Armageddon?? (124 page)

Belial
know the blast would attract attention and he had to work fast. His talons
found the holes and he started pressing the keys inside, in the right order,
hearing the panels drop inside as he did so. With the last one, the stone block
was free to move. Belial pushed it, sending it pivoting backwards. He was
getting feverish with hurry, he could hear the guards approaching but the
second block was free to pivot. He was inside the secret tunnel and the blocks
pivoted back in time to conceal him from the approaching guards.

The
tunnel was still cramped for a demon as large as Belial but he scrambled down,
feeling the undressed stone tearing at him. It was utterly dark, and the sudden
end caused him a heavy blow to his head. Now, he had to find the correct
sequence again and this time his life hung in the balance. Get this wrong and
the stones would swing to close the tunnel completely, crushing him out of
existence.

Finally,
the slabs were free and Belial was able to drop into the Heavengate chamber. It
was empty, the guards had gone. He took a deep breath and stepped through the
gate, into the Heavengate Chamber the other side. The guards there had gone as
well and there was but a single figure sitting on a convenient stone.

“Don’t
shoot! I am the Grand Duke Belial, seeking refuge from the humans. Hell has
fallen, the Humans rule everything.”

“And
why should we take you in?” Michael’s voice was teasing, condescending.

“Because
I know how to beat the humans.”

“So
do we.” Michael stared at Belial. He’d been expecting the former Great Duke for
some days and had been getting to the point where he assumed the demon wouldn’t
make it.

“No,
the humans have weapons that outclass anything we have. Remember in the Great
Celestial War, we fought for eons without gaining an advantage? Yet the humans
crushed us utterly in a few of their months. Heaven cannot stand any more that
hell could. Not without the weapons I have built.”

Michael
nodded. He would take Belial to Yahweh, perhaps the idea of a refugee in Heaven
would amuse him. Or, at least, keep him out of the way while Michael got on
with his own plans.

Bush
Ranch, Crawford, Texas

“I
am pleased to report that we now have six divisions fully formed and a second
corps headquarters is now operational. We believe that the British Army will
soon be able to contribute twelve full divisions to the First Army Group. With
our allies in Canada contributing two divisions, Australia three divisions and
New Zealanders putting in another full division, we’ll be up to 18 divisions,
organized as three whole Corps. We’re expanding our marines to a whole division
as well, bringing us up to 19 divisions. That’s nearly a whole Army and with the
four American armies in the First Army Group, we believe we can hold our heads
up high. Then of course, there’s all the troops we’re holding back for home
defense, I’d say we have nearly two million people under arms at the moment.
Proud moment for us all, I can tell you.

“May
I ask who will be commanding the Commonwealth Army?”

“Yes
indeed. We’ve appointed Sir Mike Jackson to take on the job, he’s the most
experience senior officer we have who is still fit and healthy enough to take
on such an arduous job. He’s used to serving with and under our allies, so I
doubt we have much to worry about. I’m more worried about our equipment
problems, we’ve still got units armed with SA-80 rifles but at least new
aircraft are coming off the production lines to replace the museum pieces and
the six Type 45 destroyers cancelled by the government have been reinstated.”

“Thank
you for your time Admiral.” The television reporter turned to face camera and
resumed “That was Admiral of the Fleet Lord West who kindly agreed to share his
insights into the British contribution to the new Human Expeditionary Army.
Back to you Greta.”

“Thank
you Brian. Now, recapping our main news stories again, Hurricane Ike continues
to batter the Houston area although it is now moving off to the North East.
Meteorologists are puzzled at the way the storm seemed to pause over the
Houston/Galveston region for several hour. However, President Abigor of Dis has
offered work teams of demons to help with rescue and repair efforts. He said
that the demon teams were a first effort to help heal the breech between humans
and demons caused by Satan’s insane conduct.”

“I
don’t think we need to see any more of that,” President Bush used the remote to
flip the channel over to the CBS network. He was just in time to catch a
fanfare of music.

“And
now, CBS is proud to present the first in our new series of our late-evening
current affairs debating programs hosted by Luga ‘You can’t lie to a succubus’
Sharmanaska.” The music swelled up and the familiar figure of Lugasharmanaska
appeared at the back. She was wearing her usual black robe but in deference to
CBS decency standards she had a red evening gown on under it. She took her seat
beside the coffee table and her yellow eyes swept over the crows, the black
vertical slit of her pupils contracting under the spotlights. The applause from
the audience was enthusiastic if slightly restrained.

“My
guest tonight is Michael Vick.” She paused as a string of hisses went around
the theater. “As you all know, he was arrested and sent to prison for his part
in a dog fighting ring. He has been released on temporary liberty for tonight’s
show. Hello, Michael thank you for coming.”

“Why
hello Luga. May I say….”

“No.
We will ask the questions. Firstly, Michael, can you give us any good reason
why we should not throw you into a ring full of rabid pit-bulls?

A
thunderous burst of cheering echoed around the theater, the audience was
beginning to warm to Lugasharmanaska and the show’s promoters relaxed. Selling
this concept to the network bosses had been a hard deal to make. Still, Luga
was turning out to be a hit. In many ways, they thought, it was a pity they
couldn’t throw Michael Vick into a ring full of rabid pit-bulls, it would make
excellent television. And their new chat-show host was just the person who
could organize it.

Back
in Crawford, Bush thumbed the remote control switch again. This time, he missed
the program and hit an advertisement break instead. A picture of an office in
New York with an urgent package while the manager berated a delivery organizer
for not getting the package to Japan on time. Then, mid-tirade, he stopped as a
black ellipse formed on his desk and a hand came out to tale the box. As it
disappeared into the ellipse, the screen split to show a desk in Tokyo, with
another ellipse forming there. The hand emerged with the package in it and
deposited it’s cargo on in front of the recipient. The voice-over was a
seductive contralto.

“Any
where, any time, use the Yulupki Express Delivery Service. We go through hell
to get your deliveries through on time.”

President
Bush hastily changed the channel again. “Well, at least those naga things have
found a non-destructive use for their talents.”

Ensconced
in an arm chair, Condi Rice nodded. Then her attention was caught by another
advertisement just starting. The voice-over was a dramatic baritone.

“Yes,
you can take it with you! You’ve worked hard for your wealth, a life-time’s
effort and sacrifice. Why should your children waste the products of your
thrift and industry while you live here.” The scene cut to one of the refugee
camps in the Phelan Plain. The huts were neat, clean and comfortable but small
and there were a lot of them cramped together. That was inevitable of course,
with Earth’s normal death toll and the humans being rescued from the pit,
demand for housing far exceeded supply.

“Let
your children stand on their own two feet, that’s what you did wasn’t it?
Right, of course you did, now you can do it again. In partnership with the
Government of the New Roman Republic, the Euryale Real Estate Company is proud
to offer these beautiful plots of land along the banks of the Askaris River in
the Elysium Fields.

“Yes,
you too can live in the Elysium Fields, once the chosen homes of the gods and
now the scene of an exciting new second-life community development. Chose one
of three types of Villa. We have the Augustus, our top of the line atrium-style
villa with four bedrooms and all modern conveniences. Then we have the Tiberius
for the young-at-heart, slightly smaller but with great recreation and playtime
facilities. And for those looking for a little more economy, we have the Nero,
just perfect for the smaller family. All our villas have metal-lined walls and
dust-filters so your living relatives can come and stay. If you want them to of
course. And remember, property ownership brings citizenship in the New Roman
Republic. So call us today on 1-800-EUR-YALE and get set up for the second life
of your dreams.”

“Isn’t
that the Euryale who was somehow involved with the attacks on Detroit and
Sheffield.”

“It
was, but she and Caesar got together and set this up. He got a huge land grant
from her and that’s his New Rome.”

“Can
he do that Condi?”

“Who,
Caesar? Sure he can. He’s even been recognized as an independent state in hell,
by the Italians of course. From the Army’s point of view, he’s set up a nice
little well run state that’s keeping order and not causing trouble. He’s even
building roads. Straight ones of course.”

George
Bush shook his head. “Condi, I thought we’d won this war.”

End

Next,
Book II…The Salvation War