World After

There are dozens of humans trapped under the nets, clawing and squirming, trying to find the edge of their snare so they can escape. A few jabs of the scorpion stingers cause people to crowd together in the middle of their traps. They cry and scream, all their previous silence gone.



Gunshots ring out from one of the trapped groups. A nearby scorpion goes down, screeching.



As if a dinner bell rang, a bunch of scorpions dive onto the netted group where the shot came from. Stingers lash up and down, repeatedly stinging until blood drips from the tips. Their monster heads latch onto the victims to suck on them.



The screams and thrashing quiet after a minute, leaving only a pile of shriveled bodies twitching beneath a shroud of mesh.



I don’t know if anyone else has a gun, but after that, no one dares to shoot.



A boy of about eight was separated from his father. They reach for each other under different nets. The kid is crying for his dad but it’s the father who looks ashen and utterly terrified at being separated.



The scorpions corral them, half-dragging their nets, half-keeping them moving by threatening with their stingers.



We crouch down farther into the shadows, hardly daring to breathe.



The monsters march the captives to a metal shipping container—the kind that trucks, trains, and ships carry. It’s not far from us but with all the debris strewn around, I hadn’t even noticed it.



They open the container door. A metal-lattice rollup gate is behind that.



And behind the gate, people cluster together as far from the entrance as they can get.



Half the container is already crammed full of men, women, and even a few children. They’re terrified and huddling together like the helpless victims that they are.



The scorpions roll up the metal gate, lifting up the nets. The new captives scurry away from the monsters and into the container.



Chpater 29



THE SCORPIONS do a surprising thing. They take off into the night sky, leaving Beliel alone to roll down the prisoner’s chain gate and lock it.



He takes his time doing this as if to tease the captives. When he’s done, he hangs the key on one of the lamps beside the container.



The mesh of the rollup gate is woven loosely enough to put an arm or foot through an opening, but even a kid couldn’t get out.



The old prisoners are quiet but the new ones make a fair bit of noise with their crying and panicked questions.



“What’s going on?”



“What are they going to do to us?”



Beliel limps around shutting off the tripod utility lights on the dock. His knee seems to be bothering him more than before. He leaves the lights on only near the shipping container. The circle of light is bright there and I’m glad we’re still hidden in the shadows.



As if the fear and hysteria of the prisoners weren’t enough for him, Beliel rattles the container gate, then slams his open palm on the metal side. The loud clang echoes through the pier.



Everyone cringes and the crying gets louder. The terror and hopelessness come in such big waves that they swamp me.



Beliel shoves his face into the chains of the gate. Everyone backs away even more. He hisses and growls at them. Then he grabs the edge of the container and shakes it.



Now, even the veteran prisoners are screaming.



What’s he doing?



I’ve seen him in a rage when he’s been totally out of control. This is different. There’s no passion in what he’s doing. It’s just a job.



He’s on edge, though, and sneaking glances up at the sky.



Is he being watched? Maybe this is more training for the scorpions? Maybe they’re still around, watching somewhere? For what purpose?



I look up into the darkness and the remaining rooflines, suddenly feeling exposed.



I see only the beams of light near the container prison. The lights are a beacon from the bleak landscape of twisted buildings and the lifeless night.



I still can’t make sense of it.



Then, a darker silhouette appears against the sky.



Menacing demon wings.



Broad shoulders.



The shape of a Greek god gliding through the sky.



Raffe.



Every nerve in my body comes alive and pulses.



My mind cries trap, trap, trap!



This is why Beliel is alone, making all this noise. The noise would both attract attention and disguise any noises that the scorpions would make. The scorpions are out there. Hiding. Waiting.



Without thinking, I instinctively spring and open my mouth to scream a warning to Raffe.



But vice-like hands grip my arm, knocking me off balance. Hands clamp down over my mouth and all I can see are the huge, terrified eyes of my mother. She looks at me like I have gone insane.



My brain finally catches up to the rest of me.



She’s right.



Of course she’s right. How bad are things when your clinically insane mother is more rational than you are?



Raffe.



I nod to show that I’m sane again and shift so I can see what’s going on. Mom lets me go.



Raffe lands silently. His wings don’t fold all the way. The scythes on the edge of his wings unsheathe and he whips them out. They’re retractable. I hadn’t realized that before.



I frantically run through my options. What can I do? Yelling will get all of us in trouble. Besides, Raffe thinks I’m dead. Yelling to him might only put him in more danger by shocking him.



The prisoners scream when they see Raffe with his demon wings. It’s painful to see that people prefer a bad guy who looks like an angel to a good guy who looks like a demon.



Beliel feigns stage shock like a clown. “Why, it’s Raphael! Oh, how will I defend myself from the great Wrath that is the fallen echo of what once was?” He drops the act. “Seriously, Raphael, there’s nothing sadder than a broken wreck of a has-been obsessed with trying to relive his past glory. Have a little dignity, will you? You’re embarrassing yourself.”



“Shall I rip off your arms and legs first and then tear off the wings? Or the other way around?” Raffe’s voice is full of raw violence in a tone I haven’t heard before. He sounds like he wishes he could have it both ways.



“Why do you want to go back so badly, Raphael? What was so great about being part of the angelic host anyway? So. Many. Rules. I’d forgotten just how many. Maybe you have, too.”



Beliel is stalling. Keeping Raffe in place until the scorpions can descend on him. I’m dying to call out a warning to him. It’s all I can do to stay quiet.



“All this theory about how a master warrior race can only survive if every little infraction of the rules is punished in the extreme.” Beliel motions his hand in a gesture that says, Whatever. “It might have made sense once upon a time when there were only a few rules, but now, things have gotten out of hand, don’t you think? We, the Fallen, on the other hand, have proven that a master warrior race can survive just fine with the opposite system. No rules. You do what you want. To whoever you want.”



Raffe advances on him, the harsh lights emphasizing the shadows on his face. He looks like the Angel of Death. Or maybe the Angel of Vengeance. Someone I can’t imagine approaching.



“You would have saved yourself so much hassle if you had listened to reason and joined us,” says Beliel. “That little Daughter of Man who died in your arms? She could have been yours. No one would have said no. No one would have dared to try to take her from you.”



With a vicious growl, Raffe attacks.



Chpater 30



HE LEAPS for Beliel and slaps his wings into him, clearly meaning to slash through him.



Beliel spins out of the way, partly avoiding the hit. He tosses a work lamp in Raffe’s direction.



The light crashes onto the pier. It flashes with a loose connection, lighting the fighters in a random strobe light.



Blood drips down Beliel’s sneering face and arms. “Admit it. You like the new wings. Why bother with fluffy and feathery when you can have freedom and power?”



“I could ask the same of you, Beliel.” Raffe stalks menacingly toward Beliel.



“I’ve had my life of freedom and rampaging. It’s time for a change. A little respectability. A little well-deserved admiration, don’t you think?” They circle each other like sharks getting ready to attack. Beliel’s limp is gone now that he’s lured Raffe.



“Respectability and admiration are beyond you,” says Raffe. “You’re nothing but a pathetic minion for angels.”



“I am not a minion!” His face turns red and furious. “I have never been a minion. Not for devils, not for angels, not for anybody!” The randomly flashing light highlights the stark shadows of his blood-streaked face.



Raffe leaps for Beliel again. But his motion is interrupted by a net falling on him from the night sky.



Raffe rolls on the pier, tangled in the net.



Get up, get up!



All the fight rages inside me. Can I watch as Raffe gets executed? Every fiber of my being chants, No, no, no.



What can I do? What can I do?



Raffe isn’t struggling against the net like I expected. Instead, he whisks open his wings. The scythe-like hooks on his wings snag the net.



Then his wings slice up, cutting the mesh.



It falls around him like a dropped veil as he leaps up, ready for a fight.



Scorpions drop out of the sky, a couple of them landing on Raffe. He ducks but their glancing blows shove him off balance.



Raffe’s wings, arms, and legs whip around him. Three scorpions go down, writhing in pain. That still leaves half a dozen more plus Beliel. As if that isn’t enough, three more land on the outskirts of the fight.



I pluck off my bear and pull out my sword, ready to dive in.



Mom grabs my shirt and yanks me so hard that I land on my butt like a little kid.



Luckily, Raffe seems to be able to hold his own. I doubt that he’s made peace with his new wings but he’s at least learned to control them better than the last time I saw him.



He’s also a fearless fighter. I hadn’t quite realized just how fierce he could be, but now that I think about it, this may be the first time I’ve seen him fight when it wasn’t immediately after a major injury. The sword’s memories only had him fighting with a sword, which was something to see, but this is more of a ferocious dance.



I’m sure Raffe hasn’t fully recovered yet, but he’s a wonder to watch. He’s fast. Faster than the scorpions that keep trying to sting him. A single scorpion is no more a match for him than a fire ant is to a person.



He’s far outnumbered, though. Yet, he doesn’t seem that concerned as he slowly slashes his way closer to Beliel.



Beliel gets the picture and takes off into the night sky. Apparently, his evil health plan covers wing injuries because his wings seem to work just fine.



Raffe takes off after him.