27
"Look out!" I screamed, and dove at Ree.
An instant later the thunder from the tank's gun echoed throughout the terminal. I knocked her to the ground as the shell tore into the wall behind us. It exploded, sending a mass of broken glass and splintered wood across the platform and down onto our heads.
I was on top of Ree and got hit with the bulk of the debris but wasn't hurt.
"How is that possible?" I asked, breathless. "This is a vision. It isn't real."
"But it is real," Ree said.
"As real as we imagined it would be."
I crawled across the floor to peek out over the concourse. The cannon on the tank was still aimed directly at our platform, over the heads of the Guardians below. There was no way to tell when it would fire again. The tank itself
was an antique, but it had plenty of firepower.
"Where did he get that?" I asked.
Adeipho joined me, also keeping low. "Damon has gathered spirits from many different times. As have we."
"Do your spirits have tanks?" I asked.
Adeipho's silence was his answer.
Looking down on the concourse I saw the extent of the Guardians plan to defend the Rift. They had the information booth surrounded, twenty deep. Most of the spirits had swords and rifles but those weapons would only cause temporary damage. The weapons that would ultimately be needed for the defense of the Rift were the black swords. The Guardians with those weapons were the last line of defense. They formed the tightest circle around the information booth.
I couldn't help but think that they were all there because of me. I hoped I was right about Adeipho's Guardians being able to turn back Damon's soldiers. Seeing that the other side had a tank made me a little less confident. Damon might never have led his men into battle, but he was also supposed to be a brilliant tactician. We were about to find out just how good he was.
"Our plan is to repel the attack and send them out of this vision without having to use the spirit-killing weapons," Adeipho explained. "We do not want to destroy spirits if it is not necessary."
"Something tells me Damon's guys aren't as worried about that as you are," I said.
A high-pitched whine started to build, as if a swarm of angry bees was descending on the terminal. From the look on Adeipho's face, he had no idea what it was. Ree joined us and looked out over the concourse.
"I'm afraid that tank isn't the only weapon they've brought," she said.
The whine grew louder and several motorcycles crashed in through the destroyed doors on the opposite landing. The riders blasted over the
remains of the doors, rode past the tank, and bounced down the stairs to the floor of the concourse. It was like a macabre X Games stunt, but they weren't riding for show. Strapped to their waists were black swords.
"They're leading with the big guns," I said.
"Are your guys good enough to protect themselves?"
Adeipho's answer was to jump up and run for the stairs. He wanted to be in the fight. But as soon as he stood up—
BOOM!
The cannon fired again. Ree and I jumped out of the way as the spot where we'd been hiding erupted.
"You okay?" I asked.
Ree looked dazed but she wasn't hurt.
"They're trying to pin us down here," she said.
I looked around for Adeipho, but he was gone. I risked looking out of the destroyed picture and saw him charge down onto the concourse floor with his black sword drawn.
The bikers hit the concourse with their own black swords out and swinging. The Guardians were ready for them. Instead of attacking they held back and defended themselves. Many had ancient shields of hammered metal or course wood. As low-tech as they were, they worked. So long as they kept the black swords away from their bodies, those weapons were no more dangerous than an ordinary sword. I counted eight motorcycles that circled the crowd, trying to pick off any Guardians who were unlucky enough to give them a clear shot. The Guardians kept tight, not giving them an opening.
That changed when a bold Guardian rushed out to try and take down one of the bikers. He ran up from behind with his regular metal sword out. It
wouldn't have killed the biker, but if he could unseat him, another Guardian could
come up and finish him off with a black sword. But the brave spirit wasn't quick enough. The biker lashed back with his black sword, and with one quick swipe the Guardian froze and disappeared in a dark cloud.
Damon's soldiers had drawn first blood, or whatever it's called when a spirit is killed.
"They're testing our defenses," Ree said. "Trying to soften us up."
"But most of those weapons won't do any real damage, right? I mean, a spirit could take a direct shot from that cannon and still be okay."
"True, but the visions hold true to the laws of nature." She picked up a chunk of marble that had been blown apart when the first shell had hit and said, "We perceive this matter as being real, so it is."
"Will everything be repaired when it's over?" I asked.
She gave me a sad smile and a shrug. "I don't know. We've never been through something like this before. Let's just hope we get the chance to find out."
Adeipho launched himself from a counter in front of the ticket booths and tackled one of the bikers. They both fell to the floor as the bike crashed and spun away. Adeipho's sword was out and with one quick thrust, the biker was gone.
So much for trying not to destroy spirits.
The other seven bikers continued to circle the Guardians. It looked to me like Adeipho's plan to keep the black swords on the inside was a mistake because without them in front, the bikers were able to keep the Guardians tight together. They looked like a
flock of sheep being herded by a group of aggressive dogs.
The third wave of attackers arrived. They were dressed as old-time soldiers, maybe from World War II. I thought I recognized German uniforms from movies I'd seen, but it
was a mix of a lot of different styles. These soldiers ran in through the shattered doors and up to the edge of the landing. Without hesitation they started lobbing what appeared to be small rocks at the Guardians below.
"Uh-oh," I whispered.
I'd seen enough war movies to know what was coming. The stones weren't stones. They were hand grenades. The small weapons hit and exploded on impact, tearing up the floor and spewing smoke and marble everywhere. Several Guardians were hit and knocked down by the concussion, but they weren't killed. Or even injured. The grenades were powerful, but they were still regular old grenades.
"Why are they bothering?" I asked.
"To cause confusion," Ree answered. "And to break us apart. Spirits can still feel pain."
Several more grenades were tossed at the group, sending bodies flying. They even knocked down a few of their own guys on the bikes. No sooner did these bikers hit the ground than they were grabbed and dragged into the sea of Guardians. They were pulled deep within the ranks, where the black swords were waiting.
Damon's soldiers were causing a lot of damage, but it was the Guardians who were knocking off spirits. It made me think that Adeipho's defense might have been pretty smart after all. Things looked even better after a new
team of Guardians arrived, running from the large doors to our right that led to the train tracks.
"Archers," Ree explained. "We have some tricks of our own."
The new Guardians fanned out along the wall leading to the tracks, each kneeling and drawing their bow. I didn't think that arrows would do much damage, until they let loose and hit their targets. These weren't ordinary arrows. They were fitted with some kind of explosive tips. Wherever
they hit, a small explosion erupted. The arrows blew out huge chunks of marble railing along the landing, driving the soldiers back to the doors. Some were hit dead-on and I saw their bodies explode.
"That won't destroy them," Ree said. "They'll be back." I had to keep reminding myself that these weren't real people. They were spirits.
"But if you don't destroy them, they'll just keep coming," I pointed out.
And they did. As the World War II soldiers retreated, they were replaced by a dozen more soldiers on horseback, each wielding a black sword. Most were dressed in armor, looking like avenging knights bent on causing as much destruction as possible. They expertly rode their horses down the stairs to the floor of the concourse, and charged into the sea of Guardians.
It was a slaughter. The Guardians on the ground swung at them with their swords and clubs but they did little or no damage. The riders, on the other hand, had the killer swords. They slashed at the Guardians, who tried to fend off the blows, and they did, but not often enough. One by one the Guardians started disappearing. They fought valiantly, and might have done okay if the riders had normal weapons.
"This is horrible," I said. "Adeipho has to get those black swords up front."
Adeipho was too busy to notice. He was the only Guardian doing any real damage to the invaders. He started going after the horseback riders, and succeeded in destroying several of them. But there were too many. The attackers were methodically wiping out row after row of Guardians, driving closer and closer to the information booth. To the Rift. Once they reached the circle of Guardians who were armed with the killer swords, it would be a fair fight, but at
what cost? As each Guardian disappeared, I was witnessing the end of a life. Forever.
With horror I realized that I had made the wrong call. The Guardians weren't able to defend the Rift.
Ree looked to me, pained. I knew what she was thinking and was grateful she didn't say it. This was my fault.
"It's all right," she said softly. "Whether the battle happened now or a hundred years from now, the result would be the same."
"It's not over," I said. "We can still win this."
She looked down at the carnage below and said, "I don't see how."
Many Guardians broke away from the tight circle and started battling the riders out in the open, where they had more room to maneuver. It helped. Rather than standing up like rows of corn, ready to be mowed, some were able to run and dodge the black swords. I saw Adeipho's daughter fighting near her father. She was the
only Guardian I knew and it killed me to think she might not exist much longer.
It wasn't looking good and Ree knew it.
She said, "There will be more of a fight once our swords are brought into play, but Damon's soldiers will outnumber us by then. When one falls, another will take their place."
"Then we have to go with my plan," I said.
"Your plan was to initiate this battle," Ree said with a raised eyebrow.
"No, I mean my other plan. Let me go through the Rift. Better still, we'll both go. If the Guardians lose, then Damon won't think twice about going through and he'll track down the poleax for sure. We've got to get it before he does."
Ree looked down, sadly, at the battle below. Her Guardians were disappearing quickly, with few casualties on the other side.
"I can't go through the Rift," she said.
"Can't or won't?"
"Won't. It's not right.
"Tell that to Damon."
Ree was torn. She knew the battle was as good as lost. She glanced up at the far landing to see that the tank's cannon was still trained on us. If we stood or showed our faces, I had no doubt that it would unload again. Behind it, several more of Damon's soldiers were gathering. They didn't run down the stairs and attack. They watched the scene below. Waiting. Like vultures.
"That's their bench," I said.
"As soon as their guys start going down, their replacements will jump in and pick up the fight. Adeipho can fight, but he miscalculated. The Guardians are going to lose the Rift."
Ree stared out at the horror for a good long while. I wished I could have read her mind. On the floor near our feet was her own black sword. She picked it up and examined it, as if hoping to find inspiration. Or hope.
She then looked to me and with tears in her eyes she declared, "I'll get you to the Rift, but I won't go through with you."
I stole a peek down at the information booth. There was absolutely nothing Rift-like about it.
"Where is it?" I asked.
"You have to enter the booth," she explained. "Once inside, my vision will disappear and you will see the dark hole. It's nothing more dramatic than that. A dark hole."
"And I just walk inside?" I asked.
Ree shrugged. "That's how I got here."
I reached my hand out and said, "Give me the sword. If you're not going through, then I don't want you anywhere near the fight."
She shook her head. "You forget, Coop. My Guardians
think you are as much of an enemy as Damon's soldiers. They haven't been won over by your charm."
"Yeah. Hard to believe," I said.
"I'll bring you to the Rift, Cooper," Ree said. "After that you're on your own."
"What should I do when I find the poleax?" I asked. "How do I destroy it?"