The Devil in Green (18 page)

The travellers surged into the camp before scuttling beneath trees to
avoid the still-raining debris that took out more than one tent. The bursts
of fire screaming from the sky were like some hellish vision of a wartime air
raid, but the dark presence that fell across everything was far worse; it was
as if shadowy fingers were plucking at their souls.

'We can't stay here!' Miller squealed impotently. 'We need to find a
hiding place!'

'Chill.' The dreadlocked teen slapped a hand on Miller's shoulder,
pressing him down. 'We're safe, if we don't get brained by a flying brick.
See - protected.' He pointed to a post hung with strings of crystals,
feathers and small animal bones. Similar posts were staked out around the
perimeter as far as Mallory could see.

'Kill me now,' he said. 'We're doomed.' He tried to discern the location
of what the woman had called the Fabulous Beast, but the glare from
numerous torches lighting the camp made it difficult to see. The devil-
wind rushed around the boundaries of the camp before delving back into
the city.

'Can't you feel it?' Miller rubbed at his skin as if he had scabies. Mallory
could: the touch of some intelligence so far beyond him he couldn't begin
to categorise it, creeping through the labyrinth of his mind, swinging open
locked doors, bringing wild panic into die civilised centres, dark and
hateful and very, very old. Despite himself, he shuffled back until he felt
the security of a tree trunk.

Gradually, the panic passed. The Fabulous Beast and the dark wind
accompanying it had focused on another part of the city.

'It won't come this way. We can't be seen,' the woman said, to reassure
him.

'Right. We pretend we're trees. Or do we just cover our eyes really,
really tight?' Mallory watched the sky, having decided he'd run for cover
under the river bridge when the things came back. 'What's your name?' he
asked.

'Sophie Tallent.'

'Mallory. And that person trying to burrow under the soil is Miller.
You're the boss?'

'Here? No, of course not.'

'You really believe this .
.
.' He nodded to the posts. '. . . is going to
keep you safe?'

'Do you see the Fabulous Beast and that other thing attacking us?'

'And if you wish hard enough the sun might come up tomorrow.' He
grabbed Miller roughly by the collar of his jacket and lifted him off the
ground. 'Come on - we might still be able to make the compound.'

As they moved towards the perimeter, they were surprised by the
insistence in Sophie's voice as she called, 'Don't cross the boundary!' She
was right behind them, one imploring arm stretched out. 'You'll be seen.
Really. You need to believe—'

Her voice was drowned out by the rushing wind sweeping through the
streets at hurricane force. Hidden in the noise was the sound of screaming
voices that brought a chill to Mallory's spine. A building collapsed nearby.
The force rushed towards the cathedral, dragging what seemed like all hell
in its wake. When it reached its destination, there was a sound of thunder
and a metallic crashing before it soared high into the air. Screeching, it
continued to circle the cathedral compound.

Pale and shaking, Miller made the sign of the cross.

'Let's sit. You can't go out there till things have quietened down,'
Sophie said.

Every rational argument told Mallory to ignore her, but he was already
under her spell; the attraction had been instantaneous - he had never met
anyone he wanted to know so keenly, though he couldn't put his finger on
exactly what it was that entranced him. With a shove, he encouraged
Miller to follow her towards the fire, though they both continually glanced
over their shoulders at the oppressive presence over the city.

By the time they found a quiet spot away from the other pockets of
travellers and sat down, Mallory had almost started to believe that the
thing wouldn't attack. They were joined by the dreadlocked teenager who
appeared to be less of a friend and more of an assistant to Sophie. He
introduced himself as Rick.

Miller crossed himself again, craning his neck upwards fearfully. 'That's
the Devil,' he said, hoping someone would dissuade him of the notion.

'It was certainly scary,' Sophie said, 'though I'm not much of a believer
in the Devil myself.' She leaned over and gave Miller's hand a reassuring
squeeze. 'You're safe here.' He visibly calmed at her touch.

Miller looked to Mallory for support. 'It's like in Revelations. The Last
Days. The Church has
collapsed ...
I mean, it's not gone,' he added
guiltily, 'but it's barely hanging on. We've had war, and starvation,
and
. .
. and . . .' Panic crossed his face once more. 'It
was
the Devil . .
.
you saw it . .
.
you
felt
it ... the fear. Everything's ending.' He hugged his arms around himself tightiy, staring blankly into the middle-distance.

In a glance, something passed briefly between Sophie and Rick, then she leaned over and rested a small crystal from a pouch at her waist against Miller's forehead. There was an instant reaction: Miller's posture shifted, his shoulders loosening, his features becoming brighter, almost as if a shadow had been drawn from his face. Mallory looked at her curiously, but she studiously avoided his eyes.

'This is like a little town,' Miller said with incongruous brightness. 'How
long are you staying here?'

'For good.' A breeze caught Sophie's hair. Despite the now-faint
screeching high above them, a surprising tranquillity lay over the camp.
Sophie noticed Mallory's recognition of the calm. 'There's a deep
spirituality in the land here,' she said. 'That's why we've come. That's
why we'll continue to come, from all parts of the country.'

'A ley line—' Rick began.

Mallory snorted derisively.

'I might have expected that response before the Fall,' Sophie said, 'but
things are different now, surely you know that? We've got our technology
back, but these days spirituality is just as potent a force—'

Miller nodded. 'The power of prayer.'

'There's an energy in the land, an energy that runs through us, too. You
can call it spirit, or soul, but everything is tied together by it—' Sophie's
face hardened slightly at Mallory's dismissive laughter. 'I believe in it
because
I feel
it,' she said, 'and because it works.'

'It's Sophie's power source.' Rick smiled at them. 'Her battery. You
should see what she can do.' The awe in the teenager's voice was affecting.

The discussion touched something in Miller. 'It's true, Mallory. Back in
Swindon, I saw an old woman lay her hands on a baby that was about to
die . . . and it lived. It's like, if you believe in something strongly enough,
you can tap into something, make it real. All the atheists used to say there
was no evidence of God, but now He's here, answering prayers.' A notion
dawned on him. 'Perhaps it's because these really are the Last Days. Good
and Evil preparing for the last battle . . .'

'They've been saying the Last Days are here ever since the Book of
Revelation was written, Miller. I'm not going to start running my life
around something composed at a time before underwear had been
invented.' He waved away Miller's hurt expression. 'These days, everybody's desperate to find something to believe in,' he continued. 'They
can't face what a nightmare the world's turned into .
.
. how many people
have died . . . how
hard
it's become. It's made children of everyone.
They're wishing for a way out because the alternative is
decades ...
at the
very
least ...
of hardship and suffering as we try to crawl back to some
measure of the society we had before. Look around . . . we're back in the
Dark Ages.'