Tim Marquitz - Armageddon Bound

I nodded to Rahim. At long last we had some real direction. I ran off to call Scarlett and find some replacement guns.

It was time for war.

Best Laid Plans

Rahim, Katon, and I crouched in the shadows near the location McConnell had drawn on the map. The cowboy lay on the ground behind us, gagged and bound and looking forlorn. I’m not sure what Rahim’s plans for him were, but I didn’t imagine they were nice. Myself, I was thinking human shield. In silence, we surveyed the weather-battered barn situated on a small farm a few miles out of town. Out of the way and unassuming, it was the perfect place for an ambush.

At least it wasn’t a warehouse.

I couldn’t feel the overwhelming residue of magic as I had at the other locations, but I could feel something. More correctly, it was a lack of something. My senses drifted out, encountering nothing. It was a subtle nothingness, like reaching into the void of space. I looked to Rahim to confirm what I felt. He nodded and whispered, “Dampeners.”

I gave the thumbs up sign to McConnell. It seemed he’d given us the right information. He glared back, less than pleased to have been dragged along. I’m sure he thought we’d leave him at DRAC, locked away safe and sound, far from the demon master he betrayed. That’d be getting off too easy.

I smiled and returned my attention to the barn. Though the main doors at the front were closed, a small entrance to the side sat open. A gentle, flickering light shone somewhere inside, creating dancing shadows just outside. I didn’t see any security devices, but we stayed out of sight just in case.

I mouthed the word “trap?” as I glanced at Katon.

“Probably, but who knows?” He shrugged, not bothering to lower his voice. “It doesn’t really matter. He’ll know we’re here once we enter the barn so it’s not like we can sneak up on him. The dampeners keep him from sensing us the same way they do us from him, but inside past the barrier we’ll light up like flares. The only thing we can hope for is that he’s not prepared for us to show up.”

“Why are we sitting out here?” I gestured to the barn and the field surrounding it. “There’s no one out here waiting for us. If he’s set something up, it’s inside where we’re going anyway.”

Katon answered, “I was hoping your cousin would make an appearance before we went in. The extra angel power would be nice.”

I agreed. I’d tried to get a hold of Scarlett before we left DRAC, but she wasn’t answering. I’d even sicced the telepaths on her, but for whatever reason, she couldn’t be reached. I wasn’t worried so much as I was irritated. Scarlett had her own agenda and it rarely conformed to my own. It wasn’t the first time I’d been left in a lurch because she couldn’t be bothered. I just hoped it wouldn’t be the last.

I shrugged. There was nothing more I could do.

“If she was gonna show, she’d have done it by now. I think we’re wasting our time waiting on her.”

Rahim nodded. “You’re most likely right. Let’s go.” He stood and pulled McConnell to his feet. He dragged the other wizard along as he headed toward the open door.

Katon took the lead and motioned for me to take it up the rear. I debated being offended. I didn’t swing that way even for a sweet-talker as smooth as him. It took me a second to realize I’d misunderstood his hand signals. With a flustered smile on my face and my cheeks burning, I dropped behind Rahim and followed the group through the door.

Inside was a short hallway, which led to the main barn, the walls covered in framed photographs of what must have been the farm’s prize winning cattle. I had a sudden craving for a T-bone. Rahim nudged my shoulder and motioned for me to follow Katon through the inner door. I wiped the drool from my mouth and did as I was asked. I had a feeling I was gonna regret itWhen didn’t I?

As we walked into the barn, all the lights in the room flashed to life, the sudden glare blinding. At least it would have been to a human. Katon and I blinked a few times and our eyes adjusted. It’s good to be a devil sometimes. Apparently it’s not so bad being a vampire either.

Rahim lingered in the hall for a few seconds, his eyes adjusting slower, before following us in. Katon and I surveyed the room, looking for the trap we expected to be sprung. Turns out, we didn’t need to. In the center of the room, surrounded by a handful of Dread Fiends and the three surviving angels from my earlier encounter, Asmoday stood waiting for us. A broad, white smile appeared above the blackness of his thick beard. Glorius was nowhere to be seen and there were no signs of any ritual preparations.

“Do come in,” he called us forward. So much for the element of surprise. He’d known we were coming. Since it wouldn’t change anything in a tactical sense, as we were already inside the killing field of the barn, we obliged him. We did keep back a few extra yards, just to give us breathing room when the shit hit the fan. No point in getting too cozy with a guy who intended to kill us.

“You’re turning out to be quite resourceful, Triggaltheron.”

And again with that damn name. I shook my head and looked to Katon and Rahim. They were busy taking the lay of the land, so to speak, and preparing themselves for the confrontation to come. That left me to deal with the ass hole. I encouraged Asmoday to continue, giving them time to plot.

“I have my moments.”

“That you do. First, you survived my angel companions here.” He gestured to the three who stood glaring at me with murder in their eyes. “Oh, and let me introduce you since it appears I was remiss the last time. Silly me.” He pointed to each in turn. “Malis, Rafal, and Urtel. You of course knew Israfil, their companion, the one you killed. Quite impressive, I must admit.” The angels didn’t look impressed. They just looked pissed. “After that, you managed to defeat my Dread Fiends. And to top it all off, you captured my wizard whom I knew couldn’t be trusted to carry out his duties alone.” He glared at McConnell with fury in his eyes. The Gray stared at the ground, unwilling to meet his master’s gaze. There was nothing happy about this particular reunion. “It seems I’ve underestimated you, Triggaltheron.”

“Don’t worry about it. It happens all the time.”

I waved off the underhanded compliment. “It’s the combination of charming good looks and my midseventy IQ that throws people off. It’s hard to cope with a complete package like this.” I ran my hands down the length of my body seductively slow, posing while I winked at Asmoday. Gay men everywhere cringed, I imagine.

Asmoday shook his head, not amused. “You should have taken me up on my offer. It was your only chance to escape the coming Armageddon alive.”

“I’m not sure what you find so exciting about ruling over a smoldering ruin, but to be honest, I’m not interested in surviving Armageddon. Especially if all that’s gonna be left is you and your flunkies. I’d rather be dead.”

“Rest assured, you’ll get your wish.” His dark eyes met mine. Fire danced within them. His servants, apparently feeling the tension ramping up, crept forward a few steps. “You are a disgrace to your uncle’s memory. Fortune smiled upon us when you refused the mantle. It would have been a dark day in Hell had you inherited Lucifer’s throne.”

I could feel the building current of Rahim’s power as he readied his defenses. Katon tensed beside him, his hand creeping toward his blade. Me? I did what I do best. I provoked. “I might not have inherited Hell, but I did inherit Lucifer’s trust. He sure didn’t offer you the job of Anti-Christ, did he?”

I could see the anger creasing his face, but surprisingly he remained in control.