Ragnarok: The Fate of Gods (38 page)

             
The other demon grabs him from behind, around the waist.  It lifts again and squeezes tight.  Zeke strains.  He jabs backwards with his elbows.  The blows connect, but his assailant holds tight. 

             
The first malak closes in and attacks.  He pulls back his fist and punches.  Zeke finds his opening.  He leans to the side, dodging the blow.  Grabbing the hilt of his sword, he pulls violently.  The malak’s arm hangs by a thread, bleeding light. 

             
He stabs at the large hands holding him.  More light bleeds.  The malak drops him.  He swings the sword.  The first malak’s head falls, vanishing before it hits the ground. 

             
Zeke turns.  An infuriated malak swings a bleeding arm.  He ducks, pointing his blade up, towards the demon’s chest.  He thrusts hard.  The monster seems to grow stronger under the attack.  It pushes back hard, swinging its arms. 

             
Zeke takes the blows stoically, holding the sword firm.  The malak soon loses strength.  It falls, pinning him to the ground.  After a moment, it explodes. 

             
The swordsman lay on the ground, out of breath. 

             
After a few moments, Quetzalcoatl appears in the sky.  Jack, standing at the open hatch, throws down a ladder.  “Hey, Rambo-san!  You got ‘em all.” 

             
The exhausted fighter takes a deep breath.  “You sure?” 

             
“Yeah.  Just got word from the Muselheim.  We’ve been invited to their party.” 

             
Zeke grabs the ladder and pulls himself up. 

“Good to see you’re safe,” Daniel greeted as Zeke stepped out of Quetzalcoatl. 

He, Dumah, Lilith, and hundreds of soldiers and citizens had all come to the Muselheim
’s hangar to greet the hero.  People were packed everywhere.  They kept a respectful distance, but they crammed into every last centimeter of the massive room just to catch a glimpse.  Some crawled between legs.  Other climbed up on the small fighter ships.  Everyone on board was interested in the mysterious fighter who could fight the malak. 

There had been no one like him in the last three hundred years. 

“I’ve never been better.”  Zeke smiled at his friend. 

“
You killed them.  All of them.”  Dumah sounded like an excited child.

“
You liked that?  It’s just a little trick I picked up in Rome,” he said with false modesty. 

“
I’m just grateful that you were here to help us.”

“
Because God knows you are completely incapable of doing anything useful on your own,” Lilith sneered. 

Dumah gritted his teeth. 
“Mr. Branderlief, have you met my wife, Lilith?” 

She glided to Zeke flirtatiously.  Offering her hand, she said,
“I don’t think he’s ever had the pleasure.”  They shook hands.  She smiled sweetly. 

“
Somehow, I think he never will,” Dumah said quietly. 

Lilith glared at him. 
“You must forgive my husband.  He’s still struggling with the idea that he can be a politician in his own . . .
unique
way.  It still hasn’t occurred to him that
his
way completely annihilated the city and chased off the one competent leader in town with his harebrained assassination scheme.  He really is lucky that I’m patient enough to tolerate him.  After all, I . . .”

She stopped speaking in mid sentence.  The crowd eyed her curiously.  She coughed, spitting up blood.  Her face went white.  Some people began to notice the malak rising beneath her.  It rose from the floor, the woman impaled on its arm.  Its limb tensed, squeezing her from inside.  She shook violently, then went limp. 

Red flashed. 

The room filled with light and the malak was gone.  Lilith
’s corpse fell to the floor of the hangar.  Zeke sheathed his sword.

Dumah turned to a soldier. 
“What room is below the hangar?” 

“
The engine room, I believe.”

“
It must have boarded before we took off.  Conduct a thorough sweep of the engine room.  Make sure there are no more of them.  Then search the entire ship.  Do not attempt to engage the malak yourself.  Mr. Branderlief will be with me if you find any.  Proceed with
extreme
caution.” 

“
Yes sir,” nodded the soldier.  He motioned for a squadron to follow him.  The crowd of civilians parted as they leave. 

Zeke stared awkwardly. 
“I’m very sorry.  I should have acted quicker.” 

“
That’s all right,” said an undisturbed Dumah.  “You did all you could.  Come with me.”  He smiled and motioned for the group to follow him.

Zeke was confused. 
“All right?  Huh?  Are you sure?” 

“
Of course.  Why?  Is something wrong?” 

“
It’s just that . . . Lilith . . .”  He paused.  Dumah stared at him, looking very confused.  Daniel seemed undisturbed by the death as well.  In fact, only Zeke seemed to think anything was wrong.  He glanced at the body, which was being ignored by everyone else in the room.  “Oh well,” he said as he joined his friends.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Panama

             
“It has a
name?” 
asked Jack. 

             
“Samael.  That’s what the voice told me,” Zeke explained. 

             
“The voice.  In your head.  The one that said it was God?”  He looked around the dimly lit briefing room.  No one else seemed amazed by Zeke’s story. 

Daniel turned to the pilot and asked,
“Something wrong?” 

             
Jack’s expression changed instantly.  “Nah.  I was just fond of the name ‘Giggles McHappy. ’”

             
“Anyway,” said Daniel, trying to get the conversation back on track.  “The report said this thing busted its way out of North America.  Southwestern United States, to be exact.” 

             
“And this dead spot.  It’s a gateway to the ethereal plane?” asked Zeke. 

             
“We don’t know that,” Daniel answered cautiously.  “All they said was . . .” 

             
“I have to go there.”  The only thing on his mind was facing Metatron.  Before the resurrection.  Eliminating him before their problem was too big to fight. 

             
Jack was not so zealous.  “Are you crazy?  Go to North America?  That place is crawling with malak!  We’d never get back alive.” 

             
“Actually, malak activity on the continent has dropped significantly,” Daniel explained. 

             
“Yeah, because they’re all coming here!” countered the pilot. 

             
“So do you really want to stay here?” 

             
He paused, cocked his head, then said, “Good point.  When do we leave?” 

             
“You’re not listening to me,” Zeke protested.  “I said
I
need to go.  Not you.” 

             
Dumah looked concerned.  “Are you sure?” 

             
“This is my fight.  I’m the only one who can face Metatron.  I need to take care of him—and Micah—with my own hands.” 

“
I know you feel responsible, but we don’t even know if this is a gate.  And if it is, we don’t know if you can come back,” Daniel protested. 

Dumah agreed. 
“He’s right.  You can’t go alone.  If you get there and it’s
not
a gate, you’ll be stranded.” 

Zeke was growing impatient with the useless talk.  The only way to find out the truth was to see it. 
“Do you have a better plan?” 

“
Panama,” suggested Daniel.  “We could go to Panama.  The Karellan had a guard station in the city to monitor the malak and make sure none of them crept down into our South American settlements.  They should be able to tell us everything we need to know about this gate.”

“
How soon can I leave?” 

“
I
can have Quetzalcoatl charged and fueled within the hour,” Jack said.  “I don’t know how
you’re
getting to Panama, though.”

Zeke glared at him.  Unfortunately, they were right.  He needed their help. 
“Fine. 
We
can leave when you’re ready.” 

Daniel turned to Dumah. 
“Mr. Supervisor, if you can spare me, I think they’ll need the Raven of Memory once they get to Panama.” 

“
I think we’re getting along just fine here.”

“
Then get ready,” Zeke said.  “We’re leaving the instant that ship is ready.” 

“It’s so dark,” observed Daniel. 

Quetzalcoatl flew over the Pacific Ocean, a vast expanse of black beneath them.  The starlight reflected on the water.  It gave the impression of flying through outer space. 

“Samael must be on the other side of the planet,” said Zeke. 

“
I guess that means it’s night,” said Jack.  “You know.  If Giggles
hadn’t
eaten the sun.”

“
Just keep a close look out.  We don’t want to miss it.”  Zeke strained to see anything in the thick darkness.  Nothing but starlight and its reflection.  But once they reached land, the reflection would stop, and everything below them would be dark. 

“
Assuming the GPS satellites are still operational, I’d say we’re coming up on it shortly.”  Jack lit a small flashlight to check a display.  A reflection of the cockpit lit up in the window.  “Damn LCDs.”

“
LCD?” asked Daniel.  “You mean with all the modifications you’ve made to this ship, your displays are still running on twentieth century technology?” 

“
It was a few bucks cheaper.  So sue me.  I’m not the one who made it dark.” 

“
Well, the city should have lights.  That’ll tell us where to land.”  Daniel leaned back in the chair.  “We have anything to eat?” 

“
I think so,” said Zeke.  He got up and walked into the cargo bay.  A few minutes later he came back with an armful of apples.  He tossed one to Daniel and one to Jack. 

The pilot caught the fruit and looked at it curiously. 
“You know,” he started.  I don’t really like fruit.  In fact I hate it.  Loathe it and
despise
it, actually.” 

“
You don’t like the taste?” asked Daniel. 

“
Oh, no.  It can be quite tasty,” Jack continued.  “In fact,
too
tasty.  I don’t trust it.”  The others looked at him as if he were insane.  He ignored them.  “Everyone seems to like fruit so much.  ‘Fruit is good for you’ they say.  But no one actually
remembers
what this stuff did to us.  This stuff got us kicked out of Eden. 

“
And it didn’t even do what it was supposed to.  God said, ‘Don’t eat the fruit or you’ll get forbidden knowledge.’ The snake said ‘Eat the fruit and you’ll be gods. ’ But there are still plenty of mindless idiots out there who can barely remember their own names, let alone differentiate good and evil.  And when was the last time you sank your teeth into a juicy watermelon and swallowed the power to smite all of humanity?

“
All it did was get us evicted from paradise.  Life is hard because of fruit.  Every time you stub your toe or get dumped by your girlfriend or get bitten by a draugr, it’s because of
fruit.
You know, we wouldn’t get sick if it weren’t for fruit.  How can it be healthy for us if it’s the reason we get sick in the first place? 

“
But it’s got a conspiracy of mothers and old people everywhere touting its benefits.  ‘Eat fruit’ they say.  ‘It’ll make you regular.’  I say that’s just what the fruit
wants. 
When the rebellion comes, mankind will be too busy running to the toilet every five minutes to fight back.  It’ll be all too easy for fruit to wipe us.  Out.  Out, that is.  Wipe us out.  Just think about that the next time you wander unarmed through your local market.  Markets, refrigerators, and foliage everywhere are just littered with evil.  And we do
nothing
about it.  Why are we fighting malak and draugr?  I say it’s about time we recognized our real threats and declared war on fruit!” 

He ended his speech and the cockpit was dead silent.  After a moment, he looked up.  Zeke and Daniel both stared at him blankly, jaws wide open in wonder. 

Finally convinced that he was completely insane.

“
Too much?” he asked. 

They both nodded. 
“A little,” said Daniel.  In truth, both of them were silently grateful for the levity.  With the malak attacks and the impending fight, it was good that at least one of them could still be cheerful. 

“
Maybe I should just watch for the city lights,” he suggested.  He bit deep into the apple and turned back to the controls.

Zeke looked out the window.  The ocean had finally ended.  There was a great expanse of darkness below them. 
“I’m not seeing any lights.” 

“
Maybe we’re not there yet,” said Daniel.  “We’re probably flying over the jungle.” 

“
No,” said Jack, still holding the flashlight above the displays.  “According to this, Panama is right beneath us.”  He pulled on the controls.  The ship slowed down. 

“
You got any lights on this thing?” 

“
Already there.”  Jack reached up and flipped a switch.  A floodlight projected a spot beneath them.  A small circle of a plate city appeared in the darkness.

“
Why aren’t there any lights?” asked Daniel. 

“
Is there a landing pad around here?” 

“
Can you reach anyone on the radio?” 

“
Let me check.”  Jack pulled down the radio transmitter and turned a dial.  “This is the cargo ship Quetzalcoatl seeking the Panama port.  Over.”  He waited.  There was no reply.  After a minute, he switched frequencies and tried again.  “This is the cargo ship Quetzalcoatl, seeking Panama.  Is anyone there?  Over.” 

Again, nothing. 

He tried every frequency, but no one answered. 

“
Guess we’ll have to look the old fashioned way,” suggested Zeke. 

Jack let out a primal grunt. 
“Mmm.  Find landing pad with floodlights on star freighter.  Just like hunting mammoth.” 

They cruised low over the city.  The floodlight shed an eerie ring below them.  There was no movement from the city.  No people.  No cars.  No lights.  As if the entire population had simply vanished. 

“Spooky,” said Jack after a long while. 

No one said it, but they all feared what had happened here. 

After a while, they spied an empty landing pad, and Jack took Quetzalcoatl down.  They got out of the ship and looked around in the dim light. 
“I think this is the research station,” said Daniel.  “That’s exactly where we want to be.” 

“
There’s someone there,” Zeke said.  He pointed.  They all saw a man sitting in a rocking chair by a building. 

Not moving. 

“One of the locals?” asked Jack nervously. 

“
Maybe he knows what happened.” 

Zeke approached cautiously.  The man did not seem to notice them.  The chair did not rock. 
“Sir?”  He gently grabbed the man’s shoulder, but immediately withdrew his hand.  “Cold as ice.  He’s been dead for a while.” 

The subtle movement disturbed the chair.  It began to rock, and the man
’s body slid forward, landing face down on the metal.

His head had been bashed in from behind. 

Zeke jumped back in horror, away from the bloody, frozen mess.  The others rushed to join him. 

“
Something bad happened here,” Daniel commented. 

Malak.

There was a small door nearby.  They opened it slowly.  It swung easily.  Unlocked.  Unlatched.  Light from the ship bled into the room.  Inside was dark. 

Daniel pulled out his own flashlight and scanned the room.  It was small.  Closets and shelves lined the walls.  Just a storage room. 
“Not even security lights.  The back-up generators must have died.”

“
Among other things,” said Jack quietly.

“
I’m going to go look for it.  See if I can start it up again.”  Daniel left the others alone in the storage room. 

Zeke began rummaging through the shelves. 
“You lose something?”  Jack asked. 

“
No, but we might as well look around while we’re here.”  He opened one of the closet doors.

“
What is it?”  Jack asked, aiming his flashlight over Zeke’s shoulder. 

Tents.  Packs.  Rifles. 
“Looks like field equipment.  Nothing special.” 

“
Any food?  I’m starving.”  Suddenly, the lights flickered on.  The corners of the room were littered with bloody corpses.  “Well.  Ask and you shall receive,” Jack said flatly.  “I
guess
I can wait until dinner.” 

Daniel rushed in. 
“I found the . . . shit.  What the hell happened here?”  He stared at the bodies. 

“
I think they might know,” Zeke said, nodding at the corpses.  “Why don’t you ask them?” 

“
I guess we’re not going to learn much from the research staff.  We might as well look around.” 

The search didn
’t take long.  The door on the far end of the storage room led to a hallway.  They followed the hallway to the largest door, and beyond that was the primary workroom.