Ghosts of Koa, The First Book of Ezekiel (57 page)

He'd squeeze every single person that was close to the traitors until they squealed, whether they'd been involved or not. He'd get back to Mikhail Beige, holed up in his mountain mansion with the other half of the Echo, and he'd make him squeal too. Then he'd stand at his Vassal's side and cut down the Faustian creature who'd dared to threaten their great Order with demons and fire.
 

When they were done, when
he
was done, their enemies would turn to ash at the sound of his name... and even the devil himself would know what it was to be at the mercy of an immortal.

Zeika tensed, shifting her weight to the balls of her feet. If the ghost was surprised, he didn't show it. He slowly straightened up, turning towards her. He wore a ski-mask like her, the gaze above it, cold. Zeika never took her eyes off him, but she could still see the two guards that laid at his feet, cooling in the midst of tar-like pools. And still, this dude was as cool as an ice cube.

"I'm not here for you," the specter whispered in a voice too thin to be human.

"Ditto, pal."

"Pity." The ghost lifted its hand. "You should have struck while you had the chance."

Zeika's muscles wrung tight around her bones, like harp strings stretched too thin on the frame. She spasmed and slammed down on her knees, and the camera in her hand clattered away into a corner. Her breath rasped out her mouth as the invisible grip grabbed and twisted her diaphragm, stopping her breathing. Her lungs began to burn as she desperately tried to take a breath in and couldn't. The grip was too strong, too much like Sal's--

The ghost's footfalls were soft against the carpet as he walked towards her. It was the only thing she could sense aside from the wracking pain in her body and the fire in her lungs.

Her cheek on the floor, Zeika could feel saliva pool out her open mouth and wet the ski mask over her face. She couldn't move, not even to close her jaw and die looking half-way decent, because that was definitely going to happen. She was going to die here. Three minutes without air was all it would take.

The ghost, however, seemed to lack patience. Zeika could see him reaching into his robes. He drew his hand out slowly, sliding the long, glinting blade out of its sheath.

She understood now. That's how he'd killed the guards so quietly. He must have done the same thing to them and then cut them down while they were immobilized. And he was going to do the same to her.
She was going to die, mid-mission, and Manja's chance at new life would die with her.

To hell with that-- GET UP!

She managed to think it just as the ghost lifted the blade high, clearly aiming for a straight jab into her neck. As he brought the blade down, Zeika squeezed her eyes shut, forcing her power up and out. Like chiffon, the ghost's blade crinkled up against her cheek and fell around her ears as its metal transformed.

"What the--" the ghost gasped.

Surprise cut into the ghost's power, and Zeika's muscles were released from the invisible grip. She rolled into a crouch and slammed her leg into the ghost's ankles in a sweeping roundhouse. The ghost hit the carpet, and in the same moment, Zeika willed his robes into bronze. She sat on his chest, aiming her gun between his eyes.
 

The ghost actually chuckled. "Oh, bravo. I'm impressed."

Zeika breathed hard, oxygen cooling the inferno in her chest. Her aim was steady as could be. "Yeah, I'm about to make an impression on you too, asshole," she snarled. "Nine by nineteen millimeter caliber."

"I tried to go easy on you, but if you think this bronze can stop me, you've got another think coming. I can still tear your muscles apart."

Zeika narrowed her eyes at both the threat and the feminine lilt in the ghost's voice. But chick or no, that fact wouldn't stop Zeika from blasting her into the train floor if need be. "Yeah," she agreed. "You could. And with just a thought, I can turn any part of this train into dinner napkins and send your metallized body falling right through the floor. Sounds like we're crossing a bridge right now, doesn't it? Would you like to take a dive into the Hudson? You'd sink like a rock."

The threat clear, the ghost's eyes softened. "Fine," she relented. "I won't hurt you if you don't hurt me. Deal? I wasn't here for you anyway... and I assume you weren't here for me, either."

Zeika pursed her lips as she searched the cold blue gaze. The ghost was clearly a Civic Alchemist, and a dangerous one, just like her. She hadn't quite earned the boy scout trust badge, but then again, Zeika
had
gotten the drop on her. Had their roles been reversed, she probably would have reacted the same way. Zeika went with her gut and got off the ghost's chest, de-metallizing the robes as she did. She didn't holster her gun, but she reached down to help the ghost up and was mildly surprised when the ghost actually took her hand.

Zeika pulled her up, but before the ghost could regroup, she stepped forward and snatched off the ghost's balaclava. Her breath caught in her throat.

"No way," she whispered. "Jules?"

The former sweet teen was now hard-eyed, glaring at her. She was still pretty, but she looked like hell, and angrier and tougher than Zeika had ever seen her.

"And who the hell are you?"

Zeika pulled off her own mask. For a moment, only the deep rumble and sway of the train filled the space. Then they both leapt, embracing each other. Zeika's throat tightened, real tears threatening to spill onto her cheeks. Until now, she hadn't realized how long it had been since she'd seen a friendly face.

"The fire." Julie's voice trembled. "I thought you were dead."
 

"You too." Zeika smiled weakly. "I didn't think there were any of us left."

"There aren't. In my crew it's just me and a few others. The rest of us have fled or been captured."

"The Vigils?"

Julie nodded somberly. "That bastard Morgan won't stop until he's hunted us all down. He's even recruited Councilman Pihonak from the Sixth to spread the Vigils there too."

"What about the Seventh?"

"Burke the Besieger told him to kiss his ass."

Zeika blinked, shocked.

"Yeah, right?" Julie said. "I never thought I'd say this, but Demesne Seven is the only place that's relatively safe. It's packed with blue bastards, but it's safe." She paused, and then looked at her, sadness in her eyes. "Civilians really don't have anything left, do we? This really is the last of the Protecteds. It's the last of us
.
"

Zeika stepped forward and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's going to be okay. As long as we keep moving, we'll be fine. It's how we beat them. By surviving, no matter what they do to us."

Julie wiped the tears budding in her eyes and forced a smile. "I always did wish I could be more like you. You're a rock. Always calm. Never weak."

"No. I suffer. I cry. I just do it in the places other people can't see." She fidgeted, feeling bashful. "Mommy issues."

Julie regarded her warmly, and a silence passed, the air swelling with the obvious next question.

"So." Julie looked at her hands, clearly referring to her powers. "Training?"

"Yeah." Actually, that wasn't true. Aside from practicing on her own, Zeika hadn't undergone formal training a day in her life. Still, that was best kept to herself. It was already dangerous and illegal to be a trained Civic Alchemist. There was no telling what the punishment would be for being a naturally-gifted one. "What about you?"

"Same. Learned from Mom in secret until she-- you know." Julie turned her eyes away for a moment, in thought. "Z... why are you here?"

There it was. The
other
obvious question, another one that Zeika wasn't sure she could answer.

"Z?"

"Initiation," Zeika said finally, squaring her shoulders. "The first two tasks of three." She walked over to the corner, picked up the mini-cam, and pocketed it. She turned back to Julie and could see that she didn't look too happy.

"They're terrorists. They're just as responsible for our situation as the Azures are. They killed my parents!"

"I don't have a choice," Zeika protested. "Manja and I need to get to the Island. Our parents are still missing, and between the police and the Ninkashi, things have gone nuclear. You know that. I can move myself, I can
risk
myself, but I won't risk her. And I won't leave her, either."

Julie looked pained. "There's another way."

"Jules, please don't with the morality crap--"

"This isn't just some wimpy plea. This is real. We have a boat, and it's leaving in two days. A small dinghy. We're headed across the Hudson to the Seventh. That's why I'm here." She motioned to the train around her. "Supplies. And there's one more seat left. Both you and Manja could fit if you put her on your lap."

"Yeah?" Zeika said, brightening.
 

She searched Julie's face for the truth, but unless Julie was under some serious hallucinations, the truth was there in her face, plain as day. The idea sounded pretty damned good, and a hell of a lot better than becoming a ghost of Koa. Maybe there
was
a way out. It wouldn't take them to the Island, but it would put them in a better position to get there. And in the meantime, they'd be safe. There was only one question that remained.

"How? The Ninkashi, the police--"

"We made a beaten path, Z. Through the Guild's underground."

Zeika's eyes widened. How in hell had she forgotten about that? The Guild of Almaut had always had its panic rooms and safety measures, usable for anyone who knew how to open them. Every guildsman knew this, but in the psychotic rush of trying to escape Sal and the Ninkashi, she'd tossed out a lot of options, the Guild being one of them. At the time, it had been the logical thing to do, because she hadn't had the panic room codes anyway. Plus, Taitt had gone MIA after the Ninkashi attack. Yet the solution to most of her problems had been there the entire time, right under her feet.
 

She felt herself smile, finally feeling hope fill her up. Excitement, even. "How'd you get the codes?"

"Taitt. Right before the Vigils hit. Right before he skipped town."

Zeika scowled. What a stellar fellow. She thought he'd been about town, lobbying for the Guild, not hiding in some rat hole. "He left his Guild? The Demesne?"

"Don't blame him. We're all trying to get out. He did the best he could before he had to put his family first."

"He is the Master of the Guild of Almaut," Zeika said, her voice trembling with rage. "We
are
his family."

"His
extended
family. Come on, Z. What if it were you? What if it came down to choosing between the Fifth and Manja? You'd let us all burn. Even me." And Julie actually smirked. "Though I hope you'd feel terribly about it, you self-righteous bitch."

Zeika chuckled and nodded, taking the cue to lighten the mood. Besides Julie was right. She
was
being self-righteous. The bottom line was that whether or not Taitt had crapped out, he'd left breadcrumbs, and that was a good thing. "So, the boat. Who's driving? Denise?"

Julie pursed her lips, her eyes pinched with grief. "She never made it, Z. It's just me and the kids now, and some others. Freya from school, and her older brother, Marshall. A couple of his friends, and me. Like I said, this is the last of us."

Xakiah crouched low on top of the rocking Pullman, the wind and rain beating against his body. It was time. The explosives were rigged to the engine and first three cars chained to it. He'd made sure to position himself on the smuggler car, and he faced the caboose, ready to leap. Easy work.

As the train rounded a wide corner of the winding tracks, he lifted the detonator, about to scatter the Sigma Express to the depths-- when a flutter of movement, eight cars down, caught his eye. Even in the howling dark, he could see them with his alchemic sight: two hooded figures moving about in the sundries and medicines car-- and in the next second, the train completed the turn and became straight steel again, taking the two intruders out his line of sight.

He'd only seen them for a split-second, but he'd seen enough. Ghosts of Koa.

He put the detonator in his holster, exchanging it for his M-16. If he blew up the engine, the backlash would hit the intruders, but not until a few seconds later. A second was all it took to turn the tables in any situation. They might escape. Better to handle them first, to ensure all the traitors to the Order went the same way. Then he would handle the train.

He looked far behind him and saw a train bridge in the distance, one that U-bended over open water. As the Sigma Express made the turn, the ghosts' car would drift right into his crosshairs.

He smiled, steadied himself on the slippery roof, and lifted the rifle scope to his eye.

Zeika felt her heart sink at the news. Denise had been a no-nonsense kind of chick, but she was also sweet and tender when it counted. They'd trained in Majkata together even, off and on when Zeika found the time. Now, like everything else they knew and loved, she was gone.

But there wasn't time to mourn even that. They needed to grab their stuff and go, or at least plan their escape from the train before it reached its destination.
 

So she and Julie had put their masks back on, both for safety and to drive home the mission. Joining Koa, thankfully, was now dead as an option. Still, teatime was over, and it was time to make the new plan work. Together, they raided the trunks. Dried herbs, medicines, first aid supplies, and lovely extras, like dried fruits, vegetables, canned goods. Even smoked meat. Zeika helped Julie stuff as much into her pack as possible and then started to load up her own.
 

Julie was still talking, though, filling her in on everything that had happened in the larger world since the Vigils had started. She spoke of the things she'd had to see, the things she'd had to do, and Zeika found that their lives hadn't been much different in the past two months. The sole distinction was that Zeika had told the larger world to go to hell, and Julie hadn't.

"Got a couple contacts over there that confirm it's safe," Julie said, referring again to Demesne Seven. "But there's something weird going on over there too. S'posedly, there's this Azure laboratory, on the far edge, beyond the wood. It just appeared there one day. Right out of nowhere."