“Glad to know I’m looking closer to life now,” Taylor joked.
Sam smiled. “I was worried about you. Still am.”
“Don’t worry. Like you said, I’ll save Gabriel. And then I’ll come home and whip your butt in pool.”
“If that happened, then I would know for sure that the world was ending!” Sam laughed.
They resumed their game of pool, playing four at a time with the fifth player rotating in after each game was over.
They were just killing time.
There was just one hour to go before the mission.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
After the strategy session, Lucas knew he needed to spend some time with David. He had seen the boy’s face when he heard the nature of the mission, and while they seemed like they were able to convince him to support the cause, he was still concerned that David would change his mind in the heat of the moment. Unlocking his apartment door, he said, “This is my place, David.”
He pushed the door open and the boy cried out with glee upon seeing the size of the space. Relative to his own room it was massive, at more than 2,500 square feet. Complete with marble floors, brilliantly lit walls and ceilings, and brand new leather furniture, the apartment was big enough to house an entire family.
“You’ve got an LED!” David exclaimed, running over to the razor-thin widescreen television mounted on the wall. “Awesome! What is it, 50-inch?”
“Yep,” Lucas confirmed. “You like electronics?”
“Of course,” David replied, making the question sound stupid, like everyone in the world loved electronics more than anything. In truth, David was an electronics junkie. Growing up, he had constantly asked, begged, and pleaded with his parents to get him whatever the newest thing was. Lucas knew this, of course.
“So you get all of this because you are the leader of the Special Missions Corps?” David asked.
“Yes, David. Dionysus is a very kind and generous man. He knows that I am out there risking my neck every day and so, he grants me a few luxuries. This is my sanctuary when I’m not working.”
David stared at the LED in silence. Lucas could tell there was something he wanted to ask. “What is it, David?”
“It’s just…I was just curious. Would Gabriel have lived here before you?”
Lucas smiled. “Yes, he had this space before me, although I’ve made a few improvements since he…left. He would still be here if he hadn’t—”
“If he hadn’t been a traitor,” David finished.
“Well, yeah, to put it bluntly. Your brother had it all, David. He would have been a star. Hell, he was already a star. Don’t make the same mistakes he did.”
“I won’t,” David said firmly.
“Gabriel probably would have said the same thing when he was your age, but look what happened. It’s not as easy as you think, David. Your brother, the demons—they will tell you anything to get you change sides. You have to be ready for their lies. You cannot trust anything Gabriel says to you. Not until after we have tried to cure him.”
David’s eyes brightened. “Do you really think there’s hope that Gabriel can be rehabilitated?” he asked, using the word he heard during the meeting.
Lucas’s eyes became misty. He was quickly learning how to act from Dionysus, the master himself. “There is always hope, David, but I don’t want to raise your expectations. With Gabriel I think it is a long shot. The last time I saw him he tried to kill me. His mind is very far gone.”
“Well, I will do what I can to help him,” David promised solemnly.
“Thank you. Maybe one day Gabriel will also be able to thank you for it.” Lucas was impressed with how fast he had been able to turn the boy completely against his brother; David now seemed to believe that Gabriel was a raving lunatic that required immediate psychiatric attention. Now for the even bigger challenge: to turn him against his family. He paused to collect his thoughts.
Starting slowly, he said, “I have something else to tell you, David.”
David looked up at him expectantly.
“What the Council told you about your family wasn’t entirely true.” He let this sink in.
David asked, “Why would they lie to me?”
“Well, even though Dionysus and I trust you completely, there are some on the Council that are concerned that you are not a true-blue angel and could be turned, just like your brother. They thought it best to hide some details from you, so that you wouldn’t try to leak the information to the demons.”
“I would never do that,” David said fiercely.
“Oh, I know that, David. Believe me, I do. But others are not convinced.”
“I will prove it to them. I promise, I will.”
“Good to hear. Now, the thing about your family. We told you that they volunteered to act as bait to lure Gabriel closer to us, right?” David nodded once. “Well, they did volunteer, but their motives were slightly different. We think they have been turned by the demons, too, and they are just trying to reunite with Gabriel. You know, become part of his rogue squad.”
David felt like he had been slapped in the face. Stunned, devastated, his entire world crashing down upon him. First, the one he had looked up to since he was a little boy, and now his parents were traitors, too? Had the entire world gone mad? His shoulders slumped, his head dropped.
Lucas said, “I’m sorry, David. I know this is hard to take, but I needed to prepare you for the lies that they would try to feed you. It is going to be a hard day for you, but I will be there with you every step of the way.”
David felt like crying, but didn’t want to show any signs of weakness in front of his master. Instead, he turned the pain, the anguish, the shock, and the devastation into fuel. Determination. More than anything, he wanted to prove to everyone that he was better than those who had raised him, those who he had trusted. He had to be better. Someone had to honor the family name. It was his calling.
“I am up for it.” His bitter face had morphed into determination that was bred from anger. Fierce, fierce, fiery, hot anger. Life changing anger.
“I know you are, David. Today is your chance to prove to the Council that you are worthy of their trust. I believe that by the end of the day you will have surpassed your peers in every possible category, and will be ready to join the Special Missions Corps a year earlier than what is typically permitted.”
“You mean I could join as a 17-year-old?”
“Yes, immediately following your apprenticeship, in a few years. If you are ready, that is?”
“I would be honored,” David said calmly, trying to hide his true emotions. Inside he was turning cartwheels, but controlling his emotions was all part of growing up and he needed to learn to do it.
“Good. Do you have any other questions?”
“I don’t think so. Only, what do we do now?”
“All I want you to do is go back to your room and prepare yourself mentally for the task ahead. That means meditation in complete silence. No comic books or music. You have less than an hour to prepare; I’ll collect you when it’s time.”
“Yes, master,” David said obediently.
He started to leave, but Lucas grabbed his arm. “One more thing, David. We have a special mission for you today. We’ll tell you before we leave. Will you do it?”
“Anything you wish, master.”
“Good.”
Upon leaving the room, he walked casually down the hall, but as soon as he turned the corner he pumped his fist and then raced down the hall to his room. A year early, he thought excitedly. As talented as Gabriel was, he had only entered the advanced program six months early. He would show everyone that he was more talented and more trustworthy than his brother ever was. When people talked about the Knights, they would talk of David’s honor and talent, not the treason of his family.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
From the uppermost branches of a tall pine more than a mile away, Gabriel had a clear view of the Warrior’s Plateau. His supe
rhuman eyes zoomed in on the location, watching for any signs of movement. His plan was to be the last to the party. Arriving early would only allow his enemies the opportunity to sneak up on him. He needed to know what and who he was dealing with before he went in, especially now that he was planning a more aggressive approach.
A slight movement caught his eye. A lone angel had crept into view. She was scaling the plateau from the east, climbing silently, cautiously. A scout, he thought.
Upon reaching the pinnacle, she peeked over the edge, surveying the broad area before her. It was an empty wasteland; not a single plant, animal, or even insect occupied the space. Satisfied that she was the first to arrive, she raised a small radio to her lips—she was most likely relaying the information back to Dionysus. The rest of the posse would arrive soon.
Sure enough, within minutes Gabriel spotted a—for lack of a better word—flock of angels riding the gentle breeze along the horizon. Characteristically, they were in a perfect V-formation, with a lead angel, followed by pairs of secondary angels. Each pair was spread further apart than the previous pair. There were also several angels clustered in the middle of the formation.
When they got closer, Gabriel could make out some of the faces. He couldn’t believe his eyes—the middle of the formation was made up of Archangels! Johanna, Sarah, Thomas—he counted them off on his fingers. He was up to nine when he noticed Dionysus in the very center. Ten. Andrew, of course, was dead. Who was missing? Then it dawned on him: Michael.
Why would Dionysus’s biggest advocate and second-in-command not participate? Gabriel’s focused brain cycled through the possible reasons: One—Michael would be part of a trap, arriving later. Gabriel hoped that wasn’t the reason. Two—Michael was dead. Not likely, but one can hope, right? Three—in case something went wrong, they would need someone to lead the angels, that someone being Michael. Possible, but Dionysus was such an optimist that Gabriel doubted he had a contingency plan for anything.
That’s all he could come up with off the top of his head. His instincts told him that one of the answers was right, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Probably the trap; he would need to keep his eyes open.
The pack reached the plateau and descended gracefully. Their positioning was simple: ten guards in a line, not including several hovering in the air, then the ten Archangels behind them, with Dionysus in the center, five on one side, four on the other. But where was his family?
As if in response to his question, his family appeared instantly, just behind the line of Archangels. Gabriel rubbed his eyes. When he opened them again, his family was still there. They were holding hands with each other. Peter was in the middle, holding both his mom’s and dad’s hands, but there was also a fourth, darker figure that was holding Helena’s other hand. Upon closer inspection Gabriel saw that they weren’t choosing to hold hands, rather they were shackled together. Even from a mile away, Gabriel knew the fourth figure was a demon; a demon who had teleported them onto the plateau; a demon that had switched sides.
Gabriel knew that Dionysus would have something up his sleeve, but this was completely unexpected. There was no doubt that Dionysus had instructed the demon to teleport the prisoners away at the first sign of trouble. This was going to be a problem. He would have to find a way to get close enough to his mom to unshackle her from the demon.
Oh well, Gabriel thought, he had no choice but to enter the dragon’s lair. As the sun began to melt onto the horizon, Gabriel sprang from his perch and soared towards the plateau.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Gabriel covered the mile in mere seconds and was nearly on top of them before the angels noticed his arrival. Expecting an attack, the guards raised their swords and gritted their teeth. Instead, Gabriel landed softly in front of them, ignoring their threatening gestures. He looked past the guards to the Archangels, and then on to his family.
His eyes returning to Dionysus, he said, “Why don’t you just let them go. They have nothing to do with this.”
Dionysus laughed. It was more of a cackle really—a long, drawn out, particularly evil-sounding cackle that told Gabriel it was definitely not going to be that easy.
“I’ll take that as a no,” Gabriel said. “It couldn’t hurt to ask.”
“I will be dictating the terms of this transaction,” Dionysus said succinctly. He made it sound like a standard business deal. To him, it probably was. “First, I would like to draw your attention to the demon that is shackled to your parents.” The demon raised his arm, lifting Helena Knight’s limb by default. “He has orders to teleport your entire family away if you try anything stupid…So do us all a favor, and don’t try anything stupid.”
“Hi, Gabriel,” Helena said evenly.
“Hi, Mom, Dad, Peter. Are you all okay?”
“We’re fine, Gabriel,” Teddy said. He added quickly, “Don’t worry about us, just leave now!”
Dionysus took one step back and with impressive speed, landed a wicked back-hand slap across Teddy’s cheekbone. His father’s head snapped back and then rebounded, jerking forward violently. He winced in pain as a trickle of blood originated from a cut just under his eye. With his powerful vision, Gabriel could see that Dionysus was wearing rings on both hands, which is what likely caused the skin to tear. He considered lunging forward and trying to break through the guards to get to Dionysus, but thought better of it and restrained himself.
Instead, he said, “Wow, impressive. Attacking an unarmed, defenseless human…I can see why they made you the leader.” The sarcasm was heavy in his tone.
Ignoring the jab, Dionysus threatened, “I would be happy to do a lot worse to the parents that raised their son to be a massive traitor to his people. But that’s not part of the plan today unless you want it to be,” he added.
“No!” Gabriel blurted out. While he didn’t want to cooperate with the vile creature before him, he had to be careful not to push him too far.
“Good.” Picking up where he had left off earlier, Dionysus said, “Second, we didn’t just bring you to this place because we thought the view was nice, we brought you here for a purpose. For a game, you might say.” He paused for effect, but Gabriel remained stone-faced, trying to appear unsurprised by anything that the madman threw at him. “Where was I? Ah, yes, a game! Many years ago the angels and demons held tests of hand-to-hand combat skills here. I would like to renew that tradition today.”
“And what if I refuse to fight?” Gabriel asked, knowing full-well that he would have to fight.
“Then you die.” The head of the Archangels croaked out the last word, making death sound even worse than it is, if that’s possible. “But I think you will want to fight the angel that has volunteered.”
“Let me guess: tall, full of himself, fights like a girl? I think his name was Pucas. No wait, that’s not right, it was Lucas.”
Dionysus was not amused by Gabriel’s wit. “Enough talk. Bring in the warrior!” he roared.
From behind Gabriel’s family, Lucas rose from the cliffs below, his wings beating gracefully. Wearing full body armor, Lucas looked impenetrable compared to Gabriel’s exposed skin. After flying over the heads of the Archangels and guards, Lucas hovered for a moment, and then retracted his wings, landing in a low crouch like a ninja. “We meet again. I said we would,” Lucas sneered.
“Well, aren’t you just a regular walking, talking damn psychic,” Gabriel taunted.
Lucas began walking forward towards Gabriel, but Dionysus stopped him with a sharp, “Not yet!” Frozen in his tracks, Lucas waited dumbly. “We have another surprise for you, traitor.”
Great, Gabriel thought.
“Bring in Lucas’s apprentice!” Dionysus commanded.
Following the same path that Lucas had, a pair of bright forms rose up, just as the last rays of sun beamed across the valley. Temporarily blinded by the sudden burst of light, Gabriel couldn’t quite make out the faces of the beings. He could tell that one was tall with long hair, presumably a female
, and the other was shorter, but not by much. As he shielded his eyes with a hand, Gabriel heard his mom scream, “Noo! David, what are you doing?”
His heart sank. This explained why Dionysus had told him that David would not be joining his family. He had been kidnapped and was probably being brainwashed already. The sun sank below the horizon, and Gabriel saw the cold face of his brother, who had now landed behind Lucas but in front of the guards. Their stares locked, and while Gabriel’s eyes softened, David’s remained hard and emotionless.
“David, I—”
“Shut it!” David’s escort ordered. Distracted by David’s sudden appearance, Gabriel hadn’t noticed who was holding the boy’s hand, leading him onto the rock. Another surprise. It was Cassandra. As her blond hair swished gently on the breeze, her lips formed into an ugly sneer. While some men would consider her devastatingly beautiful, Gabriel could only see her as ugly. Pure evil filled the hole where her heart used to be. Gabriel remembered a time when they had been friends, good friends even. But those times were long past and Cassandra would always resent Gabriel for not wanting to take their relationship past the friendship stage. Now she was glaring at him.
Helena broke the silence caused by Cassandra’s outburst. “David, why are you doing this?” she pleaded.
Looking back, David said, “If you love Gabriel, you will cooperate. This is the only way we can save him.” Turning his head back to Gabriel, he said firmly, “Turn yourself in, brother. We can help you. I can help you. Please listen to me.”
Gabriel looked to the heavens for an answer of some kind, but hearing nothing, just said, “David, you don’t know what you’re talking about. You have the story all wrong and if you just stay with Mom and Dad, they’ll tell you the truth. I will save you all.”
“No, Gabriel, you won’t. You’ll contaminate us with your filth. They said you would try to lie, but please don’t. No more lies. Just turn yourself in.”