Rise of the Beast (40 page)

“Where are they?” asked Bedillia.

“Safe,” said the young man, “safe and in no pain.”

“You have us at a disadvantage,” observed Abaddon.

The youth smiled an indeed devious smile. “Yes, you might say that.”

It was then that Abaddon focused upon the AC setting on the youth’s shoulders. Suddenly, he understood. “The prime; he didn’t perish.”

“No he didn’t,” confirmed the youth. “When you abandoned him two years ago, I rescued him.” The youth paused. “And no, you can’t have him back. He and I have been through a lot together. I named him Goliath.”

“An excellent name,” said Bedillia, “but we still don’t know your name.”

“Tim,” said the youth, still focused on Abaddon. “I was a part of that grand march once, that march off the cliff. Several of your children, as you call them, sliced away my shackles. Some human soldiers, Marines I think, told me where I had to go to escape this place, to come to this refuge of yours. I tried. Oh, how I tried, but you left me behind. You abandoned me, just like you did Goliath.”

“It’s him,” said Bedillia, looking to Abaddon. “He is the young man that Private Higgins came to me about two years ago.” She turned to Tim. “Higgins was very upset when he discovered that you had been left behind. He came in to see me for several counseling sessions after that. We didn’t mean to leave you behind; please believe me.”

“Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter,” said Tim. “I’ve survived on my own pretty well up to this point.” His anger seemed to ebb slightly. “Look, I know what you’re trying to do; that’s fine. But we don’t need you, OK?”

“Tim, we could help you and the others,” said Bedillia. “You don’t need to go this on your own. We really want to help you. We can accomplish more together than we can separately.”

Tim nodded. “What are you suggesting, pretty lady?”

“My name is Bedillia.”

Tim nodded once more. “Oh, I know who you are. You’re the mother of Serena. Yes, I’ve heard of you. Goliath really liked your daughter. He said that she was very special, very brave.”

“Thank you,” said Bedillia. She paused before continuing. “Goliath knew my daughter?”

“Of course,” said Tim. “He told me the whole story. He has told me many things about Hell and Refuge.”

“He has told you?” asked Abaddon.

“Sure,” replied Tim. “He tells me all kinds of things. Some of the others do too, but it’s mostly Goliath that talks to me.”

“Then you have bonded with him and he with you,” deduced Abaddon. “I can never take him from you for that reason. He must stay with you.”

Tim seemed impressed by that statement. “At least you understand that. I guess it’s a start.”

Bedillia moved back to the initial point. “Tim, we really need to work together. I was suggesting that we could provide you and your people with things: training, food, supplies, and weapons that you could use to defend yourselves against the demons.”

“And in return, what would you want?” asked Tim.

“Friendship. That’s all,” said Bedillia. “We could stand together against the demons, if it came to that.”

“We hang together or we hang separately,” deduced Tim. “The founding fathers would have been proud. Still, I want to avoid foreign entanglements.”

“Tim, we need their help,” said a second voice from behind the boulders. A young and pretty woman dressed in a black cloak like the one Tim was wearing stepped out into the open. “It wasn’t their fault,” she insisted. “The demons came back. There were so many of them. I was right there. I saw it. These people had to leave.”

Tim glanced in her direction, then back toward Bedillia and the others. “This is Megan, a very special woman.”

“Hello, Megan,” said Bedillia.

Megan only nodded. “Tim, we shouldn’t do this on our own when there are people who can help us. We really don’t know what we’re up against. I love our place. I want to make sure it stays ours. I don’t want to go back to the Plunge or some other horrible torture that Satan might sentence us to.”

“Satan is no longer in control of Hell,” announced Kurt. “He isn’t even here. He is trapped on Earth.”

“Much has happened in both Heaven and Hell during the past two years,” interjected Abaddon. “It’s important that you understand what you’re up against before you start making plans for the future.”

The team took a few minutes to outline the current situation in Hell, telling them about Cordon and the treaty. All the while, Megan in particular seemed to be growing more nervous.

“Tim, we need to get back inside,” she said.

“You could come with us,” suggested Bedillia, “see Refuge for yourself.”

“A kind offer,” said Tim, “but we will pass, at least today; perhaps later.”

They began to make their way back down the canyon, and Tim and Megan accompanied them. Overhead thousands of ACs patrolled the sky. Bedillia did most of the talking, speaking of life in Refuge. Her words seemed most interesting to Megan. Tim seemed less impressed. Neither seemed too willing to discuss their plans or the nature of the world they were creating here, and when it came to the issue of the missing demons, they were very tight-lipped. However, it became only too clear that Tim was holding them as prisoners.

“The demons are very sensitive when it comes to the issue of us holding one or more of their own against their will,” said Abaddon. “They will not allow this to continue.”

“Oh,” replied Tim, “then it is OK if they torture us for eternity, but if we so much as touch one of them, then they cry foul. You’ll excuse me if I don’t have much sympathy for them.”

“It doesn’t matter if you have sympathy for them,” continued Abaddon. “They will eventually mount a search, and they will discover the hidden entrance to your cavern. I would be willing to help you broker an agreement with Cordon, one like we have. You could enjoy freedom from fear. If not, you’ll have a war on your hands. And I assure you, they will come. I’m surprised that they haven’t come already.”

“There haven’t been any demons around here for some time,” said Tim. “They’ve given up the search. Look, I don’t plan to go out looking for a fight, and if they come looking for one, then we will give them a beating that they’ll not soon forget.”

“Son, you don’t know what you’re up against,” cautioned Kurt. “You have no real weapons and no military training. Your ACs would defend you for a time, but in the end, the demons would overwhelm them. They’d roll right over you.”

Still, there seemed to be no reasoning with Tim. He was stubborn and perhaps just a bit mentally unstable. A few minutes later, they reached the small cave.

“Here is where we get off,” said Tim. He pondered their situation for a moment. “I’ll tell you what; we can talk about this later. The next time you come, send Bedillia, just Bedillia. Have her come to this cave. I’ll talk to her and her alone. Maybe we can come to some sort of a deal.”

“I’d be glad to come to meet with you,” replied Bedillia.

“Good,” said Tim. “Why not come tomorrow, whenever that is. With no night here, it’s kind of hard to figure, but I’ll meet with you then. I’ll throw out the welcome mat. I promise you’ll be safe.”

As Tim and Megan climbed back into the cave, the group continued on down the canyon beneath a myriad of renegade ACs. There was much to discuss. Yes, they’d found a potential ally, but he was also a destabilizing element in their shaky relationship with the demons. Their situation had just become a lot more complicated.

It was hours later, and Bedillia found herself alone in Abaddon’s audience chamber. It was time. She walked to the black marble table and switched on the telesphere. A few seconds later the sphere displayed an image of the angel Aaron standing among the books of a library. He held a black book in his hand.

“Good evening, Bedillia,” said Aaron.

“Hello, Aaron,” said Bedillia. “Looks like you’re doing research.”

“Yes, I am,” confirmed Aaron. “I am studying the life of this Tim Monroe you encountered in the Valley of Noak.” Aaron shook his head sadly. “He is a truly tragic character, cut down by a senseless act of violence. I do not believe that he is a violent young man, but I would exercise care in dealing with him. If you are to meet with him alone, have your escape well planned.”

“Don’t worry, Aaron,” said Bedillia. “I’ll be fine.”

“I shall present a full report on Tim Monroe to Abaddon and the council in the morning,” said Aaron. Aaron paused then smiled. “However, I suspect that you want a report on someone else, someone on Earth.”

Bedillia smiled. “How is she, Aaron?”

“She is doing well, under the circumstances,” confirmed Aaron. “Times are trying, but that is only to be expected.” Aaron went on to give Bedillia a full report regarding the life of her daughter on Earth, as he had once a week for so many years.

Bedillia worried about Serena, her only daughter. She felt so helpless right
now. When Serena really needed her, she couldn’t be there. Oh, if she’d only made different choices. If only she could go back and change the past.

It was a full half hour before she signed off. “Oh Serena, how I wish I could hold you in my arms, defend you against the enemy.” But of course, she couldn’t. Refuge might be fairly comfortable, but it was still Hell. From here she was powerless to help her daughter. She went back to the table. She wept for many minutes before she was able to return to her job.

C
HAPTER
16

Abaddon paced back and forth nervously in the ring room. He was noticeably agitated. “I should never have allowed her to go back there alone,” he lamented.

“I don’t think there was any stopping her,” replied Lenar, his chief dark angelic warrior. “That Tim fellow wouldn’t talk to anyone but her.”

Abaddon turned to Kurt, who stood not far away, leaning on the great metallic ring. “How late is she now?”

“Almost 20 minutes,” he replied, glancing at his watch.

“Do we go in after her?” asked Lenar.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” advised Kurt. “Bedillia was very specific about that. She gave her word that she would go in alone.”

Abruptly, Kurt backed away from the ring. A few seconds later, its interior was filled with glowing mists. Bedillia stepped from those mists, a distinct look of satisfaction on her face.”

“You were a bit late,” noted Abaddon. “We were becoming concerned.” He paused. “I take it that the negotiations went well.”

“Exceptionally,” said Bedillia. “I believe Tim is coming around. I think we have Megan to thank for that. I would like to make a gift of a telesphere to
them. That way we could have instantaneous contact with them.”

Abaddon nodded approvingly. “I have no objection to that.”

“I would also like to get some decent clothes to them,” continued Bedillia. “So many of them are living in filthy rags. It’s deplorable.”

“Again, I have no objection,” replied Abaddon. “I believe that it would be a humane gesture. It would strengthen our relationship with them.”

“Their cavern is not nearly as grand as ours, but it does have potential,” continued Bedillia. “However, there are a few problems that might need to be addressed.”

“Such as?” asked Lenar.

“Such as what they have done to their old demon taskmasters,” said Bedillia. “It might be poetic justice, but I believe it will be a problem.”