The Templar Chronicles (59 page)

“Do you have any idea what time it is over here, Knight Commander?” MacIntyre asked gruffly, though not without kindness.

The question stumped Cade for a moment, for he hadn’t even considered the issue before this. He did some quick calculations in his head. If it were just after seven p.m., and Scotland was roughly seven hours ahead of the east coast of the US, then it would be…about two a.m. there.

“My apologies Seneschal, but I felt this couldn’t wait.”

“Well, at least you’ve got the grace to appear embarrassed,” MacIntyre said humorously, when Cade appeared anything but. “What is so important that you had to drag an old man from his sleep?”

Cade paused. “Is Preceptor Johansson with us?” he asked. He didn’t want to repeat the information.

His screen split again and the Preceptor’s face appeared in the new window. “I’m right here, Knight Commander. I, too, trust that this is important?”

Pompous prick, Cade thought, but kept his face calm and non-threatening. One day that man will get his…”I assure you both that it is.” Cade went on to detail the events of the past few days, bringing them two men up to speed with regard to the request for help from Father Martin, their arrival in Boston only to find that Father Martin had been murdered, and their subsequent discovery of the room and its secret portal deep beneath the church.

He left out just how they’d found the secret entrance to the room or what they’d done to activate the portal. While the Seneschal knew about his particular talents, Cade didn’t like giving fuel to the perception that he was a heretic.

“I am assuming you investigated the area on the other side of this portal?” asked the Seneschal.

“Yes, sir,” Cade replied and couldn’t help but grin inwardly at the surprised expression on Preceptor Johansson’s face at his revelation of prior action.

“And?” prompted the Seneschal.

“We discovered a large force of Chiang Shih assembled nearby and a good degree of traffic from their base to the portal itself. Evidence suggests that they are planning to launch an assault on the Greater Boston area, similar to the attempt that was made back in 2003.”

“What ’evidence’ are you talking about?” asked the Preceptor. Cade couldn’t tell if the man’s annoyance was directed at him or at the Shadows for daring to think they could come into territory he considered his personal fiefdom.

Cade let a hint of condescension creep into his tone, in case it was the former. “The Shadows are not, by nature, cooperative creatures. It takes an extremely powerful war leader to make them band together for even the best of reasons. Expanding their territory would be at the top of that list.”

“Why couldn’t they simply be expanding into the Beyond?”

Cade laughed; he couldn’t help it. “If you’d ever seen the Beyond, Preceptor, you wouldn’t need to ask that question. There isn’t a more barren place I can think of and there certainly isn’t anything to sustain them there.” He turned to face the Seneschal again. “No, the only reason they are there at all is to make use of that portal to strike where we least expect it.”

“What do you suggest we do?”

“Assemble a force big enough to take them on and do it quickly,” Cade replied without hesitation.

The Seneschal gave that some thought. “I agree with you that a Chiang Shih gathering of that size is a definite threat, but I don’t understand why we have to face them in open combat. Why not simply shut down the portal?”

Cade had been expecting that line of questioning and he didn’t hesitate to address it. “With all due respect, sir, leaving a force of that size combat ready is not a good idea. We don’t have any understanding of how the gate came to be or what will be necessary to close it permanently. Destroying the building might do the trick, but then again it might not. And what’s to keep them from simply relocating and trying again? We wouldn’t have any idea where they were. How would we stop them then? Our best move is to eliminate the effectiveness of the fighting force entirely, assuring we won’t have to worry about them again in the future.”

And ending the problem of Bishop once and for all, he added silently. Cade had purposely not mentioned him. He considered Bishop’s involvement to be a personal matter, something he’d left unresolved and which he intended to handle at the first opportunity.

The Preceptor had a sour expression on his face, but Cade ignored it. The Seneschal controlled the Order’s fighting units and he was the one Cade had to convince.

MacIntyre conferred with someone off-screen for a few moments and then addressed Cade.

“Unfortunately, our teams are scattered to hell and back right now. Assembling a force powerful enough to take on the Chiang Shih will require some time. Delta is still dealing with that mess in Greenland and Charlie is on furlough. Alpha and Baker can’t be taken off their current assignments. Which means we need Echo to keep the enemy off balance long enough to buy us the time we need to bring men in from the field. Can you do that?”

Cade nodded. “With your permission, I’ll take a small raiding party back across the Veil and begin harassing their camp. Standard guerilla warfare hit-and-run tactics. The resulting confusion should be enough to disrupt their timetable and give us the time we need to assemble our own forces to face them head on.”

“And the portal?”

“I’ll leave a squad or two in reserve at the church. The portal is small and the room is also. The enemy will only be able to bring a few soldiers across at a time. We should be able to hold them off until help arrives.”

The Seneschal inclined his head in that way that Cade knew meant he was thinking things over. Cade waited patiently, trying not to look too anxious. His gut told him that acting quickly and decisively was the best way of dealing with this. If they waited too long, things would certainly get out of hand.

When the Seneschal finally gave him permission to carry out his plan, Cade made sure to keep the smile of satisfaction from his face.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Cade was waiting outside when First and Second Squad arrived. He had them park the SUVs behind the church in the rear parking lot and helped them carry the equipment in through the storage room. Riley and Olsen were already suited up, so they took lights downstairs while the rest of the men assembled in the sanctuary and quickly donned the equipment needed for the mission ahead of them.

A set of dark ceramic body armor, blessed by the Holy Father, went on first, followed by a black jumpsuit of flame-retardant material. Normally each man would carry an HK Mark 23 .45 caliber handgun in a shoulder holster, but these were discarded today in favor of their combat knives and swords. The former were worn in either wrist or ankles sheaths and the swords were worn in specially designed scabbards across each team member’s backs, the hilts readily accessible over one shoulder or the other. Lightweight Kevlar tactical helmets with built-in communications gear, including video and audio recording devices, went on last.

When they were ready, Cade passed through the ranks, inspecting each man, joking with them, offering a word of encouragement here and there when he felt it was needed. When he was finished they filed into the pews for the benediction and communion offering.

It was Cade’s intention to take one additional squad besides the men in the command unit. That was it. Eight men total. No vehicles, no extra troops, nothing to limit their speed or reaction time. Their intent was to harass the enemy and for that speed was crucial. Cade had no intention of getting into a long, drawn-out battle if it could be avoided. In fact, he would do everything in his power to be sure it didn’t happen.

First and Second Squads drew straws to see who would go and who would stay. Second lost and so Cade ordered them into a defensive position around the portal with orders to shoot anything that came through that wasn’t a part of the Order.

After Second Squad had filed out of the room, Cade addressed the rest of the men remaining in the group. He told them what they had found downstairs, what he intended to do about the discovery, and what to expect in the process.

“We’re about to leave this plane of existence behind and step into another one. The barrier between the two realms is called the Veil. Physically, you’ll feel a brief sense of dislocation and weightlessness when you cross it. It’s entirely normal and I’m telling you about it now so you don’t freak out when it happens in the midst of transit. Just stay calm and relax. It will go away in a few seconds.

“Emotionally it’s another matter. Everyone reacts differently to the crossing and I can’t predict what it will feel like for you. But no matter how you feel, remember that it’s only temporary. Stay focused on your faith and on the mission and you’ll be fine.

“Where we are going doesn’t have a formal name. Over the years, I’ve simply come to call it the Beyond. It’s like a mirror world of this one, except over there, emotion is the big differentiator, not technology. Your firearms won’t work, so don’t even bother bringing them along; they’ll just be dead weight. Keep your swords handy and if you’ve got an extra combat knife it wouldn’t hurt to have it close.

“The more force, willpower, and sheer determination you put into a strike, the better the outcome. If you don’t believe in what you are doing, the most perfectly executed slash to the enemy’s throat will only serve to draw a little blood rather than take the man’s head off. So stay focused and put everything you have into each and every swing.”

Cade paused and looked them over, confident that they were the right men for the job.

They all met his gaze squarely and without hesitation.

“You’re going to experience a change in your vision over there. All the color will be leached away. Everything, and I do mean everything, will be seen in some shade of grey. Once you come back to this side of the Veil, things will return to normal, so don’t panic when it happens. The one exception to this might be each one of us � in the Beyond, the living often seem to come across as more colorful, more vibrant than the dead.”

Cade caught Simpson, a man who’d joined Echo after Callevechio’s demise a few months earlier, looking a bit green around the gills and nodded encouragingly. “Those of you who were with me on the Eden op spent several days in the Beyond and escaped unscathed, so you know what to expect. Help the new men through the portal and stay with them until they’ve gotten used to things on the other side.

“Our mission is to disrupt the Chiang Shih encampment, buying time for the Order to mobilize enough troops to deal with what we expect to be a major incursion. We strike hard, strike fast, and then fade into the mountains, waiting for the next chance to do it all over again.

“Some of you have fought the Chiang Shih before. You know how fast and utterly ruthless they are. For the rest of you, understand that the enemy is driven by one thing only � hunger. They feed off the life force of the living and they need to do so again and again in order to sustain themselves. You’re going to look like a five course meal to them, since the living are few and far between in the Beyond. Stick together. Don’t let them drag you off alone.”

He paused, gave them a moment to digest what he’d said, and then asked, “Questions?”

There weren’t any, so Cade let Riley take over. Echo’s exec got the men on their feet, double-checked their gear, and then marched them out of the room and down the stairs to stand single file in front of the portal.

Casting one last look at the crucifix hanging above the altar and saying a short prayer, Cade turned and walked off after them, his thoughts no longer on the here and now but on what they would find once they crossed the Veil into the Beyond.

With Second Squad’s men in position, and the men from First Squad and the Command Unit packed into the room, there was very little space left to move around. Cade squeezed his way past the altar and stepped up next to the portal, to where Riley stood waiting for him. The portal itself had already been opened.

“Ready?” Cade asked.

“Always,” Riley replied and Cade knew he meant it. The Master Sergeant was one of the best men he’d ever served with and he always felt better facing the unknown knowing the big man had his back.

“All right, I’ll go through first. You should be able to see me once I emerge on the other side. At my signal start sending them through one at a time after that, a minute or so between each one. You bring up the rear.”

“Roger that, boss.”

“Good. I’ll see you on the other side.”

Drawing his sword, Cade walked over to the portal and without hesitation stepped through its shimmering surface.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

One by one, they came through after him. Some of them crossed the Veil without incident. A few reacted just as Olsen had, overcome by their emotions, and needed a few minutes to find their equilibrium. Childers, one of the new men from First Squad, was violently sick when he came through, vomiting repeatedly for the better part of five minutes, but some salt tablets and a few gulps of water from his canteen seemed to settle him down and Cade let him stay with the unit.

All in all, it was better than Cade anticipated. He gave them a few minutes to get used to the reality around them, knowing from personal experience how disconcerting it could be and then got them organized into position to move out.

Nightfall was a few hours away and he wanted to have them in a secure position before then. All sorts of creatures roamed the Beyond after dark and the men from Echo didn’t need to waste their time or energy fighting any foe other than the Chiang Shih. By setting up a defensive position in the ruins that he and Olsen had located on their previous journey, they should be able to stay low and avoid any of the roaming denizens of the dark while at the same time planning their campaign against the Chiang Shih in the valley below.

They headed out, moving in single file down the path until they reached the wider street below. They stopped for a moment to light the gasoline torches that they’d brought along with them. Cade wasn’t thrilled with the fact that the flames would also serve as a beacon, revealing their presence to anyone who might be watching, but he’d been unable to come up with any other way, short of using a flamethrower, to get such a large group through the gauntlet posed by the vegetation around them. The torches would burn longer than the flares they used previously and wouldn’t be as noticeable as the curtain of fire a flamethrower would create. And they should serve nicely to keep the creeping vines away from their route until they reached the far side of town.