Afterworld (The Orion Rezner Chronicles Book 1) (15 page)

“We need to locate Azazel. If we find him, we find the children. You will stop taking the potion.”

“You want Rezner to allow himself to become possessed?” Mushi asked.

“Not quite possessed…influenced,” she replied. “If Azazel’s connection to him becomes strong enough, I will be able to pinpoint his location.”

“Then you send in the cavalry?” I asked.

“Something of that nature,” said Maximillian.

I wasn’t convinced. “He had dozens of Cain with him when he attacked us on the road. He must have an army at his disposal.”

“Let us worry about what happens after we find him,” said Solomon. “You concentrate on resisting his influence as long as you can.”

I nodded in understanding. “You don’t want to divulge too much to me in case he can read my mind.”

“He will…eventually,” she said.

“What about the witches and wizards who attacked last night? Can’t you determine his whereabouts through their connection?”

“Unfortunately, no,” said Solomon. “They’ve all passed.”

“They’re dead?”

The elder witch nodded grimly. “Shortly after they were captured by Boston Militia.”

“Seems like an incompetent plan if you ask me. Azazel sends his minions after me, they fail in their mission, and he kills them off. What did he really accomplish?”

“It was a psychological attack,” said Killroy. “Exposing his influence will only foster paranoia and distrust throughout our ranks, which will weaken us. This is the way of demons—they prefer mind games to warfare. They destroy from within.”

I thought of the burning city from my dream.

“So what is the plan? What do you need me to do?”

“We need you to sleep,” said Valentine. “We need you to dream.”

I
laid down on the long leather sofa in Killroy’s study. Elder Witch Solomon countered Melody’s potion and I instantly felt the effects of my long day. My eyes became heavy and itchy, and my body ached everywhere.

“When he comes to you in your dreams, try to engage him for as long as you can,” she instructed.

I mumbled an incoherent reply before nodding off to demon dreamland. The elder witch’s voice became distant and muffled as I drifted farther into the realm of sleep.

I snapped back awake in Killroy’s study and looked around quickly. I was alone. I didn’t remember what I had been dreaming about, or if Azazel had contacted me.

“Hey!” I yelled. No one answered.

I stood and walked to the doorway. “Elder Witch Solomon…Mushi…Father Killroy?”

Dude shrieked from somewhere in the church—it was a cry of pain.

“Dude!” I ran down the hall and came out at the altar. The door at the back of the church slammed closed, and Dude’s faint cry called from outside. I ran to the doors and flung them open—and froze.

Boston was in ruins. Fires burned and buildings crumbled. People ran screaming and crying for help as they were chased by all manner of nightmarish creatures.

I’m dreaming…

“This is how it always ends,” Azazel said, with a sigh. He was suddenly standing at my side.

I tried not to jump.

“You sound disappointed,” I noted, trying to remain calm.

“Oh, but I am. I have watched your kind destroy themselves for millennia. Lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, pride…they all find their way into the hearts of the people eventually.”

“Aren’t you supposed to have been the one who introduced such things to the world?”

“I am.” He watched the pyre grow.

“Then why do you act as though you care?”

Azazel gave a sigh.

It was then I noticed he no longer appeared as the Cain man he had possessed. Rather, he appeared as a well featured man in his early forties. He held himself with a dignified air, one of high nobility. His eyes hinted at infinite wisdom, and the lines upon his brow were etched with worry. As powerful as he was, he seemed…tired.

“When Father made your kind,” he said, “he declared you his most prized creations. Yet you were flawed. All of heaven rejoiced in his masterwork, but I saw the error of his ways. I argued that man could not be deemed truly righteous unless he knew what sin was, yet still rejected it. He made you too pure, without giving you the choice between good or evil. In the beginning, your kind were merely puppets, hollow creations that had never been tested.”

“So you tested us?”

“Yes, but not out of spite like some of my brothers. I felt no jealousy toward your kind, but I introduced sin to the world of man so that Father might learn the truth. I had no idea that you would embrace violence and depravity with such a zealous appetite. I have been testing humanity since the beginning, and you continue to fail miserably.”

I stared at the destruction before me, knowing it was a dream, but also that it was possible, likely probable. This had been the fate of all the cities upon earth—fire, destruction, chaos.

“What is the point in all of this? Haven’t you proved yourself by now?” I was truly curious, but I had also remembered to keep him talking for as long as possible.

“Proven myself?” he scoffed. “I prove myself to Father every time I push his flawed creations closer to perfection. I would see humanity rise above the deadly sins and prove itself worthy of His everlasting love and forgiveness.”

Beside Trinity Church, the Temple of Light began to crumble.

“This is inevitable,” he said. “You cannot help them.”

I turned to Azazel and met his immortal gaze. The world around us disappeared and a moonlit parking lot replaced it. He stood beside me grinning. Tall fences dominated the immediate landscape. A watchtower hovered overhead, and to the left sat a large prison complex. Through the chain-link fence, I read the words: Stoney Field Correctional Facility.

“Come to me…” Azazel beckoned with an extended hand.

My sister Mary stood beside him, looking terrified.

I shot upright on the sofa and took in a greedy breath of air. I was trembling and covered in cold sweat. The sounds of the dying and the collapse of the city echoed in my mind.

“It’s all right, Orion. It was a dream—you’re safe now,” said Elder Witch Solomon.

I sat on the edge of the sofa and tried to find my bearings.

“Did it work?” I asked.

The elder witch shook her head in dismay. “No, I’m sorry. I need more time.”

I stood up. “How long was I out?”

“Settle down now. You just had your dreams invaded by a demon. You can’t just get up and start walking around.”

“Look, I feel fine—”

“You were out for five minutes,” she said, gently pushing me back down. “Now get some rest. I’ll help you to a dreamless sleep.”

Five minutes and I’d dreamt that quickly…and that much? My body must’ve been more tired than I thought. Still, I couldn’t sleep now. I knew where they were keeping the children. I tried to object to her coaxing me back to sleep, but my arms weren’t working right.

She’s using a sleeping spell!

“No, stlop.” I felt drunk.

“Quiet now. You must get the rest you need…there you go—close those tired eyes.”

My vision began to blur, but I noticed Father Killroy entering the room.

“Facka Kilry…du wish…ib makim…me seep.” I sounded like Jabba the Hutt on Quaaludes. All went black as I fell into the warm embrace of sweet oblivion, Valentine Solomon’s voice echoing through the ether.

“He was dreaming. He mentioned Stoney Field Correctional Facility,” I heard her tell Killroy.

I woke to Melody’s sweet voice. Opening my heavy eyes, I saw her smiling down on me.

Now this is my kind of dream!

“Hey, pretty lady,” I said, giving her my best stud-muffin smirk.

“He’s awake!” she yelled over her shoulder.

“Gimme some sugar, little honey bee.”

I pulled her down to me, and her eyes shot wide open as I smothered her mouth with hot tongue. She pushed me down and slapped me across the face.

“Yeah, baby! Rezner likes it dirty!”

She scoffed and wiped her mouth as she got up, and Johnny Mushiro’s grinning mug replaced hers.

I was suddenly horrified. “I’m not dreaming?”

Mushi laughed. “No, bro. Jesus Christ Superstar, man—you had us worried.”

Melody leaned against the door and regarded me with a
yeah, you’re a dumbass
expression.

“Sooo…that really just happened?” I asked her.

“Yeah, apparently you dream about being Pepe Le Pew.”

I tried to forget about what had just happened and started inquiring. “What’s going on? Where is everybody?”

Johnny sat down next to me. “Long gone, ding dong. You told the elder witch where the children of the Cain are being held, and they took off.”

“Took off?” I jumped to my feet. “We gotta catch up!”

“Whoa, Rez. What you mean
catch up
? We can’t leave the city, man. No way, no how.”

“There’s always a way, Mushi. He’s got my sister—I’m going.” I headed for the door. Dude came scampering down the hall and did a little dance upon seeing me.

“Glad to see you too, bro.”

“Rez, wait up!” called Mushi.

I wasn’t waiting. I had already been asleep far too long, and I suspected that Elder Witch Solomon wanted it that way. She had gotten the information she needed and proceeded to knock me out with a sleeping spell. They didn’t want Azazel to know they were on his trail, if, indeed, his link to me was strong enough to be privy to such thoughts.

Mushiro and Melody caught up to me as I charged down the aisle between the pews. Johnny grabbed my arm and I whirled around.

“Where you going, Rez?”

“Stoney Field Correctional Facility,” I said. “Azazel has Mary.”

“Yeah? He’s also demon, man. Think about this, Rez—they lie.”

“Thanks, Mushi.” I started for the doors again.

“You can’t leave the city. Boston Militia will never let you through,” said Melody.

I walked outside and found the day a few hours past sunrise. Looking out on the city, I remembered how it had burned in my dream and felt a deep chill.

“I’ll have to try,” I told Johnny.

“Rez, stop!” he said angrily.

I turned to him once more. “What would you do? You really expect me to sit here and wait for them to get back? He’s got my sister.”

“Or he’s lying,” said Johnny.

“It might be a trap,” Melody added.

“It likely is—that’s why I’m going alone.”

Dude gave a screech of protest.

“You can’t even use magic right now,” said Johnny.

“I’ll take my chances. If I live through this, I will gladly take the punishment. But I don’t expect you two to risk your lives.” I glanced up at the Temple of Light looming over us.

“I’m coming,” he said.

We both glanced at Melody.

“You two are crazy. Maximillian, Crowly, and Solomon are elders—I think they’ve got this under control. Besides, it’s virtually impossible to sneak out.”

“Mushi, you know where this prison is located?” I asked, knowing he paid attention in class.

He nodded. “About sixty miles north.”

“We’re gonna need some wheels,” I told him.

“Good luck with that. Nobody gets out of here without a work detail,” said Melody.

She was right. We could try to sneak out, but even if was successful, we’d still have to walk the whole rest of the way. By the time we got there, the fireworks would be over. We’d have to trick the guards somehow.

I turned to Melody. “You’re supposed to be the most badass witch to come out of Harvard in like…forever. Think you can Jedi mind trick us out of the city?”

“What? Are you out of your mind? You’re both going to get yourselves expelled from the Order of Franklin—or killed.”

“Listen, a demon has my goddamned sister. What would you do?”

Melody’s steely resolve gave way to heartfelt sympathy. She let out a deep sigh and shook her head. “I can try to get you out, but from there, you’re on your own. No offense, but I’m not ruining my life for someone I hardly know.”

I grinned. “Understood. So what’s the plan?”

She looked around, her gaze hovering over the Temple of Light. “We need to find somewhere more private. Let’s go to my place.”

We walked to the scooters and I patted my seat. “Hop on. Dude can ride with Mushi.”

“Thanks, but I’m good.” Melody reached inside her cloak and pulled out what looked like a brown billy club. She spoke a word and one end began to grow long thin roots. In only a few seconds the small club had become a five-foot staff, its bottom a tangle of writhing roots that gave it the appearance of a broom. She straddled the entroot, kicked off the ground, and flew into the sky.

“That’s way too cool,” said Mushiro.

We jumped on the scooters and tried to keep up as she led us to her pad a few miles away. None of the other witches were awake yet, which was just fine by me. The fewer people we had to deal with, the better. Quietly, we followed Melody up to her room, and she closed the door behind us.

“Give me a minute,” she said, and went over to her bookshelf.

Finding the right book, she sat at the foot of her bed, leafing through it. Tracing her finger over the weathered pages, she quickly memorized a spell, and we watched silently as she sat at her desk and took out two index cards.

Humming to herself, she began to recite the spell, waving her hand over one card, and then performed the same spell on the other. After studying her work for a minute, she handed us the two blank index cards. I turned mine over and shrugged.

“What’s this?” I asked.

“Your third grade report card.”

“Huh?” I glanced down and stared at my report card, dumbfounded. Melody chuckled and I glanced up at her.

“Now it’s your favorite album cover.”

I turned back to the paper and laughed to see Bob Marley’s smiling mug.

“What is this?”

“Psychic paper.” She handed Mushiro the other. “Whatever you tell the guard, that is what he will see.

Jonny laughed. “Sweet illusion.”

“You didn’t get those from me.”

“Thanks, Melody,” I said. “This means a lot to me.”

“Oh, I’ll be calling in the favors—that’s two you owe me.”