Guardians: The Girl Part 28

He invented a number of things for Atourum. Among them, Quips, which are bullets filled with a liquid substance that attacks an angel's soul.

The other invention Hun is known for is the Zan. Zans are boxes that keep a soul alive without needing a body. Hun invented the Zan and gave it to Atourum, who then used it to store the darkest of souls before re-releasing them on humanity.

Hun's most famous invention is called the Peel. It is a black-powdered substance that peels away the face and soul of an angel and impresses them on someone else. Think of it as identify theft for angels. The Peel lasts a few hours and then the soul will be returned to the angel from whom it was taken.

A few cycles ago, a demon used a Peel and took the appearance of a Traveler. The demon got as far as the gates of the council. Soon, Paras came with word from Omnis that there was a darkness in the light. The demon was punished and Atourum was made to destroy Hun.

Many have theorized that Atourum never got rid of Hun. The conspiracy nuts think that he's still on Earth. They go so far as to say he's still inventing things for his master. Everyone claims to have seen Hun at some point. Hun sighting are as common among angels as Elvis sightings are among humans.

"What did you sell from the Market?" I ask, fully intending to carry out my threat.

"Okay, but don't get mad."

I ram my hand into his chest. He gasps as the pressure I am putting through his chest becomes more than he can handle.

"I sold him a Peel."

I pick him up from the ground and throw him across the street.

"You sold a Peel to a Runner?" I ask.

"He paid me extra not to say anything. He may or may not be a Runner. And anyway, it was Human Peel. The Runner can only pretend to be another human being, not an angel."

"Why would an Akon send a Runner to impersonate a human?"

"I don't know. What can a human get Emmy to do that an Akon or Runner can't?"

"Trust," I say as it hits me right then. The Runner is going to Peel into someone Emmy trusts and take her to the Akons.

Once I land on the roof back at the house, Jay comes running up to meet me. His face is dark with rage, which is not a common thing to see on Jay. It alarms me instantly. Ameana comes up behind him.

"Where's Emmy?" I ask.

"She's fine," he spits out.

"What's up? What's going on?" Miku asks.

He looks at me like he wants to rip my throat out.

"Jay, what's up?" I put my hands on his shoulders. He shrugs them off.

"Back off me," he says.

"Jay what's up?"

He speaks in a cold and unforgiving voice.

"I want a yes or a no answer to this question. And don't you lie to me, Marcus. Did the Sage see you Turn and this mission failing?"

"What?" the twins bark at the same time.

"Answer the question, Marcus."

"No, Marcus would have told us if the Sage had said that," Miku says with certainty.

"Marcus?" Rio asks.

They are all looking at me. Jay is frozen in anger and disgust.

"Listen guys-"

"Did the Sage say that to you?" Jay asks accusingly.

"Jay, calm down," Ameana says.

"Answer me," he shouts, ignoring everyone else.

"Yes."

Their reactions ranged from anger to hopelessness.

"How could you not tell us?" Jay asks.

"I was going to when the time was right."

"And when was that, Marcus? When New York was littered with bodies?"

"I was planning on telling you."

"How dare you keep that from us," Miku shouts.

"You knew this whole time? I knew you had a secret but I thought it was... How could you not tell us?" Rio says dumfounded.

"It's not a big deal. We'll figure it out."

"We? Man, b.u.mp that. You decide to hold out on us and now you sayin' 'we' like we're all a team?"

"We are a team."

"No, we ain't. If we were, I wouldn't have to hear this c.r.a.p from a bunch of Travelers. It's all over the d.a.m.n Splash. Had I not overheard it, we never would have known."

"I was gonna tell you."

"That's a d.a.m.n lie. You weren't gonna tell us nothing."

"Just because the Sage thinks it can happen, doesn't mean it will. You guys know me. I would never Turn; I would never betray my team."

"The Sage is never wrong; we're screwed," Miku says, almost to herself.

"You've known about this the whole time?" Rio asks.

"What else did he say?" Miku demands.

"He said that Emmy will somehow bring about the end of me."

"Perfect. That's freakin' perfect!" Jay's words are full of venom and sarcasm.

"Just because the Sage says it doesn't make it a fact. Jay, it's not true."

Ameana speaks in a calm voice. "Look, I don't agree with what Marcus did. But he has a right to make that decision. He's our leader and we have to follow him."

"Follow this," Jay says crudely as he takes off into the air.

We all leap into the air after him, except Ameana. We were calling out his name and arguing loudly back and forth. We didn't even realize Reese had Blinked onto the roof.

"Did you hear what I said?" Reese blares like a mad man. We all turn to face him. He repeats what we didn't hear the first time. He says two words that change everything: "Emmy's gone."

BOOK THREE: EMMY.

"I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker And in short, I was afraid...."

-T.S. Eliot.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: DECEPTION.

"Emmy, just stop defending him," Reese said to me. Only an hour ago, Jay had dragged me out of the Marley concert and back to the Guardians' home.

When we arrived, I convinced Jay to break a Splash so I could read it, just for fun. It was a big mistake.

There in bold print was the Sage's warning that Marcus would betray his team and that I would somehow be the end of him.

All at once they started to lose it. They felt angry and blindsided, that is, everyone but Ameana. I had a feeling she already knew about it.

When Marcus comes home, he's going to be greeted by a mob of very p.i.s.sed-off Angels. I wanted to be there for him, but Reese Blinked me away.

"Reese, calm down. There's no way Marcus is Turning. And I'm sure the reason he didn't say anything is because he didn't want you to worry. It must have been so hard for him to have to hide it from you guys."

And for the first time since I met him, Reese yelled at me.

"Hard for him? You're actually worried about him?"

"Reese I-"

"No. I have always been on your side, but this is ridiculous. People are going to die and all you can think about is putting more energy into a guy that doesn't want you, it's pathetic."

I ran. Fast. I heard him call my name, but I didn't stop.

I went upstairs to my apartment and locked the door.

When I got to my room, he was standing there.

"Go away," I snapped.

"Just wanted to let you know that it's just me watching you tonight."

"Fine."

"Fine." He went towards the door.

"You really think I'm pathetic?"

"Emmy, if the Sage is right-which he always is-billions of people will die."

"Why do you keep saying people will die, over and over like I don't know?"

"We want you to understand what's at stake."

"I know, and I'm doing my best not to freak out, run down the street naked yelling, The end is here!"

"Naked, huh?"

"Reese."

"Sorry, just had a mental image. I'm an angel, I'm not dead."

"Yeah, how exactly does that work?"

"End of the world and that's what you want to know about-angels and s.e.x?"

"Yeah," I said jokingly. He didn't return my smile. The current situation weighed heavily on him. He sat down on my bed and lowered his head. I went over to him.

"Why don't you go back to the house and sort this out?"

"I can't leave you alone."

"I'm gonna babysit my neighbor's son, Ben. Nothing's gonna happened to me."

"No, I can't leave you alone."