Suture (The Bleeding Worlds) (27 page)

"How the hell did that get up here?"

Brandt ran toward where the Curse had climbed onto the roof. Another Curse came over the ledge, its jaw gaping wider than Brandt's head. From the Veil his fist encased in fiery steel. He smashed it into the Curse's opened mouth, punching through the other side. He shook it free from his fist and paused only long enough to glance over the side.

"Shit."

He hustled back to the group.

"They're climbing up each other's backs."

Hissing came at them from multiple sides.

Caelum fired several arrows, ending four more Curses. Another ten took their place. Then there were twenty.

A scream tore through the air—so terrible that even the Curses paused their advance.

Natalie had tried to fold away. Marie ran to grab her hand, but Alice caught her.

"It's too late. If you try to pull her back you'll get dragged in."

The snaps and pops of bones dislodging and cracking sounded above her screams—finally silenced by the breaking of her neck. The fold she created devoured her like a ravenous beast until at last, nothing remained but the distant echoes of her torment.

Marie crumbled to the ground from Alice's arms.

A string of curse words poured from Brandt's mouth. He kept swearing as he plunged headlong into the Curses, gouging eyes, tearing jaws open and ripping out innards.

Caelum turned, cold and stoic, continuing to fire arrows at the advancing Curses.

Alice spied an access door.

"Caelum, we can't stay here. There's a door into the mall over there."

He looked to where she pointed.

"Everyone, pick yourselves up. We are leaving."

Alice ran to the door and tried the knob. Naturally it was locked, but she gave it little thought. The Veil responded to her calls, twisting the locking mechanisms until a satisfying
click
signalled the door unlocking.

Brandt picked up the near catatonic Marie and threw her over his shoulder. Wade dragged Jackson, who still seemed to be fighting whatever demons had possessed the city. Caelum walked backwards, firing off arrow after arrow. Caelum produced the arrows from the energies of the Veil. Alice knew he couldn't continue indefinitely.

"Join the others," she said arriving at his side.

Sweat poured from his forehead and she saw his right arm had begun to be corrupted by the continuous draw on the Veil.

He looked ready to protest, but relented when he saw in her eyes she would accept no arguments. His bow dissolved back to the Veil and he ran toward the others.

She only needed to buy them a minute, enough time for everyone to get through the door and prepare to barricade it closed. Alice drew a breath and reached out to the Veil. The weapon responded to her call. She hadn't held it in her hands for decades. Its familiar resonance warmed her heart.

A scythe. The weapon long associated with death. She accepted some responsibility for that imagery. Its obsidian blade didn't reflect the light, absorbing it instead. It reminded her of her father.

She heaved the heavy blade in an arc around them, pushing it out, cutting down multiple Curses at a time. Her pulse quickened and a weight lifted from her shoulders. Yes, it felt good to dirty her hands. She completed another pass with her blade and hazarded a glance behind. The others had managed to get Marie and Jackson inside. Caelum waved her over. She let the scythe drop back to the Veil as she bolted to the door.

They slammed it shut.

"Get back," Brandt said. He touched his forefinger to the edges of the door. The metal went white hot and sizzled. He only had time to weld one side when a thud from the other side indicated the Curses had reached the door.

"Leave it, Brandt," Caelum said. "It should hold for a bit."

They ran down the stairs to the ground level where Wade waited with Jackson and Marie.

Caelum kneeled down in front of Marie. He held her face gently so he could look into her eyes.

"I know you were friends. I know what happened was horrible. But we're your friends too, and we need you."

She pulled free from his hand and shook her head, no.

"What's the point? We're never getting out of here."

"You're right, we might not make it out of here. But, if all you do is sit here and do nothing, then we're dead for certain. As long as we try, we still have a chance, even if it's slim. C'mon Marie, we need you."

Brandt strolled over, his voice gruff and impatient.

"Why are you being such a suck over it anyway? She died because she was a friggin coward. If she'd had the balls to belong in this outfit, she would've stood her ground."

Marie leapt to her feet, vibrating with rage.

"Fuck you, Brandt. What the hell do you know?"

She shoved hard against him, but the boy didn't move an inch. Instead, his smile became less cocky, more warming.

"I know," he said, his voice gentle, "that you're on your feet. I also know that someone is trying really hard to screw us, and I'd rather kick their ass than just lay down and die."

She stood still for a moment, then slapped the side of Brandt's helmeted head.

"You're an asshole." She didn't say it meanly.

"Yeah. You're welcome."

"Ok, Caelum," she rocked back and forth from leg to leg and shook her arms and hands, "what do you need me to do?"

"I know you were here yesterday, so you know the layout. I need you to use that speed of yours and do a lap of the perimeter and make sure none of the outer doors have been compromised."

"Got it."

She took off, becoming a blur as she drew the energies of the Veil into herself. Marie returned two minutes later.

"All the outer doors are secure. They've got gates that drop down as extra security and those seem to be holding."

"All right. We need to find a position we can defend."

"We could stay in this hall. It would bottleneck the Curses," Wade said.

"Not a bad thought," Caelum said. "But I'm worried we have nowhere to go if things go south."

In the midst of the conversation, Jackson stood up, seemingly possessed by a siren's song. He dashed toward the doors leading out of the service corridors into the mall itself. The others called out to him, but he continued to run.

"Should I outrun him and stop him?" Marie asked as they ran after Jackson.

"No. Whatever is here has hit him hard. Maybe we should see what he's picked up on," Caelum said.

"I think we're screwed," Brandt offered. "This mission went to shit the second we left Suture."

No one could argue.

They followed Jackson to the bathrooms. In the Men's Room, they saw Jackson crouched down, reaching out to a young boy.

"It's ok," Jackson said. "We're here to help you."

"Jackson," Caelum called. "I think you should step back."

"It's fine. He's so frightened and alone, I felt it even through all the city's anger. C'mon kid, we'll protect you."

The boy turned toward him with large, sad, eyes. He sniffled loudly and his jaw snapped open, revealing several rows of razor teeth. He lunged at Jackson, burying his jaws into Jackson's left shoulder. Flesh tore and bones snapped under the pressure of the creature's jaws. Jackson howled.

He knew he was dead. All the Curse had to do was shift an inch and it would tear out his throat. He couldn't fight it off—his left side had gone dead.

The others stood transfixed. Since when did a Curse lure in prey?

Brandt was at his side, grasping each of the Curse's jaws and prying it open. Jackson slumped to the ground. Brandt kept pulling until a wet cracking signalled he'd torn the creature's head off.

"Quit gawking, Caelum, and get over here and help him."

Caelum shook his head and ran to Jackson's side. Marie, Wade and Alice shed their own mystification and covered the door. Brandt went stall to stall, ensuring there were no other surprises.

Between Caelum's abilities and Jackson's own drawing on the Veil, they managed to repair the worst of the damage.

"That's going to leave a wicked scar. Hope you don't mind."

"I can live with it," Jackson said.

The air grew thick, pressing down on them.

"What the hell is that?" Brandt asked.

Alice's eyes widened.

"It's a Veil beast."

Numerous explosions thundered in the distance—a storm had come to Valhalla.

Through Katsuro's knowledge, and the intelligence provided through spies, Fenrir had exposed three weak points in Valhalla's defences. The operation hinged on the Aesir believing that at least one of those points was the focus of the attack. The strongest of the three served as a feint for the second, while it served as a feint for the third, and most vulnerable, point. While all this happened, a small force that consisted of Gwynn, Sophia, Jason, Pridament, Katsuro, and six hand picked men, infiltrated a sewage line. If the operation succeeded, they would foil Woten's plan that promised to destroy countless worlds. If it succeeded with bonus points, they might hurt, perhaps cripple, Valhalla.

"This place is a maze," Jason said. "Are you sure you know the way?"

"As sure as we can be. It's taken months of small incursions and relying on our spies to smuggle out fragments of maps. Besides, the oracle had a vision of us succeeding, so I suppose it's preordained."

"You don't sound too convinced."

Katsuro's eyes hardened looking at Sophia's back. The girl walked with Gwynn, a hushed conversation passing between them.

"I've found prophecy never turns out the way you expect—and never for the better."

"But you're still risking almost all of your resources on her say so."

Katusro shook his head.

"No, not just on her visions, but on large quantities of intelligence we've gathered in other ways. Chasing a desired outcome based on pure prophecy is a fool's mission."

One of the men walking point held up a hand, bringing them all to a stop.

"We're at another junction," he said. "Which way should we go?"

Katsuro gripped his flashlight between his teeth and pulled a faded map from his bag. Clear tape covered the entirety of its surface—to keep it dry or to hold it together, Jason could only guess.

"We go straight through this junction and turn right at the next. That should lead us to a ladder."

"And we get out of this stinkhole?" Gwynn asked

"No," Katsuro said. "It takes us to another level of the stinkhole. The ladder after that will take us out."

"C'mon, Gwynn, it still smells better than that cornfield building," Jason said.

"Don't remind me, or I'll pull a Wade and lose my breakfast."

The point man returned to his position and started walking forward as Katsuro had instructed. After fifteen steps, he stopped dead. The tunnel filled with sounds of distant machinery hissing and clicking, followed by a deep rumbling.

"I think I stepped on a pressure plate. It didn't feel like a loose brick."

Katsuro looked behind them.

"What is that sound?"

The rumbling gained in volume and intensity as it approached.

"Run. Go for the ladder," Katsuro yelled.

No one questioned, they ran.

Water and sludge along the tunnel floor sucked and grabbed at their feet. The increased volume of the rumbling signalled it gaining—a beast seeking to devour them.

The man on point continued forward at the next junction.

"No," Katsuro yelled, "right, go right."

The man didn't hear, and kept going.

"Go right. Don't follow him," Katsuro said to the others.

The rest made the turn. Within seconds, the sounds of screams echoed through the tunnels, which were shortly drowned out by the nearing rumble.

"We're not going to make it."

"Keep going."

"There's the ladder. Go, go, go."

Sophia ascended the ladder first, followed by three of the Fenrir members.

"The rest of you go, I'll buy some time," Katsuro said.

They all protested, but were drowned out by a wall of water crashing toward them.

"Go."

Katsuro faced the water, the air sparking as he pulled the energies of the Veil toward him. A plume of flame burst from his right hand, solidifying into a scimitar blazing white hot as the sun.

"Gwynn, Jason," Pridament urged them up the ladder.

They began climbing. A hissing joined with the rumble. Steam floated upward as Katsuro stood his ground and cleaved at the water. He managed to slow it, but he'd never defeat it. The water pressed against him, threatening to topple and crush him.

From above, Jason's whip lashed out, twisting around Katsuro's arm.

"Pull."

The whip snapped upward, pulling Katsuro free. He crashed unceremoniously against the ladder, the water grazing the bottom of his feet.

When Katsuro had safely made it up the ladder they all collapsed against the wall, taking breaths they'd been holding for far too long.

Katsuro stripped the ruined armguard from where Jason's barbed whip had grabbed hold.

"Good thing I wore that. Your whip's barbs are pretty deadly," Katsuro panted, trying to catch his breath.

"Wrecked armour is better than dead, right?" Jason huffed. "Damn, I don't suppose your information included these tunnels being booby trapped."

Katsuro shook his head.

Sophia wandered a few steps ahead.

"I'm sorry. I didn't see anything about this. We're going to have to be caref—"

The floor collapsed beneath Sophia—darkness swallowed her.

"Sophia."

"No, Gwynn, wait."

Pridament's words were wasted. Gwynn dashed to where Sophia disappeared and, based only on her distancing screams to indicate she still lived, dove in after her.

Shinji Takeda dedicated his life to science and numbers, so it didn't take long to calculate their odds of survival.

"Did you use the information I gave you?" he asked Zeus. "Have you made preparations?"

Zeus nodded. "As best we could. This world will, at worst, be mostly safe."

Mostly safe. In any other context that wouldn't be very reassuring. But Shinji knew some details of the coming storm, and mostly safe still equaled better odds than most other worlds.