The Dragon's Descent (34 page)

DEMON DOGS

C
louds and mist surrounded Vero, though he felt his feet were on solid ground. He ran his hand over his pant pocket, making sure the book was still safely there, and sighed in relief when it was. He lifted his pant leg. The bite was still there, but the blood loss had slowed a bit. As Vero looked around, he heard familiar voices in the distance and followed them. Then, through the thick, cloudy air, Vero made out a face.

“Thank you, God, for not letting me be alone,” Vero said as he tapped her shoulder, startling her. Greer spun around with a surprised look.

“You little jerk!” she yelled. “Don't ever do that again! I almost had a heart attack!”

Vero grabbed Greer and pulled her into a hug. An even more surprised look came over her face.

“Ew! Get off, you loser!” she shouted, pushing him away.

“I'm just so glad you're here.”

“Do that again, and I will leave,” Greer said.

“That's what's so great about you. I know who you are. You're always brutally honest,” Vero said wistfully, thinking of Kane.

“Is there something wrong with you?” Greer said, looking at him as if she was staring at an alien.

Before he could answer, Vero saw Ada, X, and Pax standing before him. He ran to them and pulled all three into a group hug. X looked at Greer over Vero's shoulder, his eyebrows raised.

“He's off,” Greer said to X.

Vero let go of the three.

“I wish Kane would hurry up and get here,” Greer said to Vero. “Then he can get his hug and we can get this lovefest over with and do whatever it is we're supposed to be doing!”

“Kane . . . won't be coming,” Vero said with great sadness.

“Why? What's wrong?” Pax asked.

Vero shook his head. “Kane's no longer one of us.”

“What do you mean?” X asked, panicked.

All eyes were locked on Vero; their postures were tense, their breathing quick.

“He fights for Lucifer now.”

Shocked looks came over the others. Tears formed in Pax's eyes. X doubled over, as if punched in the gut.

“No,” X said. “You're wrong. I know Kane. He wouldn't.”

“I thought I knew him too,” Vero said. “He tried to take the book from me.”

Ada gasped. “You have the Book of Raziel?”

Vero nodded, touching his pocket.

“Really?” Greer asked, duly impressed.

“Yeah.”

“But how were you even with Kane?” X asked, still trying to make sense of it all.

“The book was in Sri Lanka. I went there with my family . . .” Vero started.

“And Kane's from Sri Lanka,” X said, putting it together.

“We ran into one another there,” Vero said. “But it was no coincidence.”

“Probably not,” Pax said.

“And his aunt Adrik—at least she was pretending to be his aunt—was our tour guide,” Vero said. “All along, she was Lilith.”

X's head sunk down to his chest, as if the weight of the news was too heavy.

“Maybe she fooled him,” Ada said, a look of hope on her face. “Maybe he didn't know who she was?”

“No, I begged him to help me,” Vero said, anger rising. “There were these demon dogs attacking me . . . Look what they did.”

Vero lifted his pant leg, revealing the gruesome bite. Ada winced.

“I went back to help him, but he set me up. He stood beside Lilith and watched them try to kill me!” Vero shouted.

“Then he's made his choice!” Greer responded, now furious. “We fight against him!”

“He was just so bitter after the Angel Trials,” X explained.

“It was only a contest!” Greer yelled at X. “We all have reasons to be bitter. On earth, you can't walk. Pax bangs his head against a wall all day! I never had a family. All of
us could be bitter for the fact that we have to live our lives knowing we'll never make it to adulthood!”

The fledglings exchanged looks with one another.

“But none of us ran off to make a pact with Lucifer,” Greer said, a little more calmly.

“She's right,” Pax said.

“So I don't want to hear anyone feeling sorry for Kane,” Greer said.

Ada nervously twirled her finger through her hair. She nodded in agreement. X looked to Greer, then his eyes rested on Vero.

“We're here to help Vero,” X said. “Let's do it.”

“Start by wrapping that bite,” Ada said, pulling her winter scarf from around her neck.

Vero lifted his pant leg. Ada bent down and tied the scarf around Vero's calf.

“That feel better?”

“Yeah, thanks,” Vero said. “I hoped that it would have healed when I transitioned, but no luck.”

Ada stood. “That's the best I can do.”

“You really have the book?” Pax asked, with a sense of wonder.

“Yes, Rahab was right. It was a gem . . . a blue sapphire,” Vero said.

“I want to see it,” Pax said.

Vero reached into his pocket. X put his hand over Vero's forearm, stopping him.

“Don't,” X sternly said. “We don't know who or what could be around.”

“Yeah, sorry, Pax,” Vero said. “He's right. It probably would just look like a blue sapphire to you. Kane tried to read it, but saw nothing.”

Pax nodded, understanding.

“We need to get you into the garden of Eden, right?” X asked Vero.

“Yes, and I thought this was it,” Vero said, eyes looking around in the heavy clouds. “But I don't know where this is. Do you?”

“No clue,” Greer said. “I was hanging out in my bedroom doing homework when I got called back. But instead of coming to the Ether the regular way, I transitioned mid-flight, and passed through some shadow.”

“Same for me.” Pax shrugged. “It looked like a triangle.”

Ada and X nodded in agreement.

“You sure you entered correctly from earth?” X asked.

“Yeah, I mean, it all made sense,” Vero said. “This has got to be it. We all came the same way.” Vero sighed, frustrated.

“Anybody else hear that?” Pax asked.

“Hear what?” Vero asked.

“Faint sound of running water, like a babbling brook,” Pax said.

“No,” X said.

“Hey, if the kid says he hears it, I believe him,” Greer said. “Those giant ears gotta be good for something.”

Pax gave her a look.

“If you hear it, lead us.” Vero nodded to Pax.

Pax walked ahead through the mist as the others followed him. The sound of the brook grew louder the farther they walked, but mist was still thick, making it impossible to see too far ahead. Vero could feel the ground underneath his feet become softer, as if he were walking on grass. The soft cushioning gave his injured leg some comfort. The dense fog gradually began to lift.

“I see something up ahead,” Pax said, squinting through his fogged-up glasses.

They walked a few more feet, and there, before their eyes, was a magnificent ornate gate made entirely from gold. Light bounced off the rails as if the rays were dancing. The gates were attached to two massive pillars and walls made of rails completely covered in ivy. Vero could see through the golden gates. On the other side was lush vegetation—green as far as Vero's eyes could see. Trees, grass, and shrubs decorated the garden. Flowers of varying vivid, pastel colors grew in beds, straight and perfect. X tugged on the gate. It would not open.

“I wonder how we get in?” X said, while peering closely at the supposed entrance.

“Are we sure this is the garden?” Vero asked.

“What else would it be?” Greer said.

“Why do you think it isn't?” Pax asked, concerned.

“I thought that it would feel different . . . If the garden's supposed to be paradise, I'm just not feeling it,” Vero said.

“Maybe after Adam and Eve were expelled, the garden wasn't what it once was,” Ada said.

Vero thought about that for a moment. “Makes sense.”

“I say we check it out,” X said, looking above to the sky. “We could fly over the gates. I don't know how else to get inside.” He tugged on a rail. It would not budge even an inch. As X took a few steps back to join the others, suddenly the gates clanged and began to open. X quickly jumped out of the way as the entrance spread wide.

“Guess we don't have to fly in,” X said, looking at the open gates.

“Let's go,” Pax said, leading the way through the gates.

As they stepped into the garden, Vero looked around. He was standing in a large meadow. Tall grass swayed in a cool, refreshing breeze. Vero heard a nearby splash. A stream with crystal-clear water made its way over shiny rock beds. The air was filled with the songs of birds. His nose breathed in the perfumed scent of the flowers.

“It is beautiful,” Ada said, her mouth agape.

“Enough sightseeing,” Greer said. “We need to return the book.”

“Where does it need to go?” X asked.

“Back to the tree of knowledge,” Vero answered. “It should be in the middle of the garden.”

Vero took a step, and then hesitated.

“What?” Greer asked.

“It's way too easy,” Vero said, an unsure look on his face.

“Look.” X smiled, nodding his head to the direction in front of them. “That should make you feel better.”

Vero followed X's eyes. Off in the distance, he saw a herd of unicorn grazing on white snowball bushes in the meadow. The magnificent creatures seemed so peaceful and yet so powerful.

“Don't you remember about the unicorns?” X said. “Once a year they journey to the garden of Eden.”

It was true. When the angels had been given the challenge of finding the unicorns, they had gone to the C.A.N.D.L.E. library to learn everything they could, and discovered the glorious creatures did journey every year to the garden. Seeing the unicorns made Vero feel more confident that they were in the right place.

“Let's find the tree,” Vero confidently told the others.

As the angels walked through the meadow, Vero's sudden rush of confidence began to wane. Thoughts began
to rattle around in his brain like the dried beans inside a maraca. He felt uneasy, confused. He tried to summon his Vox Dei, but it was too hard to concentrate. He couldn't think straight.

“There it is!” Pax shouted, pointing.

A splendid fruit tree stood alone in the center of the meadow. Its trunk was so smooth, Vero thought it looked like brown glass. The branches were perfectly formed, each symmetrical to the others. The leaves were waxy, with no blemishes to be found. Plump, shiny fruit of every kind, even types Vero did not recognize, hung from the branches. Each looked so delicious, so tempting to devour. Yet there was one branch that did not have any fruit hanging from it. It looked so out of place with the others. As Vero stared at it, he wondered if this was the branch from which Eve had taken the forbidden fruit. Is that why it was now so bare?

“How do you return the book?” Ada asked in a whisper, awed by the tree.

Vero studied the end of the bare branch. He approached it. As he got closer, Vero saw a hole carved into the top of the branch. He pulled the blue sapphire from his pocket. The others watched with bated breath as he held the sapphire to the hole in the branch. It looked to be a perfect fit; the sapphire would fit precisely into the carved hole.

Vero looked to X, then to the others. Everyone was uneasy. Pax shifted from one foot to another while Greer bit her nails. Vero held out his hand, grasping the sapphire. He was inches away from placing it into the branch when he closed his eyes and tried to summon his Vox Dei. Before he let the stone slip from his hands, he needed to know it was the right thing to do. His mind was spinning, but he
tried to quiet it, thinking of the meditation tactics Chiko had taught him—the ability to drown out every distraction so he could only hear himself breathe.

Eventually, Vero could no longer hear Greer spit her nails to the ground. The babbling brook went silent. The songs of the birds vanished. He longed for God's truth. When he opened his eyes, he was still in a meditative state. And then as his hand grazed the top of the branch, Vero saw the truth—

Beneath the robust exterior, the tree was diseased, hollowed. It was infested with vermin. Beyond the colorful shine, the fruit was rotten to the core. Its true nature was filth and decay. Vero quickly jerked his hand away. In the split second he tried to shove the sapphire back into his pocket, a creature swooped down from the sky and attacked Vero. Razor-sharp claws dug into his sleeve, ripping his shirt. Vero screamed, while his hand instinctively formed a fist around the sapphire, protecting it.

Vero became a tangle of feathers and talons as a black raven-like creature tried to rip the sapphire from his hand. It was the size of a vulture, though it had a long tail, which wrapped around Vero's chest, forcing his arms at his side. The demonic raven hissed and its glowing red eyes narrowed in on Vero's hand. The bird's head lurched forward for the attack, until a long blade pierced clear through the creature's stomach. A look of pure rage flashed in the raven's eyes. It fell to the ground and began to spontaneously combust, and formed into a pile of ash.

Vero looked over to X, who stood, watching, his sword blade dripping with black ooze from the raven's gut. Vero put the sapphire back into his pocket.

“Thanks,” Vero said to X, still in a mild state of shock.

“Dude, that was intense,” Greer said to X. “And impressive.”

“This isn't the garden of Eden,” Vero said. “We've been tricked.”

The garden's true nature began to manifest. The tall green grass turned brown and wilted. The cheerful meadow turned to dark mud. Every tree transformed into a gnarled, twisted mess of dead branches. The colorful fruit withered and dropped to the dirt, letting off a foul, putrid stench as each splattered on the ground. The air turned heavy as if fires were burning nearby. The babbling brook began to flow with a black, thick liquid resembling molten tar.