"You ready?" Dominick asked.
Haatim couldn't think of anything in his life that he felt less ready for than what they were about to do. Dominick pulled the car to a stop, and the shaking grew worse. The day had darkened even further, and that sense of otherworldliness had intensified. It barely felt like they remained on Earth, and more like they had transported to somewhere other.
A place between.
Redness glowed up ahead of them, about a block down the street and to the west of their current position. The town felt less like a ghost town and more like a sleeping beast now. That red glow appeared quite ominous and seemed to form the central point of the vibration.
He could feel the presence of evil from that glow—like a hungry animal waiting for its moment to burst through from the other side and come forth into this realm. The sensation pressed against his Gift, a dull ache behind his sternum that he'd learned to recognize in Rome. Father Paladina had taught him that much: evil had a weight, and this place bent under it.
"Haatim?" Dominick said. "Hey, Earth to Haatim."
Haatim glanced over, startled. "What?"
"I asked if you're ready to do this. We don't have a lot of time, and we all need to stay focused."
He took a deep breath and lied, "Ready."
"All right."
All three of them climbed out of the vehicle. Broken sections of the pavement showed huge cracks from the violent vibrations. They stood near the epicenter of it now, and it ripped apart the entire city. Haatim found it difficult to keep his feet, and the motion churned his stomach.
Or, maybe, that came from the situation. He couldn't tell for sure. They circled to the trunk, and Dominick popped it open. Frieda looked as out of sorts as Haatim. For the first time since he'd met her, she appeared dirty and disheveled, covered in mud and dirt and without any of her usual grace or poise.
"Here." Dominick handed him a shotgun and pistol. "Don't waste your ammunition. We don't have a lot left."
"What the hell will we do?"
"End this."
"How?"
Dominick picked up a shotgun and chambered a round. "I don't know."
"We need to kill Abigail," Frieda said. "We won't have another chance."
"And how in the world do you plan to do that? She has Surgat running the show now, plus he's about to bring in a demon army. What chance do we have?"
Frieda pulled a pistol out of the trunk. Then, with her free hand, she picked up Arthur's sword. When she lifted the blade, a faint shimmer rippled along its edge—the same blessed metal that had burned Nida's hand when the demon tried to claim it from Arthur's house. Holy weapons rejected demonic touch.
"How's your leg?" Dominick asked.
They had patched up her cut back in the woods before going to the car, but already, it had bled through. "Do you need to stay behind?"
"No, I'm fine."
The sword looked a beautiful weapon, and Haatim could appreciate the quality of the blade without knowing much about such things. The metal itself held intricate carvings.
"The demon didn't keep the sword?" he asked.
"It tried to," Frieda said. "But, this thing still has some tricks up its sleeve. The blessed metal burned Nida's skin on contact—she couldn't hold it for more than a few seconds before dropping it. I found it where she'd flung it across the room. I hope the sharp end does even better."
"Do you think we stand a chance?"
"A small one," she said. "Or, at least, we do if we find Abigail in there."
"If we do, then we need to get her out."
"That possibility has gone," Frieda said, shaking her head in sadness. "But, she might give us an opening."
"What do you mean?"
"If she can distract the demon, she might give us the opportunity to kill them both."
"No."
"It's the only way we can end this."
"I have a better idea. Let me talk to her."
"Haatim."
"I can reach her. I know I can, and I can help her like I helped Nida."
"You said yourself that you've become too weak after saving Nida from the demon. Besides, I doubt you could do anything to this demon even if at your full strength."
Though she didn't mean it as offensive, the words stung anyway. However, she had it right, no matter how much he wished she hadn't. Haatim had barely survived his last encounter, and in his weakened state, it would prove suicide to open up a link to Surgat.
But, he couldn't just abandon Abigail. He had lost his sister to this demon and would be damned before he let it take Abigail without trying to get her back.
"What about the demons we'll face getting to her?" he asked. "Those things in the forest—the stone ones—were nearly unstoppable."
Frieda's jaw tightened. "Those were ancient demons. Powerful individuals that Nida summoned specifically—rare creatures that have existed for millennia. What comes through that portal will be different."
"Different how?"
"Surgat's army is exactly that—an army. Foot soldiers. Individually, most of them are weaker than what we fought in the woods. A shotgun blast or a blessed blade can destroy them. But their danger is in numbers. Surgat commands thousands, and he can direct them with a single thought. The stone demons were assassins. What's coming is a war."
The distinction settled into Haatim's understanding. The forest demons had been elite—comparable to special forces. Surgat's horde would be infantry. Dangerous in mass, but killable one by one. That didn't make the odds any better, but at least he understood the threat.
He acquiesced. "Okay. You're right about the plan."
Frieda nodded. "No demons have come through yet, but the portal must be nearing completion. Once it is done, Surgat will bring through allies and slaves."
"How do we stop Surgat from completing the portal?"
"We need to knock the energy off balance. Redirect it, somehow."
"How do we do that?"
"I don't know," Frieda said. "Surgat won't have full access to all of his abilities until he destroys Abigail completely, but he still makes for an incredibly formidable opponent. We must stay cautious."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't underestimate the demon, and don't believe anything Abigail says. She is helpless now, and the demon has control. It will try to use your relationship with her against you. You cannot trust it."
"But, Abigail remains in there." Haatim frowned. "You said so yourself. What if she needs our help?"
"She's trapped and has no control."
Haatim looked away. "Fine. Ready?"
"Haatim, promise me that no matter what the demon says, you won't listen."
He hesitated for a second. "Okay," he said, finally. "I promise."
Frieda didn't look convinced. "Haatim."
"We need to go." He adjusted his grip on his weapon. "You said yourself that we need to hurry before he completes the portal."
"Yeah. We don't have time for this," Dominick said. "I'm sorry, Haatim; I'm with Frieda on this. I've seen demons try to manipulate before and know their capabilities."
"You both sound so sure, but still admit that you have no way to know. This is totally new territory. Nothing like this has ever happened to any of us. What if we've just condemned her to death?"
Dominick shook his head. "Haatim."
"Fine. I promise I won't listen to the demon. But, if Abigail is still in there, I'll try and save her." He didn't wait for them to respond, just walked toward the red glow.
They'd neared to less than a hundred meters from it now, and he couldn't shake that feeling that they moved further into some different world as they went closer. The laws of this universe no longer seemed to apply.
He hadn't gotten it wrong when he'd called it new territory. This presented something entirely new.
It seemed as if they'd passed into some place between, not on Earth anymore, but also not in hell. Not quite, at least. The wind had stopped blowing, and the city had a surreal feel to it. Even the clouds barely moved anymore. It had stopped raining, but the storm looked far from over.
"Abandon all hope, ye who enter here," he muttered under his breath.
"What?" Dominick asked.
"Nothing."
"Shoot first," Frieda said, though she didn't seem to direct the statement at anyone in particular. "Don't try to figure out what it is or understand it. If you see something you can't explain, just kill it."
"Keep your wits about you," Dominick said. "Whatever happens, don't allow yourself to get tricked."
This statement, Haatim knew, did get directed at him. He ignored them both, holding his shotgun and preparing himself for the fight to come.
He reached the edge of the storefront one street removed from the red glow. The thrumming came from here, and it caused the ground to shake violently with unsteady tremors.
The ground wanted to tear apart and swallow them; although, energy from the red glow held it together. Energy filled the entire area, alive and hostile.
"I'll circle around and flank her," Dominick said.
"Okay." Haatim nodded.
Dominick slipped off, disappearing around the building and down a back alley. Haatim watched him go, and then glanced at Frieda.
They waited a few moments for Dominick to circle, and then Frieda nodded and hefted the sword. "It's time."
Haatim nodded. "All right. Here we go."
He stepped around the corner, raised the shotgun, and headed toward the red glow.
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