The Fall (18 page)

Ace’s grin didn’t slip when he responded. “Hold that thought.”

He walked out, leaving Addison alone. Great; she’d lost her only company. And Ace wasn’t even bad company. She thought they could easily have been friends if he wasn’t keeping her hostage and all that.

He came back a few minutes later holding a PlayStation 3. He clicked a button on a remote, revealing a sixty-inch screen that descended over the far wall. He began plugging in the various cords to the console and handed her a remote control.

“You are my hero,” she told him before adding, “Of course, I would hold you in even higher graces were you to let me go.”

“Yeah well, what can you do? You play
Call of Duty
?” he asked.

“How appropriate. And yes, I do. You are going down, big man.”

While the screen loaded Ace admitted, “I really do hope you get free.”

“Me too, Ace. Me too.” He was an enigma, that one.

***

Chapter 21

After an hour or so of playing video games, Addison and Ace waited in silence. He kept glancing at her from beneath his thick hair as if he wanted to say something, opening his mouth then shutting it. Addison was about to ask him what was on his mind when the door opened.

Malachi and Landon filled the doorway. Malachi looked quite pleased with himself, which just pissed Addison off and worried her even more. Anything that made him happy would definitely make her nauseous, but nonetheless, she was not going down without a fight.

“Bring the girl,” Malachi ordered. Landon walked over to her and grabbed her upper arm tighter than necessary. Ace walked alongside her, his eyebrows drawn together in consternation, and gently put his hand on her lower back.
Is he trying to comfort me?
Addison wondered. She wrote it off as being the early stages of Stockholm syndrome.

Exiting the room, they entered the long corridor. The concrete floor was cold against Addison’s bare feet. She’d forgotten to put her shoes back on. They came to a door, the last one on the left, and it opened before they got to it. They entered what looked like a warehouse. It was empty but for a dozen or so large men, gathered into the shape of a six-pointed star, with men at the points and junctures. She assumed that this was where the sacrificial ceremony was taking place.

The twelve Nephilim entered.
Sons of Kokabiel
, Addison remembered. They were all wearing hooded robes and spaced around the room in a circle formation. Addison understood these were the Nephilim from Kokabiel’s line, as Archer had mentioned to her. 

Addison scanned the room looking for an escape route. There were two exits; the door she’d come from, and the door through which the Nephilim had entered. Both were now guarded, one by three huge Nephilim, and the other by a man who was about six feet tall.
Too short to be a Nephilim
. He looked far too sinister to be considered good-looking, despite wearing tailored black slacks with a crisp white shirt, and looking completely professional. It was his expression that was chilling. His black eyes were soulless and his mouth cruel. His blond hair was shoulder-length, tied severely at his nape.  Addison watched his eyes follow her as she walked towards him, his face eager. He licked his lips in what Addison thought was anticipation. Addison shivered, causing the creepy man to smile disturbingly.

Shit
, she thought. Yup, that pretty much covered it. She had no weapons, no exit plan, and no help. She cast a pleading glance at Ace. He seemed to be studiously avoiding her gaze. Yep, no help. Addison took a few deep breaths to calm her nerves and tried to think.

She let out a yelp as someone grabbed her, dragging her to the middle of the arrangement where she saw there was a thin tablet in the centre engraved with delicate symbols. She was told to lie across the altar. She looked at them blankly. She wasn’t going to make this easy. She struggled as Landon pinned her there, strapping her into the attached manacles. He resumed his post, and Malachi stepped into the centre, now covered by a black robe.

He approached the tablet before lifting his arms into the air and turning in a circle, staring at each Nephilim.
He has a flair for the dramatic
, Addison thought. It clearly had the desired effect, seeing as she was nearly shaking with anxiety.

“Brethren, today we shall release our fathers from their cage and unite with them. They were taken from us by He who considers Himself the highest power. He tried to obliterate us, but He could not. He imprisoned our fathers, but no more. They shall be free, and so shall we. It is long past the time where we should be able to walk the Earth without having to hide and play human. We are superior. We should rule the humans, not allow them to rule us!” The Nephilim let out a cry of agreement. “Now, open your minds to your powers and use your spirit-seer abilities. Free these prisoners from their bonds!”

Addison felt the thrum of energy fill the room. It started as a mere hum, growing steadily until it felt tangible. It travelled up her body, a compressing weight that only increased in pressure until she felt as though she would suffocate.

“Ace, help me!” she screamed, desperate for the strain to be relieved. She saw his face drown with emotion before it went completely blank. Her heart dropped until she saw him drop the man next to him, a fist to his face, and rush towards her. Before he moved two metres closer he was flung against the wall by an unknown force. He didn’t get back up. Addison saw the creepy man smirking, his eyes glowing maliciously.

Addison didn’t have time to worry. She was having trouble breathing. She tried to will herself calm so that she didn’t waste more oxygen than was necessary, but the increasing heaviness made it more and more difficult.

Malachi approached her with a thin dagger in his hand.
This is it,
Addison thought.

All Addison could think about was Archer. God, she loved him. If only she hadn’t gotten overconfident and had stuck by Jake. She hoped Archer would forgive her for her stupidity and not blame himself or his brother.

Malachi brought the dagger down and several things happened simultaneously.

He was thrown backwards, his dagger falling and piercing her in the thigh. She let out a scream at the sudden pain. Addison’s vision was filled by the man who had thrown her assailant down. Archer had never looked as beautiful as he did in that moment. His face was a mask of fury and concern.

“Oh, thank Heavens,” Archer choked, kissing her all over her face. “We have to go.” As those last words slipped from his mouth, the air became so thick with power that Addison began spluttering.

“I … I can’t … can’t breathe,” Addison coughed. Archer’s eyes were wide and alert, but he wasn’t struggling with his breathing. He covered her lips with his and began pushing air into her mouth, and her breathing became more regular.

Sucking in his recycled air, she looked around and saw all Nephilim in various stages of collapse, some unknown force pushing them to their knees. The tablet was glowing, its brightness increasing each second.

Her cuffs fell lifelessly to the floor with a clatter, and Addison realised Archer must’ve used his telekinesis. He picked her up, moving her away from the altar. The movement made her groan in pain. All the Nephilim seemed to be moving as far away from it as possible, most ending up pressed against the wall.

The tablet’s glow expanded, and formed a cube-like creation. It rose further, the shape more triangular. It took Addison a moment to realise that it was in fact forming a three dimensional doorway. The glow was now a fluorescent white-blue colour, and it was so bright that she shielded her eyes.

Everyone was silent, waiting for what was to come.

***

Archer was not sure what they were waiting for, but it wasn’t good. The atmosphere was filled with menace, a malignant energy permeating the air. Addison’s thigh had slowed its bleeding, the shallow wound healing. Still, he ripped off the bottom of his shirt and wrapped it securely around her leg before standing up and clutching her closer to him. Heavens, he was so thankful that she was safe.

A vague figure seemed to be forming behind the radiant veil, slowly becoming corporeal.
This is it
, he thought. Would Samyaza come forth first? He couldn’t allow it.

“We must stop this,” he yelled to his fellow Nephilim. They didn’t have long. Some of the Nephilim ignored his call, only his own remaining loyal to him. Suddenly, he knew it was too late.

A bare foot came through slowly, cautious, as though the being hadn’t used his legs in a while. Inch by inch, the rest of the person came through, a man as it was. The first word that came into Archer’s mind at the sight of the man was
anticlimactic
. He was five foot seven inches maximum, of medium build. He wasn’t particularly muscular or broad, but he had a strong presence. His crow’s feet and hair, streaked with grey, suggested he was middle-aged. It was his eyes that Archer focused on. They were black, both pupil and iris. Those eyes spoke volumes about what this man was capable of. In fact, those eyes explained that this was no man. No, this was a monster.

Malachi broke out into the centre of the room, eyes wide in amazement “Thy father, are your brethren coming also?” he asked, his voice strong though his expression was vexed. Archer had the strangest urge to chuckle at his formality. It was probably a good idea to suck up to the creatures that were most likely going to kill you at first option. The thought sobered him.

“Father?” the man mused, his voice scratchy. A cruel smile took shape on his face. He looked past Malachi to a blond man that Archer had not noticed in the fray. He was not a Nephilim, and Archer could not tell what he was. “Asmodeus, what have you been telling these abominations?”

Asmodeus? Archer knew who this thing was. A demon. A demon lord, in fact. What the hell was going on?

Asmodeus stepped forward, and dropped his head in deference to the cruel man. “My Lord, you are free.”

Malachi stepped forward, forgetting his earlier caution. “What is this? Who are you? Where are the Grigori?”

The man let out a large bellow, the sound chilling Archer right to his bones.

“Oh, my. This is fun. I am Mastema,” he said with an unnerving smile.

Archer’s eyes widened in shock.
The
Mastema? Surely not.

“Mastema?” Malachi repeated, licking his lips nervously. “The chief of the evil spirits?”

“I prefer the term congenially-challenged, but yes. That is I,” he said with a dramatic wave towards himself.

Malachi turned on Asmodeus, “But the prophecy? How can this be?”

Asmodeus gave a cunning smile. “Brilliance on my behalf. The prophecy never mentioned who the prisoners were specifically. There are many beings in Tartarus.”

“What about the ‘man and child’ part of the prophecy? Or the part about them being an undeniable force? This is but one demon!” he yelled furiously, his fists clenching at his sides.

“Surely they know,” Mastema said to Asmodeus curiously. When Asmodeus shrugged in return, Mastema gave another chilling laugh. “Oh, this is too good. My, my, no wonder you Nephilim are so arrogant. You do not know about your other brothers.” Mastema made the last part sound dirty, as if it were something vulgar.

Archer could no longer keep silent and decided it was time to speak up. “Can the shit and explain,” he said, stepping in front of Addison.

Mastema regarded him calmly, though his eyes sparked with intensity. “I remember you, son of Samyaza. When the truth came out about the Grigori’s … indiscretions, I petitioned God to allow you and your brothers spirits be allowed to remain with me to do my will. I communicated with his archangel, who said I could take one-tenth, and leave the rest to be condemned. I was given the nastiest, those that were called the Naphidim. Boy, they were definitely a piece of work. Some took millennia to break. It was marvellous.”

“What are these Naphidim?” Archer asked, tired of walking in circles.

“They are what you could have been,” Mastema replied ominously. “They are the ones about who are to be blamed for the derogatory reputation that was given to Nephilim. They pillaged, raped, murdered, and corrupted their way through the Old World. All those horrible, delicious things.”

Archer resisted the urge to clock him there and then, knowing that it would most likely result in him getting fried. He had, of course, heard of these rumours about Nephilim when he was young, and they had only grown with time. He had always assumed that the angels had planted the ideas in the prophets’ minds to ensure that Nephilim continued to suffer. What if this was true, and in fact there had been many murderous fiends? Even worse, what if they still existed?

“Why are they different?” Archer inquired.

“’Tis a glorious tale, indeed. Few Grigori broke more … contentious rules than others,” Mastema said with false judiciousness. “Some drank the blood of their women while they fornicated. The offspring that resulted from those relations had different needs to the others. They required blood for sustenance,” he finished with a smile.

Archer blinked in bewilderment a few times before regaining his composure and smoothly quirking a brow. “Vampires?” he said doubtfully.

“The term fits, for the most part. They are marginally more snappy than the sparkly pubescent boy in those
Twilight
films, but the basic concept is the same,” he replied.

“If you have been imprisoned for millennia, how the fuck do you know about the modern world?” Archer asked in disbelief.

“My corporeal form was locked, but my spirit form knows no bounds,” he answered with a menacing smile.
Oooookaaayyyyy.

“You meant to deceive me, demon?” Malachi yelled, turning to Asmodeus. “I do not take such insults kindly.” With that he threw a dagger, aiming for the demon’s head.

With a flick of his hand, Asmodeus deflected the weapon and send it straight back at Malachi. It pierced his jugular, and Malachi’s face froze, his eyes wide. He went down slow, falling to his knees while he clawed at his throat, trying to no avail to remove the blade. He hit the floor with a thud, his large body sprawled over the ground, and the blood pooled around him. Archer could feel Addison trembling behind him, but she made no sound. Heavens, she was so strong.