Balance (The Divine, Book One) (36 page)

I had
been unconscious for about six hours. It had been long enough for Rebecca to
get us back into the city in the takes-a-lickin-keeps-on-tickin Suburban, get
me back to the Waldorf, take off my clothes, and bury me under these blankets.
I had opened myself too much to my Source. There was a part of me that was
still, and would always be human, and it couldn’t absorb that kind of Divine
energy without consequence.

Neither
could this world. Dante had warned me, and I hadn’t been careful. It was like a
spinning top, too much flow from Purgatory, too many changes and alterations,
and it would begin to wobble and potentially topple over. I had to be more
careful, more precise - a surgeon instead of a linebacker, for everyone’s sake.

“It’s
good to see you again,” I said. “How are you holding up?” I shook a bit as a
wave of coldness washed over me. I really needed to be more careful.

She
smiled. “I am well. As well as can be. I do not need to understand God’s plan
to have faith in it. I’ve found I am still able to adjust my wardrobe, which is
something I guess.” Her blue jeans turned black before my eyes, then shifted
back to blue. “I didn’t feel right about wearing white. Not now.”

“I’m
sorry Josette,” I said for the second or third time. She waved her hand at me.

“There
is nothing to apologize for, as I have already said. The Lord has decided our
paths lie together, and I do not begrudge Him for that. I enjoy your company.”

That
statement succeeded in stopping my shivering for a few seconds, and brought
some heat to my face.

“We
make a good team,” I replied. “Where’s Rebecca?”

“She
went back to her apartment to retrieve something she called an Obi,” Josette
said. “I am not familiar with the term.”

I
couldn’t help but laugh. This conversation was making every part of me feel
better. “An Obi is an Awakened human, he’s my...” I stumbled for a moment
trying to think of the right word, something Josette would get. “... Squire?
For lack of a better word.”

She
furrowed her eyebrows in a super cute way. “He carries your sword?”

I
laughed out loud that time. “Maybe squire wasn’t the best word. He’s a friend,”
I said. “We didn’t bring him to the sanctuary because he’s mortal. He would
have been killed.”

“Why
do you not
Touch
him?”

It
was my turn to be confused. “Touch him?” I asked.

“Where
do you think the mortal servants of God come from?” She floated to her feet as
though she were lighter than air. She walked up the bed, leaving the smallest
impression in the mattress, then turned and flopped down beside me. “For
angels, you
Touch
a mortal by dousing their head in
holy water, saying a prayer, and laying hands on them. It’s very much like the
Catholic Baptism ritual, but with a little more power behind it. Of course, I
wouldn’t know how a Purgatorian would do it.”

We
sat together in silence for a minute while I thought about it. I had this new
tap of energy flowing into me. What would happen if I flowed some of it into a
human?

“That
wouldn’t make him invulnerable,” I said.

“It
would make him resistant,” she replied. I was convinced, but I wouldn’t do it
without asking Obi for permission first. He might not want to be that tied to
my power.

“Have
you ever fought a fire demon before?” I asked. That thing had been ridiculous,
and it amazed me to think of her standing toe to toe against one.

She
shook her head. “Never alone,” she replied. “That Great Were we fought was a
toy in comparison. Thankfully, they are denizens of Hell, and are rarely
summoned to this realm. They are difficult to control, and very unstable here.
The amount of power needed to keep the Rift open would be immense.”

Reyzl
was powerful, but by the way Josette spoke of the fire demon, I didn’t think he
was that powerful. “Reyzl didn’t summon the demon alone,” I said.

Josette
agreed. “He would have needed at least two other demons of his equal to
maintain the Rift. It is bad sign if they are already working together to stop
you.”

 “How
many demons of Reyzl’s power are there?”

“Reyzl
is what is known as an archfiend. There are three in North America, four in
Europe, one in Japan, one in Australia.” She started counting on her fingers as
she listed their numbers. “Two in Russia, six in the Middle-East including
three just around Jerusalem, and probably a few others who have gone
undocumented. They are very territorial, though they will join forces if the
need is great enough.”

That
was an awful lot of evil running around. I still felt like I knew so little
about how this war operated, even though I was finding myself deeper and deeper
into the thick of it. Still, I wasn’t convinced that Reyzl had done this with
the help of another archfiend. I just didn’t think I’d been in play long enough
or proven myself strong enough for the demon to ask for help from his peers.
That left me with just one other possibility.

“What
about the Demon Queen?” I asked.

Her
reaction was one of shock. “How do you know of her?”

“Da....
The Outcast told me,” I replied, remembering not to upset her by using his
name. “Did Rebecca tell you anything about our goal?”

“No,
she said she would leave it to you to explain.”

I
spent the next hour or so telling Josette everything I knew about the Chalice,
the Demon Queen, and the Knights Templar. Everything Dante had told me to steer
me in this direction. She knew most of it, but from a different perspective.
The angels wanted to find the Chalice, to bring it back to the sanctuary, and
to use it. She wouldn’t tell me what effect it would have on a seraph. I didn’t
think it was that important, so I didn’t push.

While
I was talking, I could feel my body normalizing, recovering from the damage I
had done to it. I stopped shaking soon after, and my physical form didn’t feel
so lifeless to touch. I would survive this, and learn from it.

“The
Demon Queen could have summoned the fire demon herself,” Josette said, answering
my earlier question. “She would have no need of Reyzl to do such a thing.”

That’s
what I was afraid of. “How powerful is she?” I asked.

“She
is the most powerful demon currently in this realm,” she replied, as if that
would answer the whole question.

“Okay,”
I said. “You said currently. How do demons get here? Rebecca said that the ones
summoned from Hell couldn’t survive here long.”

“All
demons derive their power from the First Fallen, either through his minions
here in this realm or from the power contained within Hell. He divvies this
power most sparingly, as he is loathe
to part
with it,
but does reward exceptional service as he sees fit. Demons rise in power by
making deals with one another, and they rise to the top through backstabbing
and betrayal, ever hoping to destroy the one above them and claim their souls.
It is the nature of evil to covet power in this way.”

I
couldn’t help but wonder if mankind was that much different. The whole
organization of it made perfect sense. “So the Demon Queen was once one of the
Devil’s human creations, and she ascended to her position?”

“No,”
Josette said, surprising me. “What I have told you is a vast simplification to
the processes by which this war maintains its armies. Demons can also come from
Hell on their own if they possess enough power and motivation. These are the
descendants of the Second Fallen, the army of seraph who followed the First
when the truce was declared and my Lord granted him Hell.”

“Why
don’t they come?” I asked. “Wouldn’t the war end that much faster?”

“No.
Think of it in comparison to man’s invention of nuclear warheads. Were the
strongest of the demons to enter this realm, my Lord would have no choice other
than to grant His disciples leave to join the fray. The result of such a clash
would incinerate this world and everything in it, leaving nothing for either
side to claim.”

Complete
Armageddon, instead of
a Rapture
. “So the Demon Queen
came from Hell?”

“That
is the only possibility,” she replied. “We would have known of her many years ago
if she were accumulating power as Reyzl has. She arrived unannounced only weeks
before the Chalice was lost.”

It
was a lot to think about. I closed my eyes and tried to picture what Hell must
be like, filled with creatures of untold power that could obliterate the world
in a furious firestorm. I was glad most of them chose to stay there.

“You
are courting Rebecca?” The question broke the silence, shattering it into a
million little pieces.

“Courting?”
I asked, trying to fight against my embarrassment. “I thought you were a modern
girl?”

She
grimaced. “I don’t know what the correct term for this is nowadays. I haven’t
had much inclination to explore such things.”

Did
angels even have an interest in relationships? It didn’t seem like it, though
even if they did I could understand why Josette would be disenfranchised.

“Courting
is good enough I guess,” I said. “No, we aren’t courting. Why do you ask?”

She
shrugged. “It’s the way she looks at you. There is a... hunger.”

I
laughed. “She’s a vampire. There’s probably a part of her that thinks
everything with two legs is food.” I decided not to tell her I had already
provided Rebecca with a potent meal. Let that be our little secret.

“Landon,
be serious. She likes you.”

I
wasn’t sure about where this was going, but I found comfort in being able to
talk to Josette about it. “I like her too. I think we connected, as friends I
mean.” She had kissed me a few times, and I had liked that, but it didn’t make
us an item.

“Friends?”
She raised her eyebrow. “She doesn’t look at you as a friend looks upon a
friend.”

“The
hunger?”

“Yes.”

She
had looked at me in a strange way when I woke in the Suburban, but it had been
more of a visceral, chilling look. It was not an intimate look at all, and I
had taken it for jealousy. Then again, why be jealous unless you already
thought there was something there and you didn’t want anyone else butting in?

“What
do you think?” I asked.

“What
do you mean?”

“Rebecca
and I?” The thought was both exciting and frightening. I took a deep breath to
calm myself.

“As
you said, she is a vampire. A demon. I don’t think my opinion is the best one
to go on.”

“I
thought you respected her choice to join me?”

“I
can respect her, that doesn’t mean I have to trust her,” she said. “Whatever
good intentions she has, her kind, her family, perhaps even her have
intentionally caused pain and suffering to others. That is a difficult thing
for me to resolve. Remember, I have been
battling vampires
for hundreds of years. She is unique in her views, which to me makes her more
dangerous.”

“I’m
not exactly a saint,” I pointed out. “You like me anyway.”

“You
don’t exist to fuel evil,” she said.

“Neither
does Rebecca, if she chooses not to.”

Josette
pursed her lips and thought for a moment. “I will trust you,” she decided. “She
is very attractive.”

I
could feel my body heating up again. “She has a powerful soul Josette. She told
me you were in trouble and suggested we go to your aid. Plus, she won control of
her family from her father. I’m sure you knew him, Merov Solen.”

Her
face darkened. “I knew him. He was a cruel nosferatu. Thank God he has been
destroyed.” She tilted her head, her expression softening. “The rescue was her
idea?”

“Yes.”

She
was silent for a minute. “She is a rare creature indeed. Yes, I think you would
do well to court her.”

By
the time Rebecca had returned with Obi, I had showered and morphed the seraph
robe into something a lot more comfortable - a pair of jeans, a pair of black
Keds, and a faded polo shirt. Her face lit up when she saw I was up and about,
and she rushed over to wrap me up in her arms. Considering what Josette and I
had spoken about, I couldn’t help but get a little thrilled by the gesture.

“Hey
Becca,” I said into her hair, returning the hug. Her familiar smell was
comforting, in a different way than Josette’s company had been.

“I’m
glad you’re feeling better,” she said into my chest.

It
was a little weird that this beautiful creature that could rip through a stack
of gargoyles without pause was so small and delicate in my arms. She pulled
away so Obi could get in, holding out his arm in greeting. We did a proper man
hug, the ex-Marine all smiles.

“Man,
I was worried I wasn’t going to see you again,” he said.

“You
know I’m not so easy to get rid of,” I replied. “Did you take care of Cathy?”