impact, and in it two powerful beings struggled. Gabriel, his robe in tatters, fought barehanded with a Demon.
The creature dwarfed the Archangel, stood eight yards tall. Its body had the head of a wolf, huge slavering teeth snapped at the Gabriel’s face. The creature had three muscular arms. Two of them ended in long bony spikes. The third in the middle had a sinewy hand with oversized fingers. It tried to pull the Angel close while it skewered his sides with the spikes. Gabriel beat his wings, halo pulsing as bright as the sun, and lifted himself outside the monster’s reach; but a wild stroke of a stabbing arm caught the Angel at the waist and cast him to the ground with an explosion of breaking rocks.
Oliver ran the short distance to the struggle, throwing himself in front of the stunned Angel. The Demon was on him in an instant, its spiky arms tore Oliver’s body to pieces.
Updike cried out. But it was all too late. The wolf’s head devoured his friend’s torso before he could call again. His mind ablaze, he drew Bolton’s revolver and fired at the Demon’s slavering jaws. It howled as tufts of fur flew from it. The Demon’s powerful legs carried it swiftly toward him.
Updike fired until the gun was empty, and then turned it like a club. A howl like the torment of Hell shook the ground as the Demon crossed the distance in two bounds.
Gabriel leapt on the monster’s hairy back, fierce fire blasting from his eyes. Updike, overwhelmed, lurched away, stumbled beneath the creature’s bulk. But the Angel used his mighty arms to bind the Demon. Hands that looked too delicate to master such a beast wrapped around its hairy throat. The Demon arched its back- struggled.
A hot white arc of power flew from the Heavens, lit the Angel’s form like argent. A powerful flap of his wings and Gabriel pulled the Demon’s head off. The body, unaware of its own death stabbed the ground blindly around Updike. Then it lurched back spraying black slime, shook and moved no more.
“So dies Farbauti.” Gabriel alighted as Updike struggled to his feet. “He will not have his Ragnarok.” The Angel looked down at Updike, his power burning around him like a corona.
“Oliver,” Updike wept.
“You weep?” The Angel’s tone was harsh. “You weep for a friend who was already dead.”
“I weep for a friend who died bravely.” Updike’s mind was swimming in sorrow. “He is gone.”
“He threw away what he had grown tired of.” Gabriel’s eyes were wolfish. “That is not bravery.”
“But it is…” Updike’s ire was transmuted into awe. The Angel’s wings spread over him.
“What is a human life but the wink of an eye?” Gabriel’s expression was reckless. “So brief and futile it barely warrants tears. Weep for the immortals that strive on the field. Weep for those who have eternity to lose. Weep for Farbauti…” He stabbed a finger at the corpse.
“Every life is sacred. Every soul…” Updike stood up, wiping at his eyes. Gabriel walked to where he had crashed into the earth. He picked up his sword and searched, then found the horn. He leapt into the air, landed in front of Updike.
“You weep for one dead man.” Gabriel’s teeth flashed threateningly. “And you command?”
“But we must lament each loss.” Updike drew a hand across his eyes.
“And while you stink and fuss and drool empires are lost.” Rage gripped the Angel. “Human frailty has kept me bound too long.” He knelt now. His wings formed a wall around Updike. “I run errands in the firmament while you squabble over water holes.” Gabriel’s eyes were piercing. Updike could feel his breath on his cheeks-it smelled of cinnamon. “You served me well enough, man, as you should. But your weakness threatens my purpose and so your service ends.” He hefted his sword. “Your martyrdom will rally your troops.”
Before Updike could understand the threat Gabriel thrust the burning sword through his chest. His heart jerked and lurched painfully, flame poured from his mouth and nose. The heat from the blade blistered his chin, set his clothes on fire. Gabriel pulled him close; his words were scented with frankincense. The Angel’s piercing eyes bore through him, gleaming red in the dark.
“I will lead my army.” Updike slid down the length of the sword and onto the ground. A great gout of blood boiled out of him.
With his dying eyes he watched Gabriel wings spread, as he called to nearby soldiers. “The Demons have slain poor Updike! We must slay their masters in turn! We will clean this City!”
Updike’s vision darkened, his mind grew dim-he saw faces that he could name. Breath all bloody bubbles, his lips writhed and were still.
87 – Exodus
Mr. Jay moved to the front of the bus when it slowed, and the kids crowded around the windows to see the inland wall approaching. It wrapped out of the dark from left and right and was lit evenly by emergency lights. There were other lights too, glowing on the buses ahead and it was soon obvious that something was burning.
Dawn pushed past the gawking kids to where Mr. Jay crouched beside the driver. The bus crawled by the burning shapes of armored vehicles and tanks. Mr. Jay shielded Dawn’s eyes when they passed the first of the bodies-grownups in uniforms.
“What in hell happened to those gates?” Whistles blurted suddenly.
“The Creature sent Nightcare fighters to open them up,” Liz explained matter-of-factly.
“Man,” sighed Marcus. “Those are some angry kids!”
“Can you blame them?” Mr. Jay patted the driver’s shoulder.
And then the bus passed the battered gates. They were hanging on torn hinges burning and ripped like a giant had broken them.
The convoy had made good time crossing Zero.
Dawn had never been so nervous and scared while she had waited for Mr. Jay to finish talking to that Creature girl. Almost an hour ago now, she went with the magician to one of the big old school buses that Whistles had rounded up.
The disguised forever girl said she got them through the Salvation Army. They were used mostly for transporting the living and dead to construction jobs and the like. They also used old buses donated by various companies for transporting the poor to soup kitchens and church revival meetings so Whistles said they had a fair collection of them to rent. That also explained why the buses she got were of many different types and in such varied states of disrepair. Whistles said fuel would have been a big problem, if the Creature hadn’t had the kids hiding it around Zero for decades.
Dawn followed Mr. Jay, Liz and the Quinlan boys out to an old rusted school bus. It was the last in a line of seven. There were a couple big vans and trucks up front too. Forever kids were everywhere, and Whistles joked they were piled two-deep. She had found a cigar somewhere and was chewing it as she walked with them. Whistles had also grumbled about losing her bar.
“Ah well, not a place for a nine-year-old girl anyway.”
A couple of the bigger boys had carried little Conan out. He had some new bandages on him and Dawn was very worried. She admired his spirit and she could tell that Mr. Jay was worried too, and close to tears when he looked at him. Whistles hovered around Conan and had since given up trying to get the deadly glove off the boy.
The Nightcare fighters were everywhere: boys and girls wearing armor and padding and weapons. Dawn had asked Mr. Jay about the curious belts some wore with metal balls clipped to them.
“Grenades, Dawn,” he had said dredging up a smile. “Dangerous explosives.” He looked at the little kids wearing the belts and he shook his head. “Not supposed to be this way…”
Dawn kept a tight grip on Mr. Jay’s hand when he had gathered with the other drivers. The strange grownups and two forever teens had a wild look to them though they were worried too she could tell. She also liked the way they helped the forever kids and comforted the little ones who were getting too scared.
“What’s your plan?” Mr. Jay had asked one, a black woman named Dahlia. Whistles had told him she was in charge of the drivers.
“The battle’s concentrated in the west. More troops coming from the southwest so it’s going to chase us through the north gate.” She had looked around the crew. “The Creature just said to get the kids out.” Dahlia’s dark eyes flashed. “And she said to trust you.”
