Dread Nemesis of Mine

chapter 28

Katie shrieked when we walked into the cabin.

The gray man still sat where I'd left him, a frightening leer plastered on his face. The god-awful expression vanished as his lips resumed their normal flat state. "I have been practicing being happy, Justin," he said in his calm voice. "It is not easy."

"You call that being happy?" Katie said, a hand pressed to her heart. "Smiling like that?"

He nodded. "From what I understand, smiling is an important part of being happy. But smiling is very difficult."

"It is when you're not happy," I said, frowning. "How do you know all this stuff? Do you have a bunch of information programmed into you?"

He tilted his head. "I am not programmed like a computer. My spark contains a great deal of data, although I do not know its origination. Some of this data is already organized into information, linking it to what I have seen in the world. Other parts are quite raw and scattered, and I must research them."

"Such as how to be happy?"

He nodded. "Emotions are very hard to understand. From what I have gathered, one must experience such things to understand them."

"Get a girlfriend. You'll figure out a lot of emotions really quick."

"Hey now," Elyssa said, punching me on the arm.

The gray man looked from me to Elyssa. "Finding someone who wishes to be with me in that sense would be very difficult, Justin. I believe many here would rather see me burned to ash and forgotten."

"Like little gray cinders on the wind," Katie said. "How sad."

The golem studied Katie for a moment. "I have decided my name."

I cocked my head. "Really? Is it George?"

"How about Dexter?" Katie said. "I love that name."

"No. It is Cinder."

"Huh?" I said, failing to see why he'd choose such a name.

"After Katie mentioned the word, I looked it up. It describes me rather accurately. I am gray. I am not a full being in any sense of the word, but an ashen representation of a human. I am but gray dust molded into form."

I stared at him dumbfounded for a moment. "That was almost poetic. But isn't a cinder hot ash?"

"I do have a spark inside me. While it is not hot, I believe the name will suffice."

I stood up and walked across the room to him, held out a hand. He stared at it for a moment before standing and extending his own.

I gripped his hand and shook it. "Nice to meet you, Cinder."

He looked at me. I caught the twitch in his eyes, almost too slight for anyone without supernatural senses to have seen. "Thank you, Justin."

"Congratulations, Cinder!" Katie said, clapping her hands.

Elyssa stared at us like we were crazy. "Yay. The golem has a name. Now, instead of wasting time, let's do something to find Nightliss."

"I believe I have pertinent information regarding this entity," Cinder said, flicking his fingers across the arctablet Katie had used earlier.

A picture of the dark angel hovered above the table. Rustic buildings, roofs laden with snow lay behind her as she stared somewhere off into the distance while swirling snow surrounded her. She wore only a simple black dress despite the sub-zero temperatures. The shadowy outline of wings hung from her back, and her black hair billowed. Beneath the image was a caption: Crazy beautiful girl with wings. Not Photoshopped!

"Where was this?" I asked leaning forward for a better view.

"In Breckenridge, Colorado," Cinder said. "When I discovered the image, it triggered memories in my spark, uncovering a series of directives we were given regarding this entity."

"Mr. Gray knows about Nightliss?" My insides went cold. Cinder's creator was—as far as I knew—in league with Daelissa. As Ivy had put it, a Brightling.

"I do not know a Mr. Gray. From what little I can recover of my previous instructions, Nightliss is a person of great interest. This revelation led to a chain of thought which revealed even more." Cinder tilted his head slightly. "You are a person of great interest to my creator as well, Justin."

Elyssa jumped in front of me, arms splayed protectively. "I knew keeping him around wasn't a good idea. How long until you act on those instructions, golem?"

The golem regarded her in silence for a moment, then said, "I have no intention of acting on any prior directives. Justin saved my spark, my continued existence. There is no higher price to repay."

"It's hard to believe that little light is life." Katie said.

"It's not life. It's what animates these things," Elyssa said. "Sometimes it's in the chest. Sometimes, the head. Disconnect the spark from the body, and they drop dead." She took a step toward him. "It may look more lifelike than any golem I've ever seen, but it's still just an inanimate object. I say we end this charade now before Frankenstein's monster turns on us. For all we know, he's a spy."

"Leave him alone." I grabbed Elyssa's arm and pulled her back. "He hasn't done anything to show he's a danger."

My girlfriend's blazing eyes turned on me. "You're taking sides with that thing over me?"

I took an involuntary step back, hands held up protectively. "No. But I know how it is to be judged and found guilty just because of who and what I am. Things happen for a reason."

She took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose and closing her eyes. "I know. I'm sorry. But we're on a timer, Justin. You are dying, minute-by-minute, and diversions like this—this thing are only getting in our way."

"Perhaps this is one of those emotional girlfriend things you spoke of earlier," Cinder said, his voice as calm and polite as if Elyssa hadn't just discussed destroying him. "Although, I am unsure if it is awakening emotions in me."

"I'll show you emotions," Elyssa said, going for her sword.

"Whoa!" I shouted, taking her arm. "Remember the whole not killing thing we just talked about?"

"I believe I may be of help," the golem continued, gray eyes studying Elyssa. "Before my awakening, I believe my mind was part of a collective consciousness shared by me and those of my kind. We were tracking the movements of this being." He waved away the photograph and replaced it with an overhead map of the world. His finger touched various locations around the globe, including one in Atlanta and southern Colombia.

"These are places she's been seen?"

"With some frequency, though most sightings came here." He pointed to Atlanta.

"Because of me?" I asked. "Was she watching me?"

"More specifically, she visited the abandoned granite quarry called Thunder Rock." The golem zoomed in on the area.

"Where did she go in Colombia?"

"The dead city, El Dorado."

Elyssa pinched the image, zooming it back out to the world map. "And these other places?" She pointed to the red dots. "Are they abandoned angel relics, too?"

"They are uninhabited," Cinder said. "Interdicted by the Arcane Council, according to the records."

"I really don't want to go back to Thunder Rock," I said with a shudder. It hadn't been so long ago I'd been lost there, nearly devoured by cherubs, and shot through a series of malfunctioning Obsidian Arches, only to end up in El Dorado where shadow people had tried to suck me dry.

"So it's possible we could find her there," Elyssa said.

Cinder gave a stiff nod, as if he weren't accustomed to using body language for expression. "My memories are not complete. Only shards remain, though more may come back to me with proper triggers. Still, Thunder Rock appears to be a place of some significance for the…angel."

I raised an eyebrow at the uncertainty in his otherwise calm voice. "I don't have time to sit around Thunder Rock, hoping that Nightliss will show up."

A thud sounded against the door.

Elyssa groaned. "Great. Probably Fausta. My father is already mobilizing forces for an assault on Maximus in Atlanta." She swung open the door and gasped.

A petite woman with olive skin and dark hair lay outside the door, her skin cut and bruised in so many places, it looked like she'd been beaten and left for dead. Elyssa pulled the hair away to reveal a bloodied face with several deep cuts. Even so, I recognized her instantly.

"Nightliss!" I dropped to her side. "Oh, god, what happened to her?"

"I'll get Meghan," Katie said, gingerly stepping over the prostrate angel and running toward the infirmary.

I tore the sheets off the bed and covered it with towels. Elyssa set Nightliss down atop them. Kneeling by her side, I took the angel's hand and pressed a palm to her forehead. She felt cool. I put an ear to her mouth and detected the barest hint of breath.

"Nightliss?" I said. "Can you hear me?"

She didn't even twitch.

Meghan showed up a moment later, a white bag decorated with purple flowers in one hand. "Clear away from her," she commanded, drawing her wand and running it along the angel's still form. Wisps of smoky vapor drifted from her body, forming a ghostly outline. Some of the vapors were green. Most were orange or red.

The healer shook her head. "I don't even know how she's still alive." She reached in her bag and withdrew a mason jar filled with glowing white light. "Justin, you'd better back further away. This is soul essence. I don't want you accidentally siphoning any away."

Too stunned by the oddity of soul essence in a jar to say anything, I backed all the way into the kitchen and watched as Meghan unscrewed the lid and held it beneath Nightliss's nose. My incubus senses tingled. I felt the demonic part of me strain against my control as the halo of light drifted toward the angel's face like a lazy snowflake.

Nightliss groaned. Her eyelids fluttered. Her chest heaved, and she took in a deep breath. The light swirled into her mouth, unwinding like a ball of yarn until the last wisp vanished. The angel coughed. Black fluid bubbled from her mouth. Meghan turned her over, holding the other woman's head over the edge of the bed. Nightliss convulsed. A guttural noise started deep in her throat, a gagging, choking sound. More of the dark liquid dribbled onto the tiled floor.

Katie and Elyssa jumped back, their mouths clenched with disgust.

Meghan ran her wand up the angel's back, chanting under her breath. The wand glowed brighter and brighter until, with one gut-wrenching convulsion, Nightliss expelled a gout of oily black goop. It splattered all over the place, soaking into the bed mattress and Meghan's plain blue dress.

Forget cleaning the sheets. Fausta was going to need a new mattress.

Seemingly oblivious to the foul-smelling fluid, Meghan took a towel and wiped Nightliss's mouth and face with it before turning the angel back down on the bed.

"What," said Katie, pinching her nose, "is that stuff?"

Meghan shook her head. "I have no idea." She looked at me. "Is there a bucket in the kitchen somewhere?"

I looked under the sink and found a plastic trash can. Pulled the bag out of it and handed it to the Arcane. She muttered an incantation, twirling the wand in a tight circle. The dark fluid whirled, forming a funnel. Droplets of it struggled free of the mattress, towels, and Meghan's clothes. She altered the pattern of her wand. The liquid formed a floating sphere, shimmering in the incandescent light. I picked up the trash can, enclosing the liquid in it.

Meghan lowered her wand, and wiped beaded sweat from her forehead. "Don't dump that down the sink until we figure out what it is."

I nodded and put a lid over it.

"Will she survive?" Cinder said, his eyes never leaving Nightliss.

"I believe she has a slim—" Meghan broke off as Nightliss coughed, eyes blinking open.

"Jared?" the angel said, eyelids drooping. "Please don't leave me." She drifted asleep, breathing easy.

"I think I'll upgrade her chances from slim to good," Meghan said after the surprise faded from her face.

"Who's Jared?" I asked.

Elyssa smiled and crossed her arms. "I hope you don't expect an answer to that."

"Yeah, but—"

My girlfriend crossed the room in a blur. Gripped me in a fierce hug. Tears trickled down her cheeks. "Nightliss is going to be okay. You're going to be okay."

Warmth spread from the very center of my being as my thoughts shifted back to the impending doom infecting my blood. "Yeah." I grinned. "Maybe you're right." Provided Nightliss can actually cure me. The joy faded at the possible reality she may not. As if to remind me, an icy cold ache dug deep into my calf muscle, causing me to wince.

Meghan went into the kitchen and poured a cup of water from the faucet. Dark circles underscored her eyes. For the first time, I realized how haggard she looked.

"Are you okay, Meghan?" I asked.

She offered a wan smile. "Just exhausted. We've been treating casualties non-stop since yesterday. Commander Salazar requested Healers from other legions, so hopefully we'll have a break soon." Her gaze shifted to Nightliss. "Let her rest. Whatever you do, don't try to wake her." She finished her water and headed for the door. "I'll return to check on her soon."

"How's Adam?" I asked.

She turned from the door, worry lines in her brow deepening. "He hasn't left Felicia's side." A tear glistened in the corner of her eye. "Will you talk to him, Justin? Make him see it's not his fault?"

"Sure," I said, my throat suddenly dry. I couldn't help but feel I was to blame. Sure, it was irrational. Following Felicia's instructions had seemed the smart thing to do at the time. But hindsight dug into my gut with a vicious twist, showing me how I could have prevented this outcome.

"You can't save everyone," Elyssa said, squeezing my hand.

"I guess if nobody else is going to say it, I will," Katie said, her eyes fixed on Nightliss.

"Say what?" I raised an eyebrow as a female mind once again succeeded in confusing me.

"How very convenient the one person you need suddenly shows up on your doorstep." She crossed her arms and gave me a look that dared contradiction.

Elyssa groaned. "Damn it, she's right. I didn't want to say anything but…"

"Does it matter how she got here?" I said.

"I was so happy to see her, to think you might be cured, Justin." Elyssa shook her head. "But miracles like this don't just happen. Not in the real world."

"Since when was the Overworld the real world?" I said, crossing my arms tight against my chest to keep my hands from shaking, even though deep inside, I knew they were right.

"Maybe she was already looking for you," Katie said. "Maybe she got in trouble and you're the only person she could turn to." She shrugged. "It doesn't explain how she knew where you were, of course. But we need to be careful. Someone messed her up bad. That same person might have done something to her and dumped her here as a trap."

"You're sounding as paranoid as me," I said. "Cripes, I guess it's contagious."

"Justin—" Elyssa started.

"I don't want to talk about it anymore." I slashed my hand through the air and suppressed a growl threatening to rise out of my chest. "She's here, and that's all that matters. Whether she's the answer to all our prayers remains to be seen."

"I found this outside," Cinder said, appearing at the doorway. He held up a clump of blonde hairs that looked as though someone had grabbed a handful and yanked them out. "They were caught in the grass outside the door where your friend was."

"Meghan's a blonde," Elyssa said, then glanced at Katie. "And so are you."

"Yeah, but someone tore these out," Katie said. "I sure didn't see any bald patches on Meghan.

"An angelic cat fight," I said. "I'll bet they're Daelissa's."

"So Daelissa brought her here?" Elyssa's eyebrows pinched.

My stomach rumbled. Not good. "We'll just have to ask her when she wakes up." The happiness I'd felt upon first seeing my prayers answered all but evaporated. I could see the hope fading in Elyssa's eyes as well.

Katie wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, Justin. I hope I'm wrong. I just don't want anyone to get hurt." She sniffled and turned. "I'm going to take a walk. It's stuffy in here."

Elyssa watched her go. "I'll keep an eye on Nightliss. Maybe you should go talk to Adam. Make sure he doesn't get too—you know."

"Too excited? Overly optimistic?" I sighed. "Story of my life."

She gave me a sad smile, and nodded.

I kissed her on the forehead. "I'll go talk to Adam. Let me know if anything changes."

"May I go?" Cinder said, rising from his seat.

"Sure." I motioned him along and stepped outside into the dark chilly night.

We headed for the long Quonset the Templars were using to temporarily house the injured. I figured they hadn't had to deal with such a large number of casualties as this before. Then again, nobody had expected an army of vampires armed with cursed bullets.

"Justin, is Nightliss truly an angel?"

I stopped and looked at Cinder, surprised by the uncertainty in his typically deadpan voice. "I think so, though not in the biblical sense of the word. Just like vampires aren't exactly how most books portray them."

"Do you believe she is a being of great power?"

I nodded. "No doubt. Why?"

His gray eyes focused on something in the distance. "Can she make me real?"

"Real? But you are—" My mouth dropped open as my slow wits picked up on the significance of his remark. "You want to be like me?"

"Perhaps not a demon spawn," he said. "Real flesh and blood would be enough."

"Why?"

"I believe my grasp on emotions is improving." He pressed a hand to his midsection. "Based on the way something inside me reacts to Elyssa's willingness to end my existence makes me desire humanity. I do not wish to elicit negative emotions in others because I am magically animated and not, according to most standards, real."

I put a hand on his shoulder. "I understand what you're going through. I've been there." Glancing back at the cabin where the angel rested, I wondered what she would think of his request. "I have no idea if Nightliss can turn you into a human. Your creator, Mr. Gray, might know the answer."

"The Mr. Gray you mentioned earlier…he made me?"

I grimaced, realizing I hadn't exactly sat the poor golem down and explained my history with the gray men. "Uh, I think so. From what I know, he's an angel like Nightliss."

"Oh." Cinder looked at the ground. "Then perhaps it is impossible. Otherwise, why did he not make me more human?"

Aside from gray being his creator's favorite color, I had no answer for him. "Look, let's talk about this later." I motioned him onward. "Once Nightliss is up and about, she can tell you for sure."

He stayed where he was. "Justin, I am sorry for deceiving you."

My chest went cold. "What do you mean?"

"I did not actually desire to accompany you to Adam. Instead, I wished only to ask you this question in private."

I sighed in relief that his following me wasn't part of an evil plot. "You don't have to come."

"Perhaps I will practice being bored as you suggested earlier. It may further my understanding of emotions."

"Are you sure you actually feel?" I asked.

"According to definition, I believe I do." He held out his hands and looked at them. "I also sense things by touch, smell, sight, and sound." His arms dropped to his sides. "It appears, however, I was not meant to experience or utilize emotions. It was not until I awoke in Maximus's lab that the first tingling of awareness or emotion entered into me. Whatever caused such a change was not part of my original composition."

"Did Maximus do something to you?"

He opened his mouth, and then with robotic precision, shrugged. "I do not know."

"Look, we'll talk about this. Just practice your emotions, preferably somewhere away from Elyssa for now. Okay?"

He nodded. "Thank you for listening, Justin."

"No problem." I left him standing there and headed for the corrugated steel building with a semi-circular roof at the other side of the complex. A familiar figure emerged from the front door and stormed toward one of the two-story dorm buildings. Adam.

I hurried to catch up to him, following inside where he slid a key into a door lock.

"Adam," I said.

He jerked. Looked at me. "Oh, Justin." He opened the door. "Come on in."

I followed him into the dorm room. Two unopened suitcases sat atop a still made bed. He moved them to the floor then opened a duffel bag and dug out a memory card. I hoped for a cue to start my talk, but he didn't say anything else, content to keep messing with his arcphone, popping the memory card in and looking at something on the screen.

"What you got there?" I asked.

He grunted. Flicked his finger and activated the holographic display. A dizzying array of symbols filled the air. Something about them seemed awfully familiar. He waved his hand across the sea of symbols, arriving at a complicated pattern I felt certain I'd seen before.

"Remember this?" he said.

I narrowed my eyes, trying to recall. "I think I do."

"The spells you took from your mom's computer. You asked me and Shelton to look them over."

My heart clenched. "The spells of mass destruction? The ones someone could use to wipe out an entire race of supernaturals?"

"Time we put it to use, Justin." He turned off the display and shoved the phone in his pocket. "I deciphered the runes for one of the spells. Got them all in place. Now all I need to do is power the spell."

"You mean you're going to—"

"Yeah. We're going to wipe out every vampire in Atlanta."