Among the Fallen: Resurrection (19 page)

The Butcher eventually calmed and stood as still as a statue, waiting patiently for a sound to react to. She stood watching him for a short time as she carefully scanned her surroundings, eventually realizing she was in fact hiding in a hardware shop. The Butcher skulked and waited, every now and then it would sniff the air or tug at the barbed wire that was eating into its flesh, but it hardly moved and simply waited. Her heart was beating fast and her fear made her stomach ache as her suit pulled away revealing her face once more, silent and still she stared at the monstrosity terrified to the bone. Alex calmly and carefully slipped off her trainers and warily placed her bare feet on the cold marble floor, taking a quick glance over the racking at the Butcher as he stood unmoving in the main hall; sniffing around a big ornamental water fountain that elegantly bubbled and rained water, instantly distracting the ghastly creature. She frowned as she slowly tiptoed around to get a better view, looking upon him with almost sympathy at the pain he represented. Slowly and carefully, she crept over to the tools area and looked around quickly for a possible weapon and paused with a smile. She reached down and picked up a wood axe and stared at its blade admirably, black solid metal and razor sharp. Gently walking, she crept as quietly as possible as she left the shop, the creature abruptly standing to attention. Alex paused; as still as possible as the Butcher listened intensely. Unexpectedly, it walked towards her and Alex’s stomach sunk, her eyes shut with tears and her lip quivered in fright as it walked slowly past her just feet away. The Butcher stopped right next to her and she held her mouth and nose tight, the axe trembling in her hand beyond fright, she knew if this creature reached out or turned they would touch. It sniffed the air rabidly as she slowly and silently placed one foot behind the other, creeping away as she put her toes down on the cold marble floor, backing off as soundlessly as she possibly could. The Butcher leant down towards her, his snarling and wired mouth drooling as its teeth ground away; breaking insufferably they fell to the ground before her. Quickly, it stood to full height then clumsily walked on and Alex closed her eyes shut in fear, praying it would walk far enough for her to at least catch her breath. She listened as the giant’s feet thumped off into the distance, growling and scowling, it stormed about angry and relentless. She opened her eyes slowly and peered over her shoulder steadily. The Butcher had his back to her a few feet away so she seized the moment and ran, her feet clapping on the cold stone floor. The Butcher turned and roared insanely, chasing after her with all its might. She suddenly stopped, turning and faced him as it stomped through the Mall. She wiped the tears from her eyes then leapt out of the beast’s path at the last second, running in a different direction as it crashed through a shop window. Again she stopped and waited, watching as the maniacal creature ripped the shop to pieces, hurling racks and shelves through the window out into the main hall as if they were as light as a feather, perturbed and livid, it swung and trudged its way through the shop laying it to waste. She stood there for a few moments and wiped the tears from her face, the adrenalin pumping through her veins like it never had before. Swiftly, it turned and thumped its way back outside, glass shattering into the hall and the metal window framework clanged as they collapsed. It suddenly stood silent again, waiting for a sound as it bled unforgivingly onto the floor; dizzy and exhausted it swayed gently yet clumsily as she watched on. Little by little, she crept away, looking around cautiously, backing up in a desperate silence and all that could be heard was the fountain spraying and splashing innocently. Suddenly, she looked behind her at the back wall, a huge mural painted and solid with brick work crudely decorated with matchstick shoppers and such. Carefully, she made her way towards it as the creature slowly started to walk forward into the main hall, cursing to itself and grumbling. She licked her lips cockily and whistled as loud as she could, echoing loudly the sound bounced from the walls almost deafeningly. The Butcher stood to attention and bellowed as it ran towards her sadistically, its chains dragging and splashing blood as its mouth slobbered, its teeth shattering angrily. Alex stood her ground, whistling as loud as she could as the monster ran towards her totally merciless and barbaric. All of a sudden, Alex shut her eyes and ran as the Butcher ploughed into the wall, blood splashing everywhere and brick shattered as the creature stumbled in pain and collapsing to its knees. Within an instant, she ran and clawed her way onto its back, hacking at the Butchers head and spine callously, her primal instincts raging through her blood as the Butcher cried out and squealed creepily in a child’s voice. She held on as hard as she could as the abomination crashed into walls and windows and just about anything it could to try and shake her off. Her rage now uncontrollable and primitive, her suit lashed across her face and her eyes growing red like fire. Lumps of blood dropped to the floor like jelly and sprayed into the air in a red mist, splashing up the walls and across the ground. She hacked and hacked as she screamed in desperation, clamping her legs hard around the beast’s chest as the savage pair fought; smashing windows and wrecking stalls, knocking down support pillars crashing through partitions. She cleaved and slammed the axe into the butchers neck and head until suddenly it faltered and dropped to knees, crying like a child it bled frenziedly as she leapt off its back, splashing onto the blood splattered floor. She walked around to the front of the Butcher silently as it swayed back and forth, its head and shoulders ripped to pieces, it simply knelt ready to drop, dying slowly as its life simply slipped away.

Alex stood for a few moments and frowned as her suit lashed away from her face, merely watching as the creature cried and wept disturbingly. Suddenly, she grasped the axe with both hands and swung as hard as she could, hitting the creature’s neck with thump and watched as its head was flung into the air like a ball. As its head dropped to her feet, its pain ridden body collapsed as a cold and morbid silence fell upon the Shopping Centre. She stood like a ghost as the creature’s warm blood spread slowly around her feet and between her toes, her blood splashed face frozen and her heart beating with a strange mixture of fear and anger.

There was a sudden clunk of metal as the axe hit the marble floor, splashing in the blood at her feet as Alex simply stared at the mess, breathing and panting uncontrollably. Her hands shook and her bottom lip trembled, the adrenalin gradually calming as she glared at the bloody heap on the floor, almost frightened by what she had become as she gazed at her blood soaked hands. Suddenly, an orb of red light floated up from the body, glowing intensely as Alex merely watched, beautiful and mesmerizing it flickered like a candle light and hovered above the corpse. She stood gazing into it almost hypnotized as its glow lit up her black eyes, glistening on her sweat soaked face and she could feel warmth coming from it that felt humane. She reached out and touched it and watched as it vanished into her hand and her suit rippled like water, its markings altering and her suit changing slightly. Suddenly, her muscles tightened and she could feel the warmth rushing through her body, her suit purring as she stepped back calm and feeling a new person entirely. It was hard for her to pinpoint, but something within her felt like it had changed, more powerful and she actually felt physically fitter, stronger maybe, but whatever it was and whatever it did, it felt good; and she loved every second.

Chapter Fourteen: A New Strength

Alex looked down at the bleeding corpse as it emptied out onto the floor, its grey rancid flesh devoid of life and just lay as lifeless as everything else. As the final lungful of air escaped from its headless throat with a squeal, she stepped back shivering as she held her bloody hands before her in shame.

Suddenly, the temperature dropped and a mild darkness fell over the main hall, the lights exploded and a strange red light beamed from within all the shops around her. In the toy shop, all the teddy bears and dolls suddenly turned and faced her, their creepy frozen expressions glaring out over the mall with frightening stares. Tiles fell from the ceiling and the red clouds through the skylight paused, her frozen breath blowing steam as the window frames glistened with frost. Glass shattered and market stands blew their contents into the air, the remaining lights faltering as the paint stripped from the walls, peeling and floating into the air around her as the mall swiftly slipped into the underworld. The fountain suddenly paused, the water frozen within time itself and the three figures of Gagged, Bound and Blind slowly emerged from the shadows around her; their leather clad and tortured bodies stepping into the red light that violated every surface.

Alex fearfully turned, watching them nervously as they approached from all sides before suddenly stopping; waiting patiently for their master to emerge from the shadows. The Gagged tilted his head to one side as he chewed the strap in his mouth, drooling down his chest as his suffering nerves twitched sadistically. The Bound watched her is it wandered in and out of the support pillars; the marble glimmering with its twisted reflection as he passed; his stained and rusted halo tightening with tiny pulleys and gears, pulling at his face with agonizing barbarity. Alex took a few paces back and froze as she stepped on something; she turned and gasped as the blind female pushed her away, her cold death like white skin glowing in the light as her leather and bondage creaked with every advancing step. Alex stumbled and regained her posture fearfully as the Demons seemed to surround her, yet strangely, they appeared to keep some form of distance.

“What the hell are you?” she said bitterly as the tortured souls stood silently around her, struggling with their afflictions and grief-stricken cores, their frightful appearances casting long ghostly shadows across the marble floor.

“Outcasts; exiles; pariahs, again, whatever tags you wish to choose to help you understand; but ultimately, we are Fallen, Alexandra. As is the creature bleeding at your feet!” a dark voice calmly said from behind her. The caped creature from the graveyard suddenly appeared, the lights above him faltering and eventually burning out. She stepped back startled as its vile bone eye sockets peered over its scorched leather collar, glaring at her profoundly as his disciples watched from the shadows. “That was the first of five, and for a human, it was very impressive!” the creature hissed.

“That‘s one of them?” she asked fearfully. “It nearly fucking killed me!”

“Doubtful, you confronted it and you still stand” the creature grumbled confidently and clearly proud. Alex frowned defiantly, her head spinning in confusion. She watched as the Bound picked up a doll from the mess and examined it peculiarly, fascinated as to why we would use or have need of a fake new-born. Alex looked back towards the caped creature, her mind suddenly filled with a hundred questions.

“Are they all the same?” she asked fearfully.

The wraith looked over the mall at the weirdness of his surroundings, almost repulsed by the human’s penchant for consumerism and trading with each other like the animals they were.

“No, the Fallen here in your realm are just spirits in borrowed vessels, they change and adapt those vessels to make them more comfortable, as it were. They were born in a world of pain and are in areas where the history is corrupt, so when you strike; you must strike to disable and kill!”

“The voices?” she said unnervingly, almost a question but more of a plea for answers as the voices in her head deafened her.

“Those voices you hear in your head are from the suit you’re wearing, its armour that the Fallen wear in battle and it took us a very long time to find one that was willing to bond with a human!”

“It made me cut my own hand off!” she said sulking.

“You and the suit now coexist, it is you and you are it, they do not take kindly to hosts that try to remove or antagonize them, without it, your body would just decompose and fall away” it said gruffly, watching his minions as they amused themselves in the wreckage.

“I‘ve never killed anything in my life!” she said scowling down at thirty-stone corpse that bled under her feet, the creature staring at the suit as it purred and rippled across the contours of her body. “I actually feel sick!”

The creature merely gazed upon her saying nothing, his cold stare causing her to look away unsettled. It turned and looked at the Blind and she slowly nodded at him as if she actually saw him looking at her, obedient and loyal. Alex stepped out of the blood and strolled across the mall to the hardware shop. The creature stood looking at the dead Butcher for a few moments, its eyes glowing sternly as the light around them shined on its bone face. It looked up as Alex returned from the hardware shop carrying a towel and her trainers, watching patiently as she washed her feet in the fountain, drying them until finally slipping back into her trainers.

“What was that ball of light?!” she said hard-heartedly. The creature stood staring down at her as she lit up a cigarette.

“A trophy!” the creature grumbled.

Alex puffed on her cigarette and lifted her feet up from the ground as the Butchers blood slowly crept past. She stood up on the wall and stared blankly at her ghostly advisor.

“What kind of trophy?!” she asked inquisitively. “I touched it, and the markings, on this suit armour thing, they changed?” she said purely baffled by a flood of questions she needed to ask quickly before he vanished again.

“Your suit contains the instructions given to it of what you can do, the new markings are our scriptures upgrading your abilities, telling the living Earth what is allowed of you and it adjusts your realms physics around you!” it said shallowly. “When you bring a Fallen down, the suit leaves behind a seed, a spawn, a gift to the victor!”

“A gift of what?” she asked as she picked at the suits stitching, the minions gazing at her with an emotionless stare as they waited in the shadows.

“It could be anything, it could be nothing!” he promptly replied.