Judgment chose that moment to educate Chris and for the first time he realised what the In Between place really was. The Real Place was here on this dimension. A place full of life, then there was the In Between, the place between the living and the dead, A no mans land, a black and white copy of this world, where both may walk. Then there was the other place. Somewhere he didn’t want to go but Judgement insisted.
In Judgments deep voice he took charge, “I will bypass the In Between place, which is but one of many levels between this world, Purgatory and the next.”
Priest was impressed, he whispered to Anvil, “I thought we could only access the In Between, never Purgatory?”
Chris heard him and carried on in Judgements voice, “Purgatory is but a much darker deeper path where the living should fear to tread. I can manipulate Deaths doorway to lead us to a spot near the warehouse. The Dark will not be able to follow, not unless Coffee figures out what I’ve done.”
Rage growled and this time no one told him to be quiet, “Deaths doorway! Rage doesn’t like the sound of that.”
Anvil walked up to Chris, “You sure you can do this. I’ve heard of Purgatory is a place fit only for the dead.”
Judgements voice answered, “With the Destroyer blocking the In Between, The Creator has opened Purgatory to us, but dangers lay within, now I want you all to move in close and hold onto each other. Do not release that hold. I can only move you as one entity, not as singular life forces. Now prepare.”
The injured warriors managed to get into a close tight group, blood smeared, battered and bruised they held on tight to each other. Chris witnessed all of this as a student studies his tutor. Judgement gathered his will and forced a visible black tunnel to form out of thin air with a blood red land beyond.
“Now all of you close your eyes and take three steps forward.”
Collectively they felt as if they had moved forward at an unbelievable speed, through air that was freezing cold, scorching hot, then normal once again.
“Open your eyes.” Judgement ordered.
The Twelve found them selves standing on a sticky tar like black substance twelve feet wide, that wound its way through a veil of blood red fog.
“Don’t step off the roadway. If you do I will never be able to find you again and you will remain her forever.” Chris’s mouth did not move but they all heard his words.
Slowly, with Judgment leading, the tightly gathered Twelve shuffled along the road. At one point a hideous beast hopped onto the road directly in there pathway. It looked like a cross between a frog and a man with a huge wide mouth full of needle sharp teeth. With an almost human scream it lunched itself at them. Judgement didn’t stop moving, he just raised his hand and shouted, “We are the living!”
The creature skidded to a halt its hideous snout sniffing them closely before gathering itself to howl with anguish. In an instant it vanished in an explosion of clotting blood.
Judgements voice filled there heads, “It feeds on the dead. Seeing us alive reminded itself of what it once had been. That thought destroyed it.”
Cresting a hill five minutes later, they came to a cottage directly in there path. An old woman stepped out from the front door, supported on two wooden walking sticks.
“Cup of tea my dears?”
Judgement once again didn’t falter, he held out his hand and a cup of steaming hot tea appeared.
He offered it to the woman, who threw her sticks aside and greedily took it from his fingers.
“Tea!” she wailed. The woman and the house vanished in a swirling cloud of blood red dust.
“She tempts you to enter. The house was her belly. She was just ….something you don’t want to know about. I offered her real tea instead of us. She accepted the trade off.”
The others had no idea what Judgement was saying or how he even knew what he was saying.
Judgement held up a hand, “This is the hard part we are next to the Warehouse, but in order to reach the portal we have to step off the road.”
Heartless groaned, “I thought you bloody well said we’d be lost if we stepped off the road.”
“No I said I wouldn’t be able to find you. This is different but there is an even bigger problem.”
Anvil was the one to ask, “What is it… son?”
Judgment slowly looked sideways at his father, “We will be attacked by several creatures of that I am sure but I will be powerless to help you. I need all my strength to find and open the portal.”
Bulls Eye was dribbling blood now, he drew one of his guns, “So we fight.”
Judgement sighed, “Do not let go of each other, fight as one person but do not let go.”
Priest crossed himself, “I’m ready.”
Rage’s voice rumbled angrily, “Fed up with this place.” He shifted speed to one arm, cradling him like a baby. Speed held out an arm and was holding fast to Patch. Rage made a fist and his giant knuckles cracked ominously. “Now I’m ready.”
Huntress already had one injured hand, so she was forced to hold onto Heartless, “I’ll be your eyes, you do the fighting.”
Priest was holding onto Slash who held a throwing knife in his one hand. Hot Cross held onto his sleeve with one hand, the other held a ball of electrical energy, “I’m ready.”
Anvil held onto Hot Cross with his weapon held high besides him. Judgement held onto his fathers arm, “Be ready. Sense your enemies approach for you will not see them.”
He stepped off the road and the others followed, only to be instantly swallowed by the choking clotting red mist. The path to the Portal only took but eighteen steps. It was the longest eighteen steps of their lives. Each thought they had seen it all, what with being re-born and fighting the Shades for over hundreds if not thousands of years. Yet what they experienced in the blood red mist changed them all. Terror on an un-imaginable scale assailed them. Shapes so profoundly misshapen screamed at them. Claws and fangs tore at there. Cunningly crafted words threatened to drive them mad, yet still they moved forward.
They thought they heard something scream out a curse concerning Anvils weapon and the words Thunder God! But the words ended in a blood curdling scream of pain.
When at last the Portal was reached, they heard Judgement order them to close their eyes and take one five steps into the dark. For three seconds they fell forwards into the freezing cold air. With a pop they entered the wet and windy street outside the entrance to there warehouse and relaxed. Anvil started to order them all inside when he stopped, mouth hanging open in surprise. Each and every one of them had hair as white as snow. In fact, the same colour as Chris and Huntress whose hair was already white.
She laughed, “I like it!”
Chapter Eleven
Speed, Rage, Priest and Bulls Eye where all badly injured. Chris went to work helping them first. Anvil helped, dealing with Huntresses broken hand and other cuts obtained in the red mist. Bulls Eye found to his surprise, that he had a broken arm and a fractured eye socket. The battering Coffee had given him had taken more out of him than he thought. Anvil told him to lie down and Chris would be with him in a minute.
Chris at the moment was helping Rage, whose massive build made him an ideal target for those that lived in the mist. His mighty chest and shoulders where slashed to pulp. How he was still conscious let alone standing was a mystery.
Speed lay on one settee, weak but with a fast healing wound, “Rage old mate, you took one hell of a battering. You okay pal?”
Chris was busy healing cut after cut on Rages chest and back.
Rage looked across to Speeds prone body, “Bloody poison from Claws slowed me down. First time for everything. I tried to get in a dozen blows and missed every time, damn mist! Don’t know what attacked me but there were at least three of them.”
Chris didn’t look up from what he was doing in fact he was winging it. Judgement was doing all the work and he had no idea as usual what was going on, “I saw terrible things in the mist. They were very clear to me. I
’m amazed you didn’t see anything.”
Heartless choked and spat out a glob of blood, “The mist was too thick. I felt the bastards at the last moment. I think I got one or two judging from the screams I heard. Damn place turned our hair white!”
Bulls Eye grunted in pain, “Think I pegged one, smashed its head in with my old rifle but I dropped it, pity that but never mind. I got mashed by several other things that came out of nowhere but I’ll live How’s the wrist?” He asked Huntress.
She was still gripping the injured hand close to her chest,” Hurts like hell but the others need seeing to first.”
Anvil gently took her injured hand in his, “I’ll be the judge of that. Hum three broken fingers and a broken wrist.”
Chris asked how she was.
“I’ll be at least an hour with Huntress, if she ever wants to use her hand again.”
Huntress raised an eyebrow, “Hey boss, take all the time you need!”
Heartless choked and spat out more blood, then with a sigh, slid down the wall to a sitting position, “Bastard hurt me more than I thought.” And with that he keeled over onto his side.
Chris looked frantically over towards him then back at Rages wounds, he was drawn on what to do.
Rage made up his mind for him and pushed Chris away from him, “Go see to Heartless. He’s not as hard as he makes out.”
Chris thanked Rage and skidded to a stop on his knees next to an unconscious Heartless, eyes closed he concentrated on what he’d find within, “Lung full with blood, drowning in it.”
Slash limped over to help Chris, ”Some bloody great unicorned snake caught him in his old wound. I managed to slice off the bastards head.”
Judgement pulled open Heartlesses jacket and shirt, revealing a nasty black and purple bruise on the left side of Heartlesses chest, “Broken ribs punctured the left lung. And it’s collapsed.”
Without hesitation Judgement placed both hands over Heartlesses chest, he closed his eyes in deep concentration. Seconds later his fingers started to glow white with light. Slash watched in amazement as his fingers seemed to slowly sink into Heartlesses chest.
Huntress looked on as Anvil started to heal her injury, “Always wanted to ask. How come you can heal as well as Priest?”
Anvil smiled, “I used to be a blacksmith. Made things with my hands, fixed broken parts and made new ones. Suppose the skills apply to people as well.”
Priest was in fact already helping Bulls Eye to heal. Bulls Eye had been listening to Anvil, “Didn’t know you where a blacksmith.”
Anvil looked baffled, “What did you think the apron and hammer where for?”
Bull Eye joked, “Thought you’d been some sort of Free Mason.”
Anvil said nothing just shook his head as Priest placed both hands on either side of Bulls Eyes head, “Just shut up will you this may hurt, got to get the bones lined up first.”
“No…ouch!” Bulls Eye replied as Priest started to knit together the fractured eye socket.
“I’ll let Chris finish you off, after the broken sockets lined up. Now hold still.”
“Finish off is right!” Bulls Eye yelped.
Ten minutes later, Priest was over by the fridge stuffing his face with cake whilst drinking at least a gallon of milk. The food intake helped him heal quicker. He’d been attacked by four short creatures with massive curved horns. He’d moved to protect Slash who was the only one not really injured apart from a two inch gash to his right cheek. Priest had taken the full impact. The horns had pierced him in several places, great big sucking holes in his huge fat body. Any normal man would have been killed instantly. Instead Priest had absorbed the Impact like a sponge. He’d managed to squash one creature with his foot but the others escaped, yelping like sea lions.
Priest remembered seeing Anvil’s amazing weapon flash through the blood filled mist striking a monstrous beast dead in mid leap, the hammer returning to its owner. The weapons runes had lit up the air like a flare gun as it hit the beast. Priest shuddered as he remembered what it looked like. Giant insect eyes, a snout like a pig with tusks like a wild boar, all contained on a body twice the size of a woolly mammoth with a tale of a scorpion. It had taken three massive strikes from Anvils amazing weapon before the creature collapsed dead at his feet.
He looked over to Rage, the giant warrior hadn’t admitted it but he’d killed half a dozen flying wolf type creatures with just one massive fist, whilst protecting Speed. Priest opened the fridge and took out half a cooked chicken. He silently blessed the food, “Here feed a wound I always say.”
Rage snatched it from Priest with a grateful smile, “Thought it was feed a cold?” he replied as he stuffed his face.
Heartless was mouthing off as usual, “And what’s with our hair. We look like the God damned children from The Village of the Damned!”
Priest yelled across the room, “Be glad it’s only your bloody hair that got changed. You have no idea how close we came to Hell you stupid man AND STOP BLASPHEMING !” He roared.
Night came and vanished with the sunrise. It was a quiet start to the day inside the warehouse. Anvil, Priest and Chris where the only ones up. The rest were asleep in bed, recovering from there wounds. Anvil was making toast and Priest was eating it. Chris sat at the kitchen table eating cereal, apart from the leather and white hair, he looked like any other sixteen old boy having breakfast. Anvil buttered four slices of toast, gave Priest two of them (he’d already eaten an entire loaf!) and sat down facing Chris.
It was an awkward moment but he broke the silence with, “What you did yesterday was amazing. I had no idea that place existed.”
Chris nodded between mouthfuls, “Neither did I. It was Judgement who did it all.”
Anvil crunched down on a mouthful and thought that through for a second, “But you are Judgement son. Once reborn you’re renamed and that’s who you become.”
Chris shook his head, “Not happening like that with me. I’m still Chris. Judgement comes out when he wants to.”
Chris continuing to eat his breakfast, whilst deep in thought, “Judgement appears when I most need him most, whether it’s his power or his knowledge.”
Anvil finished his toast and pushed the plate away, “It was harder for me as I was the first. When I died and was re-born I had no idea what I was. As a matter of fact I was pretty primitive to say the least. I mean the beginning of the Bronze Age! It took over a hundred years with the Elders before it all started to sink in and to tell you the truth son there isn’t a day that goes past without me discovering something new. Like you.”
Chris looked up, “Or the fact that Edge and I are your sons?”
Anvil sat back in his chair, “Aye there is that.”
Priest belched to interrupt, “The final prophesy does say you shall have to kill Edge. Can you do it?”
Chris corrected him, “Judgement says I shall destroy Edge not kill him. There is a difference.”
The others drifted in over the next two hours and what a sorrowful looking bunch they looked. Several hadn’t bothered to wash and where covered in dried blood. Others wore bandages that still leaked fresh blood. But the great thing was all would heal.
Hot Cross was looking as angry as ever, “We hunting today. I feel like it’s pay back time?”
Anvil thought it over, “I see no reason why you, Priest and Judgement shouldn’t have a look around. I’ve got to go see Mister Jennings of Starlight Security and arrange for him to go see the zoo in the park.”
Bulls Eye settled himself slowly onto one of the settees, “You meant it then, about the money?”
Anvil nodded, “Always keep my word even when I lie.”
Chris stood up, “Can I go with you?”
“I’d prefer it if you…”
But Judgement cut in, “I need to go with you.”
Anvil smirked, “Oh well that’s different if YOU need to go. Best we go change into our smart clothes.”
Chapter Twelve
‘We hav
e smart clothes?’ Chris thought as he stared at his grey suited reflection in his bedroom mirror. He left his tie off, wearing his dark blue shirt open at the neck. He’d never had a tie in his life and had no idea how to put one on. Chris reached for his hat then stopped. Although he wanted desperately to wear it, he knew it just wouldn’t fit in.
Mister Jennings turned out to be a retired SAS Captain, who was employed of Anvil. Although he’d only met him twice before, in the entire fifteen years he’d managed Starlight Security. If he was surprised to see him again, he didn’t show it. His secretary buzzed them into Jennings plush office. The business was housed in three entire levels of a posh office block in the cities business centre. As it happened, it was just around the corner from the famous ‘Gherkin’ office block.
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