“It’s okay. I didn’t know Woe could be so strong.”
“That makes two of us. I actually told Ameana I loved her.”
“You told everyone. It was so much fun to watch,” I joke.
“Yeah, well, Jay is back, you have to earn his love and affections,” he says.
Just then, Marcus gets a text.
“It’s Ameana, she wants us to meet her on the roof. She and Wolf found the location of the Oka,”
Please let Julian get back in time. I can’t go anywhere without getting the Liquid Brom first.
Marcus runs up to the roof and the rest of us follow. We get there just in time to watch Ameana and Wolf coming in for a landing. Wolf is by far the most graceful flyer I have ever seen. He’s so unconventional that I tend to forget, but seeing him in the air or fighting, I am reminded that he is a Para.
“What did you find out?” Marcus says before their feet even land on the ground.
“According to The Sage, there is no way around a Scar. You will need the key,” Ameana says.
“He said you probably already knew that,” Wolf says.
“I just wanted to make sure,” Marcus says, avoiding eye contact with the team.
“He also told me I am to lead ‘many,’” Ameana says, confused.
“You know The Sage, always full of riddles,” Marcus replies.
“That’s crap. You are planning to go to Difi alone, aren’t you?”
“Ah, hell no!” Jay says.
“I have to go alone. We can’t afford for something to happen to all of us.”
“We are a team. We can’t let you go alone,” Ameana insists.
“What we can’t do is let the Akons find the Triplex.”
All at once, the team begins to argue. Meanwhile I am on the lookout for Julian.
“Emmy, you have to talk some sense into him,” Ameana pleads.
“I tried.”
“Dude, you’re gonna need back up,” Wolf says to Marcus.
“What help would you be?” Ameana says.
“I’m really getting sick of you, Princess. All day you have not had anything positive to say. I’m trying to be cool, but you are really screwing with my Chi.”
“Wolf, go to Hell.”
“Why don’t we all go to Hell, like a real team?” Jay asks.
Then once again, everyone is embroiled in a heated argument.
“My decision is final!” Marcus barks. The team falls silent.
“We are going to get the Oka then we head to Tamera Falls where all of you will wait for me. I will jump off the mountain; alone. I will find the key and head back as soon as I can. I am not asking anyone’s permission. These are my orders. Understand?”
Everyone reluctantly nods.
“Now, where is the Oka?” Marcus asks.
“We dragged the info out of a few Runners and Pawns,” Ameana begins.
“What she means is that she beat it out of them,” Wolf says snidely.
“Sorry, I didn’t have time to make them hot tea and cookies,” Ameana counters.
“Damn, y’all, chill,” Jay snaps.
“Anyway, a lot of their friends have been bragging about doing a job in Southeast Asia. They’ve been telling everyone that they’ve been selected to keep an eye on precious cargo.”
“Why would the Akons or Lucy use mere Runners and Pawns to guard the Oka?” I ask.
“They wouldn’t but Runners and Pawns love to exaggerate,” Ameana says.
“So while they may not have been put there to guard Rio, Akons may use them to ensure humans stay away from the area,” Wolf concludes.
“Where exactly is it?” Jay asks.
“One of the Runners said his friend was happy to go there because he had always wanted to visit the Giant.”
“Indonesia,” Jays concludes.
“Yeah, we looked it up. How did you know that?” Ameana asks.
“Indonesia is nicknamed “The Sleeping Giant.” I keep tell’n y’all, I’m not just a pretty face,” Jay brags.
“We looked online and came up with two possible locations. The Oka could be in the Barbarour or the Prambanan,” Ameana says.
“Both places are large tourist attractions and Akons know we aren’t allowed to fight among a crowd of humans. So they would likely hide the Oka in one of these two locations,” Wolf says.
“Yes, but which one?” I ask.
“The Prambanan,” Jay says. We all look at him again.
“The Prambanan is a series of temples. There was an earthquake in 2006 and it damaged many of them. Some of the areas are still cordoned off. That would be a perfect place to hide the Oka. It’s surrounded by tourists but it has sections where humans are forbidden to go in.”
“Great, let’s go,” Marcus says.
“I need to talk to Emmy alone.” We turn and find Julian standing before us looking very displeased.
“We don’t have time for this,” Marcus insists.
“Make time, First Guardian,” Julian barks.
“It’s okay. I’ll be right back.” I rush downstairs before Marcus has time to object.
Once in the living room, he hands me a small vile with a honey-like substance.
“You drink it right before you jump off Tamera Falls. It will keep your core body temp no matter how much heat there is. But it only lasts six hours.”
“What? What if that’s not enough?”
“That’s all you got.”
“Can I drink more of it so I can get more time?”
“It’s not Gatorade. This stuff is toxic if taken more than once.”
“Okay, I just drink it right?”
“Right.”
“How come Marcus can go to Difi without it?”
“Angels are stronger than humans in every way. He can withstand the elements but even he will face difficulty. Especially if you encounter Atourum.”
“I didn’t think of that.”
“Well, think about it. You’re going to Hell, why wouldn’t you see the devil?”
*******************
CHAPTER ELEVEN: DAY 2
I return to the roof just in time to watch the sun come up. Marcus asks if everything is okay and I assure him everything is fine. Yes, that’s a lie. I’m about to go into Hell knowing he doesn’t want me there. A few minutes after we take off, Marcus guides our attention to a series of helicopters flying below us.
“The Summit is about to start,” he says.
Marcus flies down and lands on top of one of the buildings. The rest of the team follows his lead. We all look down onto the street below and find a presidential-like motorcade heading up the Westside. It is a truly an ominous sight.
There is a long convoy of Cravens on motorcycles in groups of two’s, followed by a procession of Paras in black SUVs. The SUV’s are followed by a series of silver, gray and black Ferraris. Behind the luxury cars are yet another stream of Cravens, followed by a series of NYPD armored trucks.
The streets have been cordoned off for miles. The only humans allowed in are from the NYPD. Marcus tells us that many of BIMA’s members are also police officers. They have arranged for as few humans to be on the street as possible.
Jay informs us that the Ordinal Paras are the ones in the Ferraris. It is not hard to spot them. Even from the roof of the building where we stand, we can make out the glow of their wings. They have an “O” emblem on their cars along with the symbol of the Council. Some cars had logos written in different languages.
I look for the Council but am told they will not be on Earth. All the news from the Summit will be reported to them by the Traveler Angels. They will be working over time to make sure the Council is kept updated on each and every occurrence.
“They are all coming to say awful things about Miku,” I say mostly to myself.
“Not Miku; Redd,” Jay reminds me.
“We should say something on her behalf. She’s a good Angel. They need to know that,” I implore Marcus.
“I get it, Em.,
but if we don’t go and get the Oka, there is no way we can help Miku or Rio.”
“Dude is speaking the truth. We need to—”
All of a sudden, the middle car erupts in a ball of flames. The power of the explosion causes all the other cars to veer off the path and crash into each other.
“Rage?” Jay asks as he takes into the air to help the victims below.
“I don’t see him,” Ameana says.
From the corner of my eye, I spot a quick flash of ruby colored wings.
“Jay, it’s not Rage, it’s Miku.”
Instantly the Guardians take to the sky. Before they can’t get to her, Redd splits the ground open. Humans begin sinking into the gapping hole. The humans are screaming and the Paras are taking to the air to counterattack. Marcus commands the team to rescue the humans while he takes off after Redd.
Redd summons a funnel of wind that sends the Cravens flying several feet in the air. They land miles away from where the action is. As soon as the Cravens are gone, Demons descend upon us. Although Redd doesn’t work for evil, they are quick to take advantage of the chaos she is causing.
Down below I can make out a thin boy with dark eyes unloading boxes full of Soul Chasers. If the Splash is right, that guy most be Benny Stone; Miku’s sidekick. I call for Jay to give me a ride down to the ground.
Once he drops me off, a demon attacks, forcing Jay to have to leave me alone to deal with Benny. I run as fast as I can to stop him from releasing the Soul Chasers, but before I can reach him, Redd summons yet another tornado. It picks up humans, Paras and Cravens alike.
I am nowhere near it but still the wind makes it hard for me to get to Benny. The demons are not as powerful as Akons but what they lack in power, they made up for in numbers. I try again to reach Benny but I am knocked down to the ground by one of the demons in the crowd.
I look up at the demon in horror. The Guardians are all fighting or rescuing humans. I watch breathlessly as my life flashes before me. I squeeze my eyes shut and then I hear a thud. I quickly open my eyes and find that the demon has been hit in the head by a brick Ameana sent falling towards him. I say a quick “Thank You” then rush off to stop Benny.
Benny is about to unload the last of the Soul Chasers. If the Chasers are activated, it will result in the death of several Paras and humans. I call out to Wolf and he gets to Benny just in time. He launches a power ball into Benny’s shoulder. Benny drops the last Soul Chaser.
Unfortunately, the Chaser rolls into the street and activates. It opens and a funnel of air begins to suck away the soul of the nearest Angel. Redd looks down and realizes only one Chaser has been released. She flies down to set off the rest.
“Miku, don’t!” Marcus shouts. Redd simply laughs a hysterical laugh and goes for the Chasers. Marcus tackles her; the two roll onto the ground. Marcus gets the upper hand and pins Redd, but Redd is only down for a few seconds.
“Miku, I don’t want to hurt you,” Marcus roars after her as she takes flight.
“Miku is dead.”
“You have to stop or sooner or later, the Paras are going to kill you,” Marcus says as he desperately makes his way to her.
“I don’t care.”
“Rio is alive.”
“Liar! Liar!”
“No, it’s true.”
“You will burn for toying with me, Marcus Cane!”
She shoots out flames from her fingers twice as deadly as Rages’. The flames are, much like her, unrelenting and uncontrollable. The force of the blast knocks Marcus down to the ground. I rush over to check on him.
Meanwhile, Jay and Ameana wrestle with a group of demons trying to kill the human members of BIMA. Wolf goes head to head with a demon. He is handling himself with skill and precision.
But suddenly Wolf looks over at something and it causes him to be alarmed and completely distracted. The demon uses that time to get the upper hand. He wraps an iron cord around Wolf’s neck and gleefully attempts to seep the life out of him.
“Wolf, fight back!” Ameana orders when she spots him. Wolf keeps shaking his head “no.” Ameana pleads with him but he chokes out the words, “Too close, my power will kill him.”
Ameana, too busy with her own demons, looks around for Jay, but Jay also has his hands full with rescuing humans and keeping the demons at bay. Marcus starts to stir, so I know he’s okay. I grab an iron rod nearby and run toward the demon holding Wolf.
He is enjoying the look on Wolf’s face so much, he doesn’t notice me coming up to him. By the time he sees me, the rod in the air. It lands on the side of his head, knocking him out cold. Wolf looks up at me, relieved and says, “Righteous.”
Marcus gets back up and takes into the air. He takes on two demons at a time along side Jay.
“Reinforcements are here,” Jay says. We look up and find a hundred or so Paras descending upon us. They head straight for Redd.
“We have to stop them; they could kill Miku,” I say to the Guardians.
“No, they won’t do anything until after the Summit. They will just stop and detain her,” Ameana says.
“That won’t happen. They will not catch her,” Marcus says. And sure enough Redd has avoided every attack hurled at her. In fact she is basally toying with the powerful Angels following her.
“I know you want to help her but to really help her, we have to get Rio,” Jay says to Marcus.
“Jay’s right,” Ameana adds. Marcus hesitates for a few seconds, and then decides his team has a good point. We leave the chaos in the hands of the Paras and go off to Indonesia.
************************
We are only in the air a few minutes when Ameana flies down to the ground below; the rest of us follow her. She lands on a series of canyons and furiously paces up and down. Marcus asks her what the problem is.
“I can’t do this anymore,” she says angrily.
Marcus and I exchange a quick glance. We both know things haven’t been easy for Ameana having to work with her ex and his new girlfriend, but we didn’t realize things had gotten so bad for her.
Marcus clears his throat uncomfortably. I know he doesn’t want to have this conversation; especially not in front of the other guys.
“Look, I know it’s hard for you. Emmy and I are trying to—”
“—what? This isn’t about you and the human,” Ameana swears.
“Well, then what is it?” he asks irritated.
“Wolf. I can’t keep going on with him being the way he is.”
“Oh, for Ominus sake, what’s the problem now, Princess?”
“You almost got yourself killed by a stupid demon because you refused to kill him even though he was trying to kill you. We can’t keep saving you.”
“I never asked anyone to save me!”
“Well, we don’t really have a choice do we?”
“I fought back there. I did my part.”
“The hell you did. You see demons, you kill them. End of story.”
“Maybe your story is filled with blood and violence but not mine.”
“Oh and what is your story filled with? Ponies and rainbows?”
“Stop it, you two!” I shout.
They both begin to speak at the same time. It’s like trying to reason with five year olds.
“ENOUGH” Marcus screams. His voice rings out to the surrounding canyons.
Wolf and Ameana don’t look like they are done with their argument; not even close.
“What is the point of taking him along if we keep having to save him? It’s bad enough we have the human with us,” Ameana says.
“I’ve enjoyed this time with you, too,” I say to her under my breath.
“Look dude, if you don’t want me to come along, then I’m good. I can stay here and mellow out,” Wolf says.
“We need as much help as we can get. It would be great if you killed a few demons but we really don’t have time to be picky. We need you,” Marcus replies.
“Well, I don’t. Marcus, he’s useless,” Am
eana pleads.
“Why because I don’t enjoy taking a life?”
“They. Are. Demons!!!” she shouts.
“So what?” he shouts back.
“Why don’t you just admit the truth: The reason you don’t kill is because you are a scared little boy,” Ameana says as she storms off.
Before anyone can react, she calls on a piece of sharp discarded glass and sends it flying into the air, straight into Wolf’s face. He reacts with speed that rivals Jay’s. He catches the glass between two fingers, jumps in front of Ameana and flips her on her back. He motions to plunge the weapon into her eye. He stops less than an inch away from her face.
“Just because I don’t kill, doesn’t mean I can’t,” he says in a deadly voice befitting a Kon.
The two stare at each other with hatred in their eyes.
Ameana quickly gathers herself and leaps into the air.
“Then if you can kill, why don’t you?”
“I don’t owe you an explanation,” Wolf says furiously.
“It’s a simple question. Why don’t you kill?” she pushes.
“It’s not right.”
“Not good enough. You have the skills, don’t you?”
“Ameana, leave it alone,” Marcus warns, studying the hard expression on Wolf’s face.
“If we have to work with him, fine, but the least he can do is tell us why he doesn’t kill.”
“Ameana, come on,” Jays says.
“I wanna know why he doesn’t—”
“--I did!”
All eyes turn to the Para. He looks enraged but not really at us. He seems to be far away; like he is lost in memories he never really wanted to resurface. We fall silent and let him speak.
“I never told anyone. It happened the first night I joined the Omari. I was stoked. I couldn’t wait to get my first demon, my first Seller, whatever. I just wanted to see some action. We were in Brazil tracking down a demon that had broken several of the Council’s rules. No one had been able to track him for months. Then the Council called on us. That’s the only thing the Omari do better then kill; track.
“I had this picture in my head of what he would look like: black soulless eyes, evil dripping from his wings. I couldn’t wait to rip him in two. We found him hiding in some abandoned cabin deep in the forest.