  We really did seem to be the last souls in the universe.

  “What about you?” Kate asked, hand tightening in mine. “You’ll be trapped here. With Michael.”

  “Well,” I said. I had hoped she wouldn’t think the plan through to its natural conclusion. “Only for a little bit. Once we smother Sanctuary’s Entity with a pillow, this place is going to deflate like a balloon. Which crushes Michael and sends him back to his home plane of existence, ready to be summoned up again.”

  “Plan B involves letting Michael roam free and you getting killed? Samuel, have you ever thought of letting someone else do the heavy thinking for once?”

  “I’m kinda making it up as I go. I’ll put up a suggestion box next time. That’s not the end goal, though. With a little luck, I create a little pocket universe here instead. One without a door back to Earth.”

  Kate’s hiss of breath showed her understanding. “You’re an outsider here. An Entity as far as this universe is concerned. Can you really do that?”

  “Christina didn’t crap all over my plan, so I think it’s possible. Until the thing controlling Sanctuary is out of the picture I’m competing against its will, but, yeah, I’m pretty sure.”

  “I don’t even want to imagine what a Samuel-crafted pocket universe would look like.”

  “You would trap yourself here,” Daniel said. “That’s insane. You’re the last member of the OFC left.”

  A heavy lump settled at the bottom of my throat. “Hey, I’m not thrilled with the idea either, but as long as Sanctuary has a door back to our universe, Michael’s holding all the cards.”

  “If he kills you, won’t your little reality collapse and just send him home anyway?”

  My jaw ached as I ground my teeth. “I’m hoping that I can lash together some a prison at the same time. Or a giant maze, or hall of mirrors. Something. This is a big gamble, but we’re out of alternatives.”

  “Once it’s done, couldn’t I try to summon you home?” Kate said. The shake of Daniel’s head was nearly audible.

  “Magic, Kate,” I panted. A stitch was forming in my side from all the running.
“I have no idea if it would work, but it’s still magic.”

  “Some way to connect back to Sanctuary, then. Long enough to open a door for you to throw yourself through. Jesus, Samuel, we’re talking about locking yourself away forever.”

  “Until he runs out of food and water, anyway,” Daniel added.

  “There’s an infinite amount of realities out there, Kate,” I said. “Maybe there’s a way to reconnect the doors once I’ve severed them. There probably is. But your chance is like one in a zillion or something. Once I pull the plug, it’s for good. You won’t have any way to find me, and it can’t be risked. Michael needs to stay here.”

  Kate’s grip around my hand squeezed, trembling. “I can’t believe this is the—”

  She staggered. I pulled at her, but she held firm, rooted to the floor as if nailed there. Her eyes snapped up, wide and frantic.

  “I can’t move,” she whispered. Her hands pawed at her temples. “Oh, crap, I can feel him clawing at my mind, Samuel.”

  I pulled at her. Daniel grabbed her other arm and we twisted and wrenched, but Kate could have been a living statue, beautiful and immobile. I kicked at her shoe.

  Nothing.

  “Samuel!” she yelled. I glanced up just in time to see her fist hurling at me, surprise and anguish twisting her face.

  “Gah,” I said, and slapped it out of the way. Kate spun and returned with an elbow. Daniel and I skipped back out of the way.