Tears of Blood (15 page)

But despite these small gains, no sign of Josiah was found. Sarahi was
beginning to despair of her son and refused to be comforted. Her darkest moment
came one night when, as always, she reached out to his spirit, and he shut her
out, like a door slamming in her face.

Sarahi came fully awake with a gasp, tears pouring down her face.

"What’s wrong, love?" Lucien asked.

"She has him," she whispered. "He’s gone to
her." She drew her knees up to her chest and rocked.

Part IV

Chapter 18

Josiah stretched, sat up in the bed. His nose wrinkled. He would never
grow accustomed to the stink in this place; a combination of snake, old sex,
and blood. And it was cold. Always cold. Always dark. Though he’d learned
to capture light using the demon eyes he’d inherited from his mother, the
dim fire didn’t give him much to work with. Maybe that was better. He
really didn’t want to see.

Beside him, a girl sat up. He slipped his arm around her shoulders.
Succubae weren’t so bad. Not really. This one was young-seeming and
pretty. She reminded him of Annie, except for the glowing green eyes and forked
tongue. She wanted him too, they all did. But for some reason he didn’t
want her. Maybe
because
she was so much like Annie. But he would cuddle
up with her at night, just to keep warm. And wrestle to keep her wandering
hands off him.

Josiah sighed. This was not a nice place. He didn’t belong here
either. He’d thought, after being so rejected at the compound, maybe his
demon relatives would be easier to fit in with. They weren’t. For one
thing, they were all girls. There were men around. Drones, they called them,
but Lilith kept them pretty busy. And they seemed sort of... hypnotized. Or
maybe like zombies. They appeared to have no personality or will. One walked
past him in answer to the demon queen’s call. The tall youth with shining
mahogany hair had such a vacant expression. And he moved like a sleepwalker.
They all looked like that. The boy approached the demoness and she beckoned him
closer, turning around to bend over her throne. Josiah turned away. The first
time he’d seen the spectacle, he’d been shocked and disgusted. Her
attempt to seduce him with images of sex had not been successful. Too well he
remembered Annie in his arms. The hedonistic lifestyle of the hive paled in
comparison.

Disgusted by his prudishness, Lilith had backhanded him into the
corner. Damn, she was strong. It would take a tank to stop her, or a charging
rhinoceros. The next night she’d come after him directly, using her
unholy powers to enhance the lust he couldn’t help feeling at her naked
beauty. Josiah shuddered, not only at the memory, but at the beating
she’d inflicted on him afterward. He still couldn’t figure out how
she’d known he hadn’t been a virgin, but apparently it meant a lot
to her. At any rate, he’d been quite sure she was going to kill him,
until one of the girls whispered something in her ear. Just like that,
she’d been calm, stalking to her throne and flinging herself down,
leaving him to nurse his injuries in silence.

A week after, she’d begun training him. The exercises were
identical to what he’d done at the compound, only much more vigorous.
Now, after a few weeks of that, he’d laid a layer of muscle over his wiry
frame. It looked good on him. And there were other... compensations. Any girl
he wanted, any time. He had yet to find that interesting. On the other hand,
the food was good, alcohol was readily available, and there were live sex shows
all over the place. It was a wild young man’s paradise.

Josiah wanted to go home. Only trouble was, he wasn’t exactly
sure where home would be.

It’s not a where and you know it. It’s a
who. Anywhere is home, if Annie is there.

But Annie was not his future. He couldn’t keep her. Was this
really all that was left to him? This meaningless existence? Josiah shook his
head, tossed off the demon-girl’s groping hands, and rose from the bed,
pulling on a pair of ragged black trousers.

There was a loud crash. Josiah turned to see the drone sprawled across
the altar where the succubae lay offerings of food and drink for Lilith.
Apparently she was done with him. Poor fellow. The demoness was like a mantis
or a widow spider. The men who mated with her didn’t always emerge alive.

It was another reason he was not in a hurry for a repeat performance.
Josiah shuddered again, trying not to look at the pitiful, throatless corpse
bleeding over the fresh bread he’d hoped to eat for breakfast.

Oh well. He wasn’t hungry anymore anyway.

"Josiah," the demoness cooed in a sultry voice. He
approached cautiously.

***

"We can’t wait anymore," Jonas said irritably,
slamming his hand down on the table of the council room. If our enemy has the incubus,
we need to make preparations now."

"But how can we move forward without leadership?" Nathaniel
asked, his arm around Mary’s shoulders. The difference three weeks of
marriage had wrought  in her was astonishing. She looked ten years younger
at least. It seemed some of his vitality was rubbing off on his wife.

"Who says we’re without leadership?" Rahab demanded.
"Just because your pitiful president has taken to his bed doesn’t
mean we’re adrift. There’s no reason why a human should be in
charge anyway."

"Hey," Peter protested, poking his wife in the ribs. She
nailed him with a furious glare and he fell silent.

"I say Lucien should be in charge," Jonas proposed.
"He’s already general of all nephilim in North America. We follow
his orders. We can’t wait for Mr. Smith to decide whether he feels like
doing his job."

"I agree," Nathaniel seconded. There were murmurs of assent
all around the table. Clerics and nephilim alike placed their trust in the tall
half-angel.

Lucien inclined his head, accepting the appointment. "Very well.
Let’s be sure we understand what’s happening, starting with Sarahi.
Love, you’ve said from the beginning that if Lilith could secure Josiah,
she would come after us. Why would she want to? Why start a war?"

Sarahi took a breath, contemplating her answer, but Jael jumped in
first.

"She might not. She might wait a few centuries hoping to kill off
enough nephilim in skirmishes that the takeover will be simple."

"But we all agree her goal is domination. It always has been. She
will come against this compound first," Rahab said darkly.

"Why?" asked Mary. "There’s an order of clerics
on every inhabited continent. Why this one?"

"Because it’s personal," Sarahi replied. This is the
compound where her traitor daughters are hiding. Where I am hiding. I defied
her orders. I produced the child she wanted, and did not give him to her. And I
orchestrated that child being unable to share power with her."

There were gulps and shudders around the table. The psychic scream
which had rent the night a week ago had been horrifying. No less so because
human and naphil alike could hear it with physical ears. Everyone knew what it
meant. Lilith had just discovered her prize was already imprinted on someone
else.

"I don’t think she’ll wait," Salome said.
"She’s been growing angrier and more unstable for decades. And
Sarahi is right. It is personal. But it’s not Sarahi she wants to devour
most.

Faces turned towards Annie, dressed in her Assassin uniform, but with
her face uncovered. She paled, swallowed, and straightened her stance.
"Who would have guessed falling in love would be so hazardous," she
quipped with a wan smile.

"But even if she succeeded in wiping all nephilim from the
planet, the host of Heaven would be in no way depleted. Real angels cannot be
killed, and the Creator will not allow succubae to overrun His creation,"
Lucien said.

"Love, we’re not dealing with a rational mind,"
Sarahi reminded her husband. "Lilith’s hubris is beyond anything
you can understand. She truly thinks she can challenge Heaven and win, and
getting us out of the way is a good step."

"So the goal then is to protect ourselves and our
families?" he asked. She nodded. "And how do we do that? Succubae,
any suggestions?"

Jael, Sarahi, Rahab and Salome looked at each other. "Don’t
waste time fighting drones more than you have to. Stay away from the succubae.
If we can get rid of the source, the others will be leaderless. They can be
scattered and dispersed much more easily. There is no second-in-command,"
Rahab said. The others nodded.

"Are you suggesting we concentrate the fight entirely on Lilith
herself?" Jonas asked, appalled.

"Yes," his wife said simply.

"Is that even possible with the incubus’s unlimited energy
behind her?" Nathaniel asked. "I know she can't access it, but he
can, right? If he fights for her, what happens?"

"I don’t know," Sarahi replied. "But better to
die trying than wait for the death she would dish out to us."

The ugly thought was far too true for anyone’s comfort.

"So what do we do then?" Jonas demanded. "If we want
this fight on our terms, how do we draw her out? How do we make sure she
doesn’t just wait until our numbers are down? There are no new nephilim.
There will be no more. Every one we lose cannot be replaced. We will never be
stronger than right now."

"I have an idea," his wife said.

"Tell us," Lucien urged.

The war council leaned forward. It was sure to be a desperate plan, but
they had no other.

***

"Well, Jezebel," Lilith said irritably as she watched
Josiah practice sword fighting with one of the drones. "Why do I have to
keep him alive?"

"Mother," the succubus cooed in a placating voice which
made Lilith want to hit her, "For centuries you’ve dreamed of an
incubus. Now you have him. Why do you want him dead at this point?"

"The little prick gave away his power. He slept with some girl
and imprinted on her. All that lovely energy, and I can’t drink a
drop."

"He is tasty," Jezebel agreed, her eyes following
Josiah’s muscular back as he pressed his attack against the tall warrior.

This time, Lilith did hit her, sending her daughter sprawling. The
woman rose quickly and returned without a word of complaint. Her pale cheek
bore a palm-shaped red mark which would soon turn into a bruise.

"All right, Mother," Jezebel said. "All joking aside,
it is possible to break the imprintation and rework it?"

Lilith leaned forward over the arm of her chair until her face was very
close to Jezebel’s. "How?"

"From what I’ve been reading, there is a provision for a
bad imprint. If the girl dies of natural causes, or is killed outright, the
imprintation will fade and the boy will share energy as he chooses. But if he
kills her, it snaps, and he will imprint on his next partner."

Lilith nodded, considering the possibilities. "So I have to get
him to...."

"Hunt down and destroy the girl who preceded you. But, Mother,
you also have to make him trust and desire you. Otherwise he will not choose to
give himself to you."

"Are you saying he does not desire me now?" Lilith hissed,
rage bubbling at the suggestion.

"Please don’t hit me again, Mother. I’m not trying to
be insulting. But you have to admit he’s not been too
enthusiastic."

"What do you suggest?"

"Seducing a good-hearted man can be tricky. He’s
conflicted. I’d suggest you play up the problems he must have had with
our enemies and show him how much better it is here."

Lilith nodded, pondering. She’d never before had to work at
taking a man. They came to her brainless and obedient. This would be an
interesting challenge.

Chapter 19

For the next three weeks, targeted attacks of succubus strongholds
increased in frequency and intensity. Clerics and nephilim engaged in hit and
run tactics, firebombing buildings, planting snipers to take out targets from
safe distances and generally doing anything they could to reduce the number of
their enemies as drastically as possible. They made no attempt to cover their
tracks. Soon succubus intel knew the exact location of the compound, and had a
good approximation of how many nephilim and clerics were operating out of that
location. The information they had been carefully fed showed a stronghold in
the Mojave Desert and a force approximately half of what actually existed. When
the stakes were this high, it was no time to play fair. They ruthlessly used
every advantage available to them.

The risky decision had been made not to draw Lilith to the actual
location of the compound. Its location remained concealed, and the young, old
and vulnerable would be able to hide there. And last, as a final, desperate
move, they had learned  how to enter the hive. The succubae had
demonstrated the method for opening a portal into the demonic realm where
Lilith held court; a small world of eternal ice. All the nephilim, and those
clerics, like Annie, who had regained special gifts, were able to access it. It
was no different than relocating from one spot on earth to another, so long as
they knew the coordinates.

The intention was to pry open the portal and send in a few troops, just
deep enough to engage the enemy in hopes the mass of succubae would follow,
leaving the queen lightly defended. Or, she might come through herself. Either
way would work. They had contingencies for both possibilities.

The date of the attack was set for December 31. With all the hype about
the Y2K bug, anything strange which appeared on computer screens and video
feeds might be attributed to computer error.

The night before the battle a meeting was held in the cafeteria of the
compound. Mr. Smith still refused to emerge from his room, so Lucien and Sarahi
stood before the mass of clerics and nephilim for a final briefing.

"Does everyone understand what you need to do?" he asked.
There were nods all around.

"Women and children will remain in the compound, along with the
elders. We will maintain contact through the succubae and any others with
psychic connections. Be careful not to disrupt your men while they are
fighting."

Nods.

"Advance force," Lucien indicated a group of battle-scarred
nephilim and the youngest of the clerics who sat apart from the body of the
group. "Jonas will open a portal into the demon realm and you will enter.
Take no prisoners or hostages. Cut down as many as you can. Make noise and draw
attention to yourselves, and then retreat. We want this to look like the
skirmishes we’ve been enacting against nests on earth. The important
thing is to leave the portal open. Remember, we want them to follow. And
don’t fight too skillfully. Make it look clumsy so they won’t
suspect a trap."

The nephilim nodded. The humans looked ready to piss themselves, but
imitated their angelic counterparts.

"First battalion, set up at your coordinates in the Mojave
Desert. When the Advance Team returns, send them through the ranks to the
rendezvous point. Engage and hold any of the enemy which emerge through the
portal. It is vital you hold the line."

Clerics young and old and ageless nephilim all wore matching
expressions of grim determination.

"Second Battalion, wait at the rendezvous point. Triage the
Advance Force as needed and wait for the call for reinforcements. If Lilith
emerges, engage her. If not, prepare to enter the hive through the second
portal and engage her there. I will be with the Second Battalion."

The second group of men and angels nodded. They had all been briefed
and trained. They were all ready... as ready as anyone could ever be to face
certain death at the hand of a powerful, sadistic enemy.

"I know this is asking a lot, but sleep, if you can. Exhaustion
plays to our enemies."

Incredulous stares. Adrenaline, not rest, would be the foundation of
their strength.

"Now, let me turn the floor over to Sarahi. She has several
suggestions for you."

Trembling with nerves, the succubus stepped forward. "Here are
some things you need to know. A succubus is not much more than a strong woman
with claws. They can be killed by a body or head shot, by having their throats
or hearts removed, or by severing the spine. High caliber firearms should be
effective and I highly recommend taking out as many as you can before they get
close enough to grab you. They’re quite adept at hand-to-hand combat, but
Lilith is really old-fashioned. After the sword, she didn’t really
acknowledge the development of other weapons. So shoot them if you can. A
succubus decomposes instantly, so if they don’t go poof, they can still
kill you. Severing limbs slows them down, but doesn’t stop them. Apart
from their claws, their greatest weapon is their allure."

"But, ma’am," Jonas protested, "they
don’t use that against us."

"That’s because they didn’t realize it would be
effective. They, like the clerics, believed nephilim to be asexual. Now that
they know better they will try it. Which brings me to my last piece of advice.
Go back to your rooms with your wives and be sure that, come morning, the
allure will have no power over you. Ladies, you have the responsibility to protect
your husbands from the threat of dirty lust. No matter how tired, scared, or
even sick you might feel tonight, there is no excuse for refusing. Cover your
man with your love. You just might save his life." She looked at Lucien
and then back at the crowd. "I have nothing further to say."

"I do," a raspy voice spoke from the doorway. Unkempt and
unshaven, Mr. Smith staggered to the front of the room. "Let’s
pray." Hands folded. Heads bowed. Sarahi slipped her hand into
Lucien’s.

"Lord, we face the fight of a lifetime. The outcome is in Your
hands, and we trust You. Help us face Your enemies with courage. Amen."

"And please protect Josiah," Lucien added.

"Amen," echoed other voices around the room, and the war
council broke up.

As couples drifted back towards their separate quarters, a tall woman
in a white costume approached Sarahi and Lucien.

"Annie," the naphil acknowledged her.

"Call me Assassin," she replied. "I’m no longer
interested in being Annie."

"It’s not a bad thing to be vulnerable sometimes,"
Sarahi told her softly.

"It’s done me no good," the girl replied.
"Lucien..."

"No," he replied. "You may not fight. You’d be
walking right into her hands."

"I don’t care," Annie replied, her face dark with
depression. "What’s left for me here? I might as well die doing
something useful."

Lucien narrowed his eyes.

"Then I definitely don’t want you fighting. She’ll
know, you know."

Annie nodded.

"Know what?" Sarahi asked.

"That your demon son left her with more than just a broken
heart," Mr. Smith intoned from beside them. "She’s pregnant.
It’s no wonder she wants to die."

"I don’t want to die," Annie snarled, making a
dismissive gesture with one hand. "I want to help. But we all know
we’re not coming back. This is it. I’d rather go down fighting than
wait trapped in this compound like a rat. She’ll come. And when she does,
those who don’t fight will go down harder than those who do. Especially
me."

"I can’t believe you still love that demon," Mr.
Smith mocked.

"Grandfather, be quiet," Annie snapped. "If you had
been nicer to Josiah he would have wanted to stay with us. We would have him on
our side in this fight. There was never anything wrong with him and you know
it." She turned her back on him, focusing all her attention on Lucien.
"I need to see him. To see if there’s anything left of the Josiah I
know. Maybe there’s a part of him that still loves me."

"I’m sure there is," Sarahi told the girl gently.
"But he’s been with her for weeks. He won’t be the same boy
you knew. He’s seen too much by now."

"And maybe the part of him that’s still Josiah is sick of
all he’s seen. I don’t know why or how. I just know I have to be at
that fight. And I won’t be a liability, Lucien. You know how good I
am."

"I do know, Annie," Lucien replied. "You’ve
saved my hide often enough. But I’m not thinking of you as a soldier.
I’m thinking of you as a daughter. I don’t want to see you
hurt."

Annie blinked, and then threw her arms around the naphil. He hugged her
back. Sarahi joined them.

"I love you both," the girl whispered.

"I hate to admit it," Mr. Smith said dryly, unmoved by the
touching scene, "but I’ve had the vision over and over since her
childhood. There is a chance for us to win this battle. But Annie has to be
there. I don’t know how it will work, but her presence is the key to
victory."

"And will you be there too, Smith?" Josiah asked.

Mr. Smith nodded. "I need to be. I may be too old to fight, but
I’m not so old  I want to hide in the tower while others do my
fighting for me."

Lucien nodded. "You will both be there. Assassin, prepare
yourself for battle. Smith..."

"I know what I need to do. Get out of here you two. I’ll be
with the First Battalion in the morning."

The naphil and the succubus took their leave.

"Annie," her grandfather said to her, "can you
forgive an old man for being stupid?"

"If it were stupidity or ignorance, Grandfather, I could let it
go. But it was prejudice. And don’t say anything about demons. You hated
Josiah long before we knew. You drove him away."

"I did. Now, for tactical reasons, I wish I hadn’t, but I
still don’t think he’s the one for you, Annie."

"There has never been anyone else for me, Grandfather." She
rested her hand on her flat belly. "I miss him."

Smith squeezed his eyes shut. "Can you forgive me, Annie?"

"I’m past holding on to hating you for your choices. You
have to live with the consequences. The only thing left for me to do is move
forward. Do you hate me now, too? Now that I carry the seed of his mixed
blood?"

"I could never hate you, Annie. But why couldn’t you have
loved a normal boy?"

She laughed, and the sound was bitter and harsh. "There are no
normal boys here, Grandfather. Haven’t you noticed? We’re a
community of gun-toting, right-wing crazies. Josiah was no stranger than the
rest."

Mr. Smith made as though to argue, then stopped. "I guess
you’re growing up, Annie," he said at last. "Hard for an old
man like me to see. You’re not ten years old with a skinned knee
anymore."

"No. I’m twenty-one with a broken heart."

"For what it’s worth," he said, "I am sorry for
the role I played."

"I’m going to try and lure him back."

"No offense, Annie, but do you really think you can out-seduce
the queen of the succubae?"

"Easily," she replied. "That bitch doesn’t love
Josiah. She can’t have him. He’s mine and I will fight for
him."

She tossed her milk chocolate curls over her shoulder and stalked away.

***

In the little bedroom, Lucien cradled Sarahi naked against his
shoulder, stroking the side of her face, her neck, her arm. She kissed his bare
chest.

"I don’t want to take your energy, darling," she
said.

"I have it to give," he replied. "I want you,
Sarahi." He leaned over and kissed her belly button.

"Did I cause all this?" she asked.                             

"All what?"

"This battle. If I had left you alone, if I hadn’t seduced
you, the nephilim could have remained in the business of keeping balance and
protecting the innocent. There would have been no need to declare outright
war."

Lucien shook his head. "No, love, you didn’t seduce me. I
wanted to be with you. Can you honestly say you regret loving me?"

"Of course not," she told him quickly. "Your love is
the brightest, most wonderful thing in my entire existence. But what right do I
have to love?"