Even Hell Has Knights (Hellsong) (19 page)

It’s the pain, it wakes him. But he doesn’t show it, even from sleep.

“We move, guns drawn,” Aaron ordered. “There could be other infidels about. Stay sharp.”

Arturus complied, drawing his pistol. He wished he had brought his rifle, but he figured there wouldn’t be too many rooms between here and Harpsborough where he’d need to worry about having any range. He felt unarmed somehow, as if the bulk of the weapon would add some protection.

He watched the corridors as they moved towards Harpsborough. Galen moved amongst them, taking his customary care in looking down passages. He seemed remarkably unconcerned. Arturus envied him. It seemed an attitude impossible to emulate. Simpler for him to master was Aaron’s manner. Aaron was also alert, on edge, even. Unlike his men, however, he didn’t appear fearful.
More hunter than prey.

Arturus thought there were shadows in the corridors, some of them even appeared to move, but when he focused he never saw anything. His heart beat so loudly and quickly in his chest that he feared the others might hear it.

If there are any hounds around, they will smell my fear.

“I need a break, Aaron,” o
ne of the hunters said. “I can’t carry this shit anymore.”

“Spell him, Turi,” Galen ordered.

Arturus dutifully holstered his gun and took up one end of the stretcher. He looked at the fallen man’s boots. They were still wet from the river.

It must be safe since Galen’s willing to put me here
.

But he didn’t know if Galen would make a decision like that for his own safety. Would Galen be more concerned for the group as a whole? Did his father make the decision simply to help these men?

I’m the least experienced gun here. He can afford to lose me.

But that didn’t seem right. There was another reason Galen might assign him to the stretcher. Arturus was much less likely to drop the infidel.

He can tell I care.

The Harpsborough man obviously didn’t. He kept looking back over his shoulder, as if worried that the Infidel Friend would rise up and strike at him. Each time he did so Arturus had to struggle to keep the stretcher steady.

“If it’s easier, I’ll take the lead,” Arturus offered.

The hunter gratefully accepted.

Galen grunted.

He’s proud of me.

“Good timing? Davel, you’re insane.” Michael fumed as he paced about the parlor. “No one’s going out into the wilds. Aaron’s got his hunters working half shifts. All of Harpsborough is going to explode with gossip. They’ll want his head.”

“Don’t we?” Mancini asked. “There have been troubles in Harpsborough. Unrest. We need a common enemy to pull us together, and the devils have been doing a poor job of it lately. Let the Infidel Friend take their place.”

Michael moved to the balcony curtain, looking through its crack onto his city. “I don’t want this to be some kind of lynch mob justice.”

“Aaron helped you out with that,” Mancini said. “Your Lead Hunter dragged the man all the way back here for judgment.”

“And what, I summarily kill him?”

“Why not, Mike? You summarily killed Charlie to take the Fore, and this is something that came with it. You’ve ordered hermits slaughtered before for less grievous crimes.”

“But that’s just it, they did something. We’re going to kill this poor bastard for who he is.”

Mancini shook his head. “I don’t see the difference.”

“The difference is that the others did bad things.”

“Mike, they did bad things because they were bad people. This Infidel Friend is a bad person. Besides, what else are you going to do to him? Let him go? He’ll be back with more of them. Those things are monsters. You’ve heard Father Klein’s stories.”

“Just stories. If Molly said—”

“Molly’s a whore, Mike. This is Father Klein. He has no reason to lie.”

“We’ll have his trial in the church.”

Mancini shook his head again. “I don’t think that this is necessary.”

“You’re the one who wanted a common enemy. What good would he be if we didn’t prop him up in front of everybody?”

“Ask Klein about it. They’re all trained in sophistry. You let that man heal and represent himself, and he’ll talk circles around you.”

“I doubt that, Davel.”

“He’ll appeal to the baser amongst us. The villagers may not be smart enough to see their way through his arguments.”

“Just the Citizens, then. They’ll vote him guilty or not guilty. I’ll decide the punishment.”

Finally Mancini nodded. “Okay. Just the Citizens, but—”

He stopped as he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Young John’s face appeared through the tapestry. “Aaron would like to see you, sir.”

Michael nodded. “Bring him up.”

Michael could hear the unrest of his city while he waited for Aaron to appear. So many people were talking that it sounded as if Harpsborough itself were a hive of angry bees.

“Smart,” Michael lauded Aaron as the man entered the room. “You made the right decision in bringing the Infidel Friend here.”

“I appreciate that, First Citizen.”

Mancini snorted. “‘First Citizen?’ You’re being awfully polite. You must want something.”

Aaron laughed. “I posted two hunters at the church.”

“And?” Michael asked.

“I don’t think they’ll be enough.”

Michael pushed through the tapestry and walked out onto the balcony. He moved to the edge, leaned against the railing and looked out towards the church. Half of the villagers, perhaps, were gathered around the steps.

“Fine, post more. No, better yet, get Klein to kick them off his steps.”

“We better get him to trial fast,” Mancini said.

“He must heal first. You know what? Even better. Aaron, move him to the Fore. Give him to Staunten. The villagers go into the church all the time. They never go into the Fore. Then your two guards will be enough.”

“Sir,” Aaron said, “if they raid the For
e
. .
.
”

“He’s right, Mike,” Mancini said, “we’d be forced to shoot at villagers.”

“They’re more curious than anything else. He’ll have to wake up before they get angry. Aaron, do it.”

“Yes, sir.”

Arturus sat on the church steps watching Galen help move the Infidel Friend into the Fore. He marveled at how easily his father fit in amongst the hunters.

He helps them a lot. Maybe I can help them someday.

The rest of the villagers began to mill about. A few moved towards the Fore, standing outside the man’s new resting place.

Behind him, the church doors opened.

“Arturus,” Father Klein greeted him as he fastened one of the great double doors to the wall. “How nice of you to visit. Have you come to pray?”

“But you say that God can’t hear.”

“Of course he can’t. God cannot look on sin, and we are in Hell. But prayer is a powerful thing. You cannot discount it just because there is no one there to answer. How much can you learn about a person by listening to his wants?”

“A lot, I guess.”

“Then think how much you could learn about yourself from your own wants?”

Arturus mulled this over. “But I’m me, shouldn’t I know me anyway?”

“You should indeed,” Klein said. “But sometimes it helps to talk these things out. Sometimes we lie to ourselves, and praying helps you find out. Besides, imagine how God might think of your requests. He would frown upon you if you wished harm on someone, so through prayer you can try and put things into perspective.”

“Okay,” Arturus said. “I’ll try.”

He followed Father Klein up the steps and walked through the one open double door. The inside of the church was lit by windows set high in the walls. The ceiling itself was over four stories tall, and Arturus gazed up at it. All around the top edge, and in the windows themselves, were woodstone crosses. They were irregularly sized, and cast shadows of themselves across the marble stone floor and woodstone pews.

Klein walked all the way up to the steps before the pulpit and knelt. Arturus did likewise, closed his eyes, and prayed.

Can you hear me, God?

He listened for a reply. He could hear the soft whispers of Klein’s own murmured prayer. He could hear the angry buzz of the village outside. He could hear his own breathing, but nothing else.

I’ve never prayed to You before. I wish You could hear me.

Wait. This is stupid. God can’t hear me. I’m talking to myself. I should try, though.

I’ll pretend You can hear me.

If I had been born on Earth, maybe then we could have really spoken. You and I. You could have watched me grow up. I was pretty bad when I was younger. Hopefully You would have found that funny. We could have been friends. Maybe You could have helped me. You could have made sure I was safe on my way to Harpsborough the first time I went alone. You could have protected me during my first firefight. You could have stopped me from killing that man who surprised me when I was eight. Galen beat me for that. Maybe You could have helped me through that, too.

I guess what I want to pray for is that infidel. I don’t want him to be hurt, God. I want him to be okay. Will you make it so he’s okay? I don’t want him to hurt anyone else, but I want him to be fine, too.

His eyes fluttered open.

“Who’s Ares?” he asked Father Klein on an impulse.

The world seemed brighter somehow, and he had to adjust to the light. He felt a great sadness in his heart. He imagined it was from the prayer.

Father Klein also opened his eyes.

He swallowed, and Arturus watched the man’s Adam’s apple move up and down.

“In the old world,” Klein said, “Ares was a false god. His symbols were the hound and the vulture. He was a God of war.”

Arturus knew all that. Galen had told him stories of the Greek gods.

“In Hell,” Father Klein went on, “there’s a man with that same name. He’s a follower of the Infidel. One of the most vicious and feared in all of the labyrinth, next to Archades, Kent, Endymion, Past and Present.”

“Why is he so feared?”

“They say he wields a sword of bone, carved from the femur of a man he’s slain. They say he wears armor made of men’s ribcages, and a helmet like might be worn by an ancient Greek knight—a hoplite helm. He doesn’t use bullets, preferring to feel the blood of his victims. Of all the Infidel’s men, he is perhaps the most godless. He is a monarch to those who serve him and slays those who question him. Where did you hear of him?”

“The Infidel Friend we captured. He was coming in and out of consciousness. He spoke the name.”

Father Klein swallowed again. “Let us hope that he simply knows Ares in passing. If this Infidel Friend that we have is under Ares’ command, then we are surely in grave danger.”

“Do you think he’d come for us?”

“Turi, you may be afraid of shadows.”

There are better things to worry about than the falling of the sky.

The young man nodded. “Are all the Infidel Friend evil?”

“They are all godless. They go through Hell making wolves of men. We came to Hell because we were evil, Turi. It’s hard for you to understand that, since they say you were born here. We were ordered to be sheep, to be obedient and follow the Lord’s will. Instead we wandered. Some of us, those who are mature enough to admit our mistakes, try and continue to follow His teachings. The Infidel’s men think differently. They are angry at God and blame Him for their damnation. They refuse to take any responsibility for their failures on Earth. They continue to ignore His teachings. By ignoring those teachings they hurt people. They are inglorious murderers who take no pleasure in helping humankind. It is difficult to tell them apart from the devils.”

Arturus imagined the wounded man he’d found in Ellen’s chamber. How weak and powerless he had seemed. He’d been laid low.

If one can be hurt, then they all can be hurt. Even Ares.

Father Klein smiled and placed a heavy hand on Arturus’ shoulder. “And your prayers, how did they make you feel?”

“Sad, Father. They made me feel sad.”

“That’s the separation from God that you are feeling. Our souls were not meant to be taken away from Him. That’s the worst part of Hell, Turi. To be separated from the Father of all.”

“I never got a chance to meet Him,” Arturus said.

“Nor did I, young man,” Father Klein said, looking sadly to the largest cross which hung behind the pulpit. “Nor did I.”

Aaron tapped gently on the door blanket next to the dreamcatcher. Some of the stones, caught as if nightmares in its yarn, rattled as he did so. “Alice, are you there?”

“One second,” she replied.

Aaron wiped the sweat from his face and tried to arrange his hair while he waited for her. After a few moments, she emerged from her home. He could see the lacey edge of her pink bra peeking up from beneath her blue v-neck shirt.

“Yeah, Aaron, what’s up?” she said. “Are you okay? You look worried.”

“I’m fine, I guess. Hey, I know this is kind of a funny time, but it’s been a
while since we ate together. Would you like to eat in the Fore with me tomorrow?”

She smiled. “Of course.” And then she wrinkled her nose. “You’ll have to bathe first, though. Don’t much care for skunks.”

Aaron laughed. “No problem. I have a trip to the river planned in my very near future.”

“Fine,” she said, “it’s a date, Mr.
Le Pew
.”

Aaron had no idea why the word “date” made him feel so excited. He thought about leaning in and kissing her, but remembered that he wasn’t smelling very good at the moment.

Aw, what the hell.

He brushed one of her loose strands of hair away from her face and kissed her. She pushed him back after a second, her cheeks turning red.

“Easy tiger,” she said, grinning, but then her expression turned serious. “God, you are worried. What’s going on?”

Aaron hadn’t realized that his emotions were so transparent. “It was weird. Protecting that Infidel Friend, I mean. On the way back I was afraid I was going to die. Like the Infidel himself was going to spring out of the shadows and kill me.”

Alice shuddered visibly, and looked away.

“I wondered, then,” he went on, “what you might have thought about me if I died.”