Confronting the Fallen (37 page)

“What?” she screamed. “What is
this trickery?”

Something rose from the cracked stone floor.
Something made of stone and earth and metal. It grew and it grew
until it was almost as tall as the demon herself. Two arms, two legs
and a misshapen head, the creature must have weighed at least a ton.
The only features to be seen on its face were two pits filled with
flame.

“What is it, judge?” Chris asked
frantically.

Judge Hawkes nodded at the rabbi who was still
chanting under his breath. “It's a golem, Christopher. Courtesy
of our friend here.”

“A golem? Never heard of it,” Chris
replied. “But thanks anyway, rabbi.”

Rabbi Eddleson smiled faintly as he continued to
mutter under his breath.

The golem made no sound but reached out and
grabbed the demon in its arms, holding her and tightening its grip.

“How dare you,” Lilith shrieked.
“Mindless slave. You cannot match my power.”

She shrugged and struggled, finally breaking free
and backing away from the golem, which plodded after her
relentlessly. The demon slashed at the golem with her glowing shard
and Chris watched in shock as one of the creature's arms was severed.
The demon began to laugh and then roared with anger as the arm was
replaced with another that grew out of the golem's body.

Oh, that is so cool, Chris thought.

“I think this might be your best chance to
escape, Ethan,” Chris heard the rabbi say. He looked at the man
and saw that he was turning white and sweat was pouring down his
face. “I won't be able to do this for much longer. Take your
people and Natalie and get out of here.”

The judge seemed to be considering that option. He
wouldn't just leave him here, would he? Chris watched the judge
closely but finally the man shook his head.

“If I left you here, Joseph, I'd be no
better than that monster we are facing. We will all walk out of here,
or none of us will.”

Chris breathed a sigh of relief as his faith in
Judge Hawkes was restored.

“You are a fool, Ethan,” the rabbi
panted. “But thank you.”

“It's been said more than once, my friend.
And you're welcome.” He smiled gently at the rabbi and then
turned back to watch the battle.

Chris watched the two monsters slug it out for a
moment, but was more worried about Natalie. She lay still, not too
far from the fight, and Chris was sure that she was still bleeding.

“Your honor, we have got to get Natalie out
of there,” he said urgently.

“I know, Christopher. The team is on it.”

Chris had been so focused on his friend that he
hadn't seen two team members, Beatrice and Davidson, sneaking up to
the left of her position, crouched down and moving slowly. He assumed
that they were trying not to draw Lilith's attention to themselves.
They reached Natalie's prone body and knelt beside her. One of them,
Beatrice, checked for a pulse then looked back at the judge and
nodded. Chris felt a rush of relief. At least she was still alive.

The pair grabbed Natalie under the arms but then
crouched lower and froze as the golem was knocked back almost to
their position. But it caught its balance, lowered its round,
boulder-like head and charged into Lilith, sending her flying across
the room. It stomped after her and the team members managed to drag
Natalie back to the altar.

“Tony, you're the best at triage. Find out
how she is,” the judge ordered and Tony jumped forward and
knelt down next to Natalie's body. He ran his hands across her torso,
checking the position of the knife that still jutted out of her
stomach and Chris heard him take a deep breath. Then he looked up at
the judge.

“I don't think the blade pierced any vital
organs, Of course, I can't tell without an x-ray, but she's breathing
strongly and she hasn't bled out, so those are good signs. Beatrice,
check the packs please. I need packing, gauze and tape. We'll pack
the wound once I remove the knife and tape her up as tightly as we
can. It isn't ideal, but it's all I can do right now.”

Beatrice hurried over and started rummaging
through the packs. Ramona hastened to help her. George and Davidson
held their positions, standing between the group and the two
combatants who were still tearing at each other fiercely.

Once the necessities had been found, Tony prepared
to pull out the knife. Chris had to turn away. He just couldn't watch
what was happening to Natalie. So he stared at the demon and the
golem as they battled on.

Several large chunks of stone had been ripped out
of the rock-man's torso and shoulders and they hadn't regrown. Chris
considered that an ominous sign that the rabbi was weakening. But the
demon was bleeding profusely from her chest and her left arm was
twisted awkwardly. She could still use the arm, but not with much
strength. It was a stalemate as far as Chris could see. But the demon
wasn't slowing down, whereas the rabbi was now barely able to stand.
What would happen when he collapsed?

“There,” Tony said and Chris looked
around again in time to see Beatrice pulling a clean shirt down over
Natalie's tightly bandaged stomach. “That should hold until we
can get her to a hospital.”

“Thank you, Tony,” the judge said
gratefully. “One way or the other, this situation won't last
much longer.”

“You're quite correct, judge,” the
rabbi gasped. “I'm afraid I'm almost done. A minute, maybe two
and I believe I'll pass out. Sorry...that I wasn't...stronger”

“You gave us time, Joseph. You've acquitted
yourself admirably, my friend.”

The rabbi gave a weary nod. George glanced back,
then rushed over and supported the rabbi before he could collapse.

“Thanks. I'll hang on as...long as I can.”
The rabbi trembled and he was now as pale as milk.

Chris looked around frantically. There must be
some way out of this mess, he thought. On the streets, he always had
an escape route. There was always a place to crawl through, or climb
over, when he was being chased by bad guys trying to do him harm.
Heck, he'd outrun a half-dozen cops a day before he'd met Judge
Hawkes. There was always a way out. But try as he might, Chris
couldn't see one in this situation. Once the golem was down, there
was nothing to stop that demon except five security people armed with
silver weapons. They were finished.

He fished the hilt out of his pocket again. What
the hell was this thing good for anyway? Stevens was dead, Natalie
was gravely wounded and they were all going to die and for what? So
that Sariel could get a piece of his sword back? Big deal! Chris
would soon be dead and then who'd be left to use the damned thing? Or
look for the other pieces? What had been the point?

'The point, my other self, was to get Lilith here
alone, and weaken her enough for us to finish her off.'

Chris froze for a minute. He couldn't believe it.
'Sariel?' he finally asked using his inner voice.

'Of course. I am so, so sorry for Stevens. He was
a good man. But if the nosferatu had sensed me within you, they would
have either fled and informed their master, or called in
reinforcements. The same is true of Lilith. I pray that Natalie will
be all right, but we must not allow my brother to know that I walk
the Earth through you. Not yet. Not until we have the entire sword
whole and in our possession. The lord of Hell would not stop until
all of the judge's organization was destroyed. And that would leave
the world defenseless.'

'How come she didn't sense you that day in the
mall?' Chris asked in confusion.

'Daytime, Chris. Remember? They cannot use their
powers in the daytime. Now, prepare yourself. The rabbi is about to
fail. Will you allow me to take charge? You'll notice I'm asking
nicely this time.' Chris could hear the amusement in Sariel's voice
and he found himself grinning.

'Good,' he replied. 'Keep doing that. And yes, I
don't know enough to challenge her on my own. Do what you have to do.
That monster is pure evil.'

'She was not always so, Chris.' Sariel said with
deep sadness. 'Ah, but my brother has much to answer for. But now she
is one of his three generals on Earth. With her gone, he will be
weakened, which will aid our cause immensely. So, let us begin.'

Rabbi Eddleson gave a sharp cry at that moment and
collapsed against George, who eased him gently down and propped him
up against the altar. At the same time, the demon let out a screech
of triumph. The golem froze for a moment and then fell apart into a
heap of dust and small pebbles.

“Your creature is defeated. I am
victorious.” The Fallen One stalked slowly toward the altar. “I
had meant to kill you quickly, to get this small task over with. But
now you have angered me. Your deaths will be slow and filled with
agony.” She stopped about ten yards away and leered at them.

At this distance, Chris saw that the demon's armor
had several deep gashes in it that were oozing smoking, black blood.
One shoulder had been wrenched and moved hardly at all and part of
her right horn had snapped off. And yet she stood there grinning
through rows of pointed teeth, her blazing red eyes lit up with evil
glee.

“First, I shall tear apart my former little
sister. She may not feel it, but it will cause you all great pain and
that will delight me. And then I will deal with your new little toy.
Tell me, sweet Christopher Wright, where was your angel? At least
Gloriel stepped up and was willing to fight. But you? Craven and
cowering in some dark corner of your mind, I don't doubt. Well, no
matter. I will enjoy slicing you up regardless. And the rest of you.”
She glared at Judge Hawkes. “I'll save you for last, Ethan. You
may have the pleasure of watching all of your puppets fall before you
yourself are killed. I'm sure you will feel quite proud of yourself
for leading them on this fool's errand, won't you?”

'Anytime you're ready, Sariel,' Chris told his
inner self nervously.

'Thank you, Chris. I'm taking over...now.'

Chris sat back mentally and observed events.
Sariel walked slowly over and stood between Natalie and Lilith.

“You will harm no one else today, Fallen,”
he said loudly. The demon whipped around and saw what she thought was
Chris protecting Natalie and threw back her head, roaring with
laughter.

“Ah, so the street urchin, at least, has a
spine. How brave of you, Chris. You know, I think I like you. Even
after the trick with the hot coffee. It won't stop me from killing
you, of course, but I'll make it quick. You deserve that much of a
reward for your fearless gesture.”

Chris felt a flash of anger and wasn't sure if it
was his or Sariel's. “Arrogance. That was always your weakness,
Lilith. Here lies your sister, the best friend you could ever have,
and all you show is arrogance. What a sad creature you are.”

There was a moment of stunned silence, both from
the demon and from the team. Chris could almost hear them thinking:
shut-up, shut-up, don't provoke her. But he wasn't the one doing the
provoking. Sariel was. And then Lilith reacted.

“How dare you! Do you know who I am? I am
the right hand of Lucifer, the future ruler of all Creation. I am the
first female angel that God ever created. And you dare speak to me
like that, you worm?” She actually rubbed her massive, clawed
hands together. It sounded like sandpaper rubbing against metal. “Oh,
forget that quick death now, you little cockroach. I'll kill you
first, slowly, for your insolence.”

She stepped toward him, and Chris looked down and
watched as Sariel pulled the sword hilt from his pocket. The he
looked up at the demon.

“I have something for you, Lilith.” He
held it out to her on his open palm. “This is the reason that
we came to this shrine in the first place.”

The demon stopped and peered down at the hilt.
“What is this?” she asked, obviously intrigued. The hilt
reflected her flickering halo of fire and glowed with an
other-worldly light. “Well, I'll admit that it's pretty, but if
you're trying to bribe me, child, it won't work. I'll simply take it
from your broken body when I'm done with you.”

Sariel sighed dramatically. “The fact that
you don't recognize this only proves that you are not as wise and as
powerful as you would like others to believe. Here, let me show you
what it does.” He glanced over at the judge and the others and
muttered “Get ready.”

Judge Hawkes nodded slightly. He, at least, seemed
to know that Sariel had returned. Chris saw him speaking under his
breath to the rest of the team.

Sariel closed his hand on the hilt and held it as
though it were actually a sword. He brought his other hand up and
closed it over the hilt as well. He bowed his head over his hands and
Chris almost choked on the wave of sorrow that welled up inside of
him coming from Sariel and his memories.

This was part of the weapon that had struck down
his brother. This was also part of his chance for salvation. He
looked up at Lilith who was hesitating, staring down at him in
confusion. No more innocents will die because of you, he thought. No
more pain, no more suffering will you cause.

“Father, give me strength,” he
murmured...and he burst into light as bright as an exploding star.

The demon fell back, shrieking in agony as the
silver light slammed into her. The shrine rang like the inside of a
bell, echoing louder and louder until the ceiling began to rain dust
and debris down on them.

Sariel stood revealed in all of his broken glory.
As tall as the demon, he held the hilt like a sword, and the ghostly
image of a blade, wreathed in flame, extended out and down as he
pointed it at the cowering demon.

“No more, Lilith. Do you hear me? No more!”
Chris cringed in his mind at the wave of rage that smothered him in
darkness. Sariel's anger was beyond imagining. But he wasn't out of
control like he'd been when he had attacked Anna. His hatred was as
pointed as a blade, aimed solely at the demon, at the deaths she'd
caused and the others she planned to cause. She had to be stopped,
sister or not.