“Greer sliced her ear off,” Vero said.
“Yeah, and today I'm getting the rest of her head!” Greer yelled.
Lilith's black eyes instantly flamed red. But then she quickly composed herself. She stepped toward Vero, who defensively held out his sword.
“Give me the book, and all these bars,” Lilith said, motioning above, “will be gone.”
“No deal,” Greer answered for Vero.
“Quiet, fledgling!” Lilith shrieked. “Give me the stone and all of you can live. I'm sure your Maker will reward
you. How could he not? Sacrificing your own glory to save the lives of your friends?”
Nodding, Lilith motioned Kane to step forward.
“Bring me the stone, boy,” Lilith told Kane.
All eyes were on Kane, waiting to see what he would do. A moment later, Kane crossed over to Vero.
“Just give it to me for all of your sakes.” Kane held out his hand. “Come on, Vero,” he said, in a coaxing voice. “It's for everyone's good.”
“What do you know about goodness?” Vero spat. “It's not for our good you're doing this.”
As Kane stepped forward, Greer brought her sword down hard directly in front of him. Less than a split second later, Kane's sword sprung from his hand. His blade caught Greer's, and her sword flew out of her hand, landing several feet away. Ada gasped. Pax quickly scrambled and picked up Greer's weapon.
“Like I said, make this easy on yourselves,” Kane said, moving his face dangerously close to an enraged Greer.
Pax handed Greer's sword to her. Vero shook his head at Kane. “You're not getting it.”
“Are you so sure?” Lilith smirked.
She motioned with her hand toward the gates behind them. Once again they opened, and in flew darkness like a black plague! A great swam rushed through the gates and spread out among all of the bars. The darkness was so thick it blocked much of the light from above the fledglings. It grew eerily calm. Vero felt Ada grab his arm at the sound of the gate slamming shut again.
Shrill wails began to fill the air. Gradually, something came into view as the fledglings' eyes adjusted to the new
light level . . . First thing that became visible was red glowing dots . . . and more . . . and more.
Vero stumbled back as he finally realized what he was looking at. Clinging to the bars above and on every side of him, thousands of maltures anxiously rustled. Ada closed her eyes, as if hoping what she was seeing was not real. Pax's hand began to shake. X turned to Kane with a hurt, angry expression.
“How could you?” X said, disgusted.
For a brief moment, Vero thought he saw a look of shame cross Kane's face, but then Kane straightened his shoulders and hardened his stare. The cries of the maltures split the air, and Vero felt the panic rising in his chest. They were lambs being led to the slaughter. Vero knew he had only seconds before the attack would begin. His mind was racing.
There has to be a way out!
And then it came to him. He recalled Michael's words to him: “Just like humans, we are never alone.”
Vero dropped to his knees. Bowing his head, he fervently prayed, “Please, God, help us. Send your angels . . .”
The already dark sky above instantly blackened like an eclipse of the sun. Dread overcame Vero.
Are more maltures arriving outside?
And then an earsplitting screech shattered the darkness. The ground shook. Patches of light began to stream through, and Vero could finally see what was going on.
The canopy of bars was being lifted high into the air by two giant claws, easily ten times bigger than those of a megaraptor dinosaur. With no effort at all, the claws flew off with the colossal covering, freeing the fledglings. Vero
watched as all the maltures released their hold on the bars and began to fly down toward them again.
“Was that the . . .?” Pax asked, looking upward.
It was so massive, Vero could only see the underside of their rescuer, but he knew.
“The Ziz,” Vero said, astonished. “Thank God.”
The sky began to lighten more and more as the Ziz flew farther away. And as the Ziz disappeared from sight, another one took Vero's breath away.
Uriel, Raziel, Gabriel, Raphael, and Michael stood in the sky, their swords glistening, poised for battle. They were dressed in golden breastplates. Each carried a shield, but it wasn't the kind Vero had ever seen before. Each had the definite shape of a medieval shield, but was made of lightâlight the archangels could hold with their hands. A feeling of awe came over Vero as he looked upon the mighty archangels, while the assured look on Lilith's face soured.
Greer turned to Lilith and Kane, flashing a cocky smile. “Now it's a fair fight.”
A massive explosion of white rent the air. Heart thundering, Vero looked upward. Whirling light spun round and round, creating powerful gusts. Vero's hair blew as he firmly planted his feet in the ground. The light seemed to pierce the sky above, opening some sort of a gateway. Ada let out a gasp of joy. Vero's eyes swelled with hope.
Behind the archangels above stood legions of angels, swords poised for battleâtheir eyes, narrowed. Radiant, glorious beings filled the sky.
“This is all for you,” Pax said in an awed hush to Vero.
In that moment, Vero felt such love and gratitude for his fellow angels. Their outpouring of support was humbling.
Greer looked to Lilith and Kane. “If I were you two, I'd run.”
Disturbing wails and howls grew into a feverish frenzy. The air was electric.
Then Lilith raised her hand. Flames shots from her pale fingers and pounded down like heavy rain. The maltures attacked! Clangs of scythes striking blades broke out, both on the ground and in the air above, as the angels and maltures charged and engaged one another.
Two maltures charged Vero. His blade sliced through the scaly hand of the closer one. The creature dropped to the ground. Vero dove out of the way of the other's blade as it struck dangerously near his head. He felt something hot and sticky running down his arm. The malture's scythe had nicked his shoulder! Relentless, it swiped at Vero until a beam of light blinded the creature. Vero spun and saw Raphael holding his shield to the malture. The malture writhed in pain, hiding its face in the crux of its elbow, when Raphael sliced through its wrist as easily as a hot knife cutting through a stick of butter.
“Thanks,” Vero said, impressed.
“You must leave at once!” Raphael urgently shouted. “Go to the garden!”
Vero looked to Raphael. “I'm trying!”
Vero turned and ran, dodging maltures and angels locked in violent battle. He heard loud screams and howls of pain. Ahead, he saw the source of the anguish.
Michael held his shield at four attacking maltures. Stopped, they were blinded by the light. In a flash, Michael's sword plunged straight through the chest of the first, then the second, the third, and finally the fourth.
Michael held up all four on the blade of his sword like they were shish kabob. Vero watched as the impaled maltures' bodies engulfed in flames. Yet Michael hadn't cut off their hands in order for them to die.
Michael's sword must be different from the others, Vero realized.
“Malture at nine o'clock!” Greer screamed.
Vero spun, and in a well-executed move he separated the malture from its arm. He looked around. Piles of ash littered the ground, filling him with encouragement ⦠then a scythe pierced the heart of an angel locked in battle. The angel stumbled back as his sword fell from his hand. Next . . .
poof
! The angel vanished, leaving a stream of mist behind. The malture turned its lone eye to Vero and smiled hungrily. A sword pierced its eye. The creature sunk to the ground. Vero stepped on its arm and cut off its wrist.
“I didn't like the way it was looking at you,” Ada shouted.
Vero nodded to her. “Come with me!”
Vero and Ada darted through the battling mob. His heart dropped into his gut when he saw Kane charge X with his blade upheld.
“X!” Vero screamed.
X spun and saw Kane rushing, his sword held high. X dodged Kane's first blow. He met the second blow with the blade of his sword. As the blades pushed against one another, X's eyes met Kane's. Kane defiantly smirked and gave his old friend a cold, hard stare.
With a powerful shove, he pushed X's blade against his chest, sending X stumbling backward. Kane quickly attacked, slicing the fabric of X's shirt at his torso, barely missing the skin underneath. As Vero and Ada raced over to
help X, a malture dropped out of the sky and landed right in their path, halting them with a swipe of its scythe. As Vero and Ada battled the malture, Vero caught a glimpse of the enraged look on X's face.
X's blade stabbed at Kane. Kane deflected the blow. The former best friends were evenly matched as they traded thrusts and parries with great skill and precision.
Vero raised his sword and brought it down dead center on the malture's head. The blow momentarily stunned the creature, dropping it to its knees. And in a flash, Ada cut through its forearm, severing the scythe.
“We make a good team!” Ada shouted.
As they raced toward X, yet another malture blocked their path, brandishing its wickedly sharp weapon.
X backed Kane up against a gnarled tree. The clinking of their blades rang into the air.
“I never imagined you'd raise your sword to me,” X angrily spat.
“They don't care about us,” Kane retorted, as his blade pressed against X's.
“And Lilith and Lucifer care about you?!” X yelled. “You're an idiot if you believe that! You can still come back to us! There's still time to make things right!”
X's words clearly sparked anger in Kane. Overcome with a surge of strength, he shoved X's sword. X staggered backward as Kane came after him again with a vengeance. X's eyes widened in shock. He quickly ducked, his head narrowly escaping Kane's blade.
X stumbled to the ground, falling to his backside. Kane charged. His blade caught flesh. Vero watched as X's outer thigh gushed blood, his heart pounding, yet he and
Ada could not free themselves as a new wave of maltures descended upon them.
“Help X! Somebody help X!” he frantically screamed to anyone who would listen while swinging madly at the scythes around him. His voice was muffled by the continuing battle still raging above them all. There were no battle lines above . . . just angels and maltures battling hand to hand.
Pax heard Vero's plea and his head whipped around. He and Greer were locked in battle with a malture.
“Go!” Greer screamed, while holding the malture at bay.
In a split second, Pax's wings carried him to X. Kane's sword was raised over X's head. Pax swung his sword solidly, striking Kane's blade. Kane turned, surprised to see Pax. Seizing the chance, X got to his feet, wincing in pain. He grabbed the open wound on his leg while holding his sword outward with his other hand. Pax sparred with Kane, who struck Pax's blade, knocking the sword out of his hand. Pax rushed off to retrieve his weapon.
X briefly locked eyes with Kane. “My legs never really did me any good anyway.” He thrust his sword at Kane's chest. Kane masterfully repelled it. A surge of fury consumed X. He hit Kane's blade with such force that when Vero looked over, he saw panic in Kane's eyes. X pushed Kane, forcing him back, then relentlessly attacked him.
Vero slashed at the malture standing in his way, and seeing Pax's sword lying on the ground, kicked it over to him. Pax quickly snatched it up in his hand. They raced over to X and watched as the powerful fledgling forced Kane back. With a mighty blow, X knocked Kane's sword out of his hand. It flew up in the air and landed out of
his reach. X advanced and pressed the tip of his sword on Kane's neck.
Vero watched as fear spread across Kane's face. Sweat ran down his brow. X steadied the tip against the skin of Kane's windpipe.
“X, please . . .” Kane pleaded.
X stared hard at Kane. His face was twisted in rage.
“X, don't, please . . .” Kane begged.
Vero watched, almost unable to breathe, as Greer joined him.
“Why not? You were going to kill me,” X said in an icy tone.
“Please, it's still me, your friend,” Kane said.
X's face went expressionless, giving no indication of what he was going to do. Kane's face was a different storyâa mingle of dread and alarm. Vero thought Kane looked like he was going to cry.
“Please, X, please . . .” Kane pleaded.
Anger flashed across X's face before he decisively jerked the tip of his sword away from Kane's neck.
“You disgust me,” X said harshly. “Get out of here.”
Kane quickly scrambled for his sword. As he reached for it, Pax stomped down hard on his hand, pinning him.
“No,” Pax said, firmly.
Kane glared at Pax. It was a tense standoff.
A shrill shriek, like a warrior's cry, filled their ears. Pax wheeled to see Lilith swoop down from the sky. She shoved him to the ground. Kane rushed for his sword, picking it up. He brandished it toward Vero, Pax, Ada, X, and Greer.
“Take it from him!” she yelled to Kane, eyeing Vero's pocket.
As Kane stepped toward Vero, Pax valiantly stepped in front, waving his sword. Kane stopped.
“You're going to let this little pathetic excuse of a fledgling stop you?” Lilith taunted.
“Don't do it, Kane,” Pax said, standing stalwart. “You don't have to.”
Kane momentarily paused, considering. To Vero, it looked as if Pax's words and stance had an effect on him. But then a black glint caught Vero's eyes. It streaked across Pax's ribcage. His glasses flew off his face. Vero's mind couldn't process what he was seeing. It felt as if he was watching in slow motion as blood gushed from Pax's side. A look of complete shock and fright transformed Pax's face as he staggered back. Kane's eyes bulged in dismay at the sight. A truly evil, lethal smile formed on Lilith's lips. She held up her handâPax's bright-red blood dripped down her scythe's blade.