Alice's Insurrection (Alice Clark Series) (13 page)

“She has survived far worse and you know she won’t listen to either of us.
Maybe Briathos or Jake.” That hit a nerve for him. Though he had finally made some peace with her relationship with the two Fallen, he still longed for it to be himself that she always found comfort in.

“That must be frustrating for you.
I know what that feeling is like, because she does not confide in me at all.”

Cole felt pity for Paul, he missed so much and she went through so much hell because of it.
Even though he and Alice both knew it was necessary, it still left a scar on their hearts that could never be healed.

“Do we have a chance of winning?
I’m afraid that linking all of us could do more damage than help.” Cole was nervous, especially with the impending doom growing closer with each passing day.

“I honestly do not know at this point.
It could go either way for us all. He is not the sort to play games, and it seems Rogziel is. If Rogziel is doing this only because he believes it is the right choice and not because God wishes it to be so, well, we might just have a chance.”

“Here’s to hoping so
,” Cole said, holding a bottle of whiskey up and taking a swig before passing it to Paul. Paul took a drink as well, sharing a weak smile with Cole before exiting back outside.

ALICE

Alice had started to have
nightmares almost every night since she had begun saving the Fallen and attempting to do the same with the Nephilim that gathered on her cold, snowy property. She wasn’t sure if the End of Days would be in days, weeks or months as it was the beginning of winter. She knew that it would happen before spring but that wasn’t what plagued her mind. Memories of the Fallen played vividly in her mind as if she were there enduring what they had done, or what had been done to them. She wasn’t sure what was worse, the torture she had endured from Purah or this. It seemed moments such as this were always connected to other horrible moments. That was her life, wrapped up with a tight, itchy and uncomfortable bow. Often Cole would join her in the dream world where they used to lay in the golden grass just outside of the field of the damned. The sky would be purple and the smells would be delicious. Soon after the skies would turn gray and ominous, and Cole would be booted from their twisted paradise. While she frantically searched for him, she would be thrown into another horrid memory where no changes could be made because she was only meant to endure them.

“Cole?” Silence.
As silent as it could be with the voices calling out from the eerie woods nearby. “Not again,” she said with dismay. Her head began to pound and her eyes became blurry. She clutched the sides of her head, moaning in pain, and as her knees hit the ground, she felt dirt and not grass. The pain backed off and she looked around to find herself in what looked like a simpler time. People backed away from her, fearful, but she knew it wasn’t her that they saw. It was whichever Fallen’s memory it was. She felt a tug against her, forcing her to walk the streets and up to a fearful man. She closed her eyes wishing it would all just go away, as she begged and screamed to herself, to Cole and even to God. She didn’t expect anyone to answer but she knew it was the human side of her calling out to beg to a God who never answered, hoping this one time was the time that He would. The Fallen grabbed hold of the fearful man in front of her and threw him aside. She entered the house, which looked more like a shack, and walked up to the woman holding a baby. “No!” Alice shrieked. She couldn’t watch a Fallen kill another baby. As quickly as the thought came the massacre was over. Tears dripped down her face, burning her skin with salt. She closed her eyes and cried from the loss of her fellow Nephilim, murdered as this Fallen tried to gain access to his place in Heaven once again. Alice’s tear-soaked eyes adjusted to the light to find a concerned Cole rocking her in his arms as he soothed her with his numbing shield. She wanted to tell him it wasn’t enough, it wasn’t a pain she could place or describe. Yet his touch calmed her down and she was thankful for that. She knew he grew frustrated of her constant pain, especially with it coming from the Fallen she was trying to save. He kissed the top of her head and whispered something loving she couldn’t hear, but her soul did and as the warm light grew inside of her, she knew that was all that mattered.

KOKABIEL

Kokabiel, Paul and Jake sat
on Kokabiel’s couch drinking heavily without feeling much more than a slight buzz. They watched the news in silence, knowing the horrors being reported were worse than the news stations cared to let on, or knew about. The TV blared about a plague epidemic that had recently sent thousands upon thousands of American citizens to the hospital only to die shortly because there was no cure for it. They glanced at each other with malice for the Lamb who chose to listen to Rogziel’s disturbing ramblings, chose to open the fourth seal, and set loose the pale Horseman. The news was interrupted by an emergency broadcast from the president of the United States.

“Oh
, this ought to be brilliant,” Jake spat while deciding to pour another shot. He offered refills and everyone accepted.

The TV was quiet for a moment until the president spoke, “It saddens me to inform you
, the people of the United States of America, that our nation has come under attack from a deadly plague virus that has taken the life of hundreds of thousands of American citizens.  This was a terrorist strike upon us from another county that is willing and wants to go to war with us. I fear this is the beginning of World War III. As much as I regret this information, I will fight for our country, our military will fight for our country and no other country will hold the United States of America hostage! We ask you to keep calm and stay indoors in your own homes if at all possible while we try to contain the infection. Thank you, that is all for now.”

Paul turned the TV off and turned to the other two Fallen. “If he’s going to go to war, a quarter of the population will die in no time at all.
The next seal will be broken and if it is, the seventh seal will be closer than we thought. The human race will be annihilated and any who do survive won’t be able to save this world they have been allowed to create. Alice will be devastated.”

“This is a little bigger than Alice’s feelings.
We’re talking world war, major collateral damage. If the Angels come down while this is happening, we’ll barely be able to defend ourselves,” Paul added.

“This isn’t an
“if,” it’s a “when.” We must protect Alice the best we can and prepare her and as many as we can, for what is most definitely coming,” Jake added.

“The End of Days
,” Kokabiel answered. He stared at the dark screen wishing it was all make believe. He had grown accustomed to this world and the people in it. He wasn’t sure if he truly believed that Alice would save them all, but he hoped so. Hope was a feeling he hadn’t allowed himself to feel since he had met Cole’s mother all those years ago. Everything they had risked and sacrificed to prevent, was coming to pass and it honestly terrified him. He drank from the bottle until the burn down his throat grew too warm. “So how do we get God to talk to Alice?”

“I don’t know
,” Paul said.

“
It did us no favors when Enoch spoke with Him,” Jake added.

“This is different, we had not felt any remorse for what we did then.
Not to mention that the Lamb wasn’t ripping the seals open at a rapid fire pace back then, either,” Paul said.

Kokabiel passed the bottle while running his hands through his hair
, similar to the way Cole did it. “Hopefully those differences are enough to save our children and ourselves.”

“I would give my life to save my children.
I can’t help but be angry with Him for not doing the same for us. Children make mistakes,” Paul said.

“Yes, they do, but if He accepts us home, He would be admitting H
e does, too, and that is an uphill battle to say the least.” Kokabiel was concerned about their plan with all its loose ends and points that weren’t worked out in advance. These thoughts were terrorizing him beyond what any Fallen could imagine.

“It’s a matter of time before this war begins and the death count reaches a quarter of the population
, just like it says in their book,” Penemue said.

“Revelations?” Kokabiel asked but didn’t mean it as a question
. He was familiar with the human’s so-called connection to Him.

“Arguing won
’t help in this case. We need to prepare and hope the gifts Alice has been given will save us. We need to be ready for when Rogziel announces his presence for the final battle.”

“You think he’ll announce it?”

“Of course he will, he’s a show horse that way,” Jake spat. They all laughed, knowing it was true, making it that much funnier to them.

COLE

Cole sat on the couch
, running his hand through Alice’s hair as she was lying across his lap feeling ill from all the inner turmoil she had been enduring these last few weeks. They stared, fearful, as they watched the president’s speech, knowing that the End of Days was nearing rapidly. They both wished they could change their fate, everyone’s fate really, but they knew they couldn’t and talking about it no longer seemed to help.

“Can I get you anything
, Love?” She stretched her entire body, trying to rid the weight of the Fallen away from herself. He wished he didn’t have to feel everything that she felt, though she worked hard at hiding it from him to keep it from affecting him. He appreciated that, but he still felt the pain, the pain he knew was far worse for her. She was spending much of her time blocking it from him instead of attempting to numb herself, and he wished she didn’t feel that she had to do this on her own. They were forever connected, possibly by His design, and he wished she trusted him to have the strength that she had, even if he didn’t.

“Soup would be fantastic
,” she smiled at him.

“Soup it is.” He kissed her forehead gently before heading off to the kitchen.
He began mindlessly cooking, trying not to worry too much about her since she could feel his concern and it only made what she was going through worse. He was so envious of her strength and mostly of her selflessness to save humanity, Fallen, Nephilim, and sirens. Even if her existence was meant for this, she’d always had a choice and she had never faltered. He felt as if he always faltered and yet all she saw was so much good in him, and that was worth more than anything to him. He hoped that one day he would live up to being the man she saw in him. He carried the soup into the room along with a cup of chamomile tea. Even as ill as she felt, she sat up happily with such excitement that it warmed his heart. They didn’t know if the sickness within her would dissipate as the visions slowed down to a humming in her mind but they both were hopeful.

“How are you feeling?”
he asked.

“About the same
, but I’m managing better; I hope you’ve noticed.”

“I have
. I don’t feel as sick to my stomach as I have the last few weeks. I suppose that’s something.” He slumped into the couch as she sat on the floor enjoying the soup he had made for her, shutting his eyes, shutting out the noise of what the future held.