The God Machine Read online

  It took all her strength to find her voice again, and Sally shrieked above the swirling maelstrom of black that buffeted her. "He's gone!" she cried out. "It's the reason why I've come...to let you know!"

  "Let us know?" Duma questioned. "What is this loathsome gnat going on about? Where is Qemu'el?"

  "He isn't here, brother," Za'apiel replied after a moment, and the currents of darkness calmed, and Sally's spirit found itself floating before the audience of eyes.

  "Do you know where our brother is, little spirit?" the one called Za'apiel asked.

  "Yes, yes, I know," she told them. "He's gone..."

  "Gone where?" Duma bellowed. "Where could he have gone without us?"

  Sally hesitated, waiting for the anxious Archon to continue his rant, but the angel was silent, so she continued.

  "To Earth," she explained. "He's gone to Earth--and I believe he has plans to destroy it."

  The eyes were gone, and the void was quiet. Sally began to wonder if she had been left alone, when one of the Archons spoke.

  "We have not been called," Za'apiel said. "It is not yet the time for it to be brought to end."

  "But he is there," Sally confirmed. "Being worshipped as a god by followers who would sacrifice everything to bring him into the physical world--and allow him to walk the Earth."

  "Blasphemy!" the two angels of destruction screamed in unison, and she sensed their movement; beings long dormant at last roused from their hibernation.

  They were coming, swimming through the sea of shadow. She could sense them growing closer, but still she could not see them.

  And then they were upon her, breaching the ocean of darkness, their screams of fury deafening as she became swept up in their passage, dragged in the wake of angry Archons.

  Abe twitched and moaned, his arms dangling limply by his sides. Liz stared at the small beads of dark blood beneath the clips hanging from his ears. If something bad happened to him, she would never be able to forgive herself.

  He groaned again, this time much louder, and she moved closer. His arms flopped; his body rocked from side to side. The machine had begun to hum, the glow from inside it seeming to get brighter.

  "C'mon, Sally, hurry it up," Liz hissed.

  Something was definitely up with the machine, and she debated whether or not to get Abe away from it. The machine was vibrating, its wooden black frame moving across the ground of its on accord.

  She glanced at Abe and saw that his eyes were open, his mouth agape. His body suddenly grew rigid, as if an electrical current was being pumped through him.

  This can't be good. Not good at all. Liz's mind raced.

  She contemplated breaking the connection, pulling the copper wires from her friend's ears, but was afraid of what might happen. She couldn't risk hurting him--but wasn't she doing the very same thing by just kneeling and watching?

  Liz felt the fire stir within her. It was eager to be released again, but she held it back, pushing it down, letting it know who was the boss.

  Abe began to scream, and she came very close to joining him. She didn't know what to do. The light thrown from the machine was almost blinding now.

  Finally, she couldn't bear the sound of her friend in pain any longer and wrapped her hands around the copper wires. She was about to rip their connections from the machine, when the machine exploded in a flash of searing white light, and she and Abe were tossed backward by a wave of unnatural energy.

  Blossoms of white expanded in front of her eyes as she hauled herself up from the ground. Liz rubbed at her eyes, attempting to restore her vision as she went to her friend.

  "Abe," she called, falling to her knees by his side.

  He seemed okay, raising a hand to his smooth, green skull and giving his head the slightest of shakes.

  "I'm all right," he said, blinking rapidly.

  "Sally took control of you," Liz started to explain. "I wasn't really sure if I should let her, but she said that the machine could..."

  "She did it," Abe said with an eager nod, as if suddenly remembering. "Sally talked to them."

  The ghost of the horribly burned woman slowly materialized before them.

  "And?" Liz looked from Abe to the charred, ghostly woman, hoping for an answer.

  "They're coming," Abe whispered.

  From the fear etched upon Abe's face, Liz wasn't sure that was a good thing.

  "Say that again." Hellboy pressed the headset tighter against his ear. They were in the Chinook again, returning from Gosnolt, and it was difficult to hear Manning over the whine of the chopper's twin rotors.

  "Was the mission a success?" Manning asked, raising his voice to be heard.

  Hellboy glanced across the hold in the direction of the children. They were wrapped in heavy blankets, wearing BPRD ball caps, and were in the midst of a heated game of rock, paper, scissors with Agent Dexter.

  "You could say so," Hellboy replied, glad to see that the kids didn't appear to have been adversely affected by their possession. "We're returning with two former Electricizers--minus the spooks of course. Baxter lent us a pretty neat tool for evicting the body-squatters. Worked like a charm."

  "Excellent," Manning replied. "That could help in dealing with the rest of the family."

  Hellboy could feel the presence of the Anyroda dagger in the pocket of his jacket. It felt warm, as if alive. It seemed to be content for now, but he knew that the closer they got to their destination, the hungrier it would grow--eager to perform the task for which it was created.

  "That's the plan," Hellboy agreed. "We'll be dropping the kids off with our boys in Boston, and then we'll head to Egg Rock. It's a small island about a mile northeast of Nahant, Massachusetts. I think that's where our Electricizers are going to attempt their grand finale."

  He could hear Manning passing the information to other agents at the Fairfield office.

  "And you came by this information how?"

  "A spook passed it on to me just before she vacated the premises," he said, remembering the images that flooded his mind upon the completion of the spirit's exorcism, the fifty-foot-tall metal statue being the standout.

  "We'll dispatch a team immediately."

  "Negative. Why don't you hold off on that," Hellboy said. He glanced at the tarp-covered body of Agent Holmes. The case had been unpredictable, and it had cost the life of a good agent. He didn't want to take that risk again unless it was absolutely necessary. "We don't know exactly what we're going to be dealing with here. Have the guys on standby, and I'll let you know how the situation is looking as soon as we get there. Who knows, maybe it'll be something I can take care of myself."

  Steve's ghost drifted over to him. "Ask how Sally's mission with Liz and Abe went." He sounded like he enjoyed saying the word "mission" quite a bit.

  "How did the others do at the house in Lynn?" Hellboy asked over the commlink.

  "They ran into a serious threat inside the farmhouse, but it was neutralized," Manning replied.

  "Neutralized?" Hellboy rolled the word over in his head. Liz encountered a serious threat, and it had been neutralized. "She burned it to the ground didn't she," Hellboy asked, looking at the ghost.

  There was a long pause before Manning replied. "The house was destroyed by fire--"

  "Knew it."

  "But not before the team retrieved a machine that enabled the spirit of Sally Spearz to make contact with two spiritual entities of extraordinary power. They're related to the current crisis, but according to Agent Sherman's report, they may be turned to our purpose."

  Hellboy felt a headache coming on. "Great. Spiritual entities of extraordinary power. Always best to have them on our side. Problem is, even if they're playing for the home team, these kinds of things tend to get really messy. Lots of death. Property damage. Should be a barrel of laughs. Just what kind of entities are we talking about here?"

  "Liz said that their names are..." He pictured Manning shuffling through his notes. "Duma and Za'apiel."

  "Neve
r heard of 'em."

  "Research has given us some cursory info. If the two Sally contacted really are Duma and Za'apiel, then the being that's being summoned by the Electricizers is called Qemu'el," Manning explained. "They're Archons."

  "What the heck's an Archon?"

  "They're world destroyers."

  "Aren't they all?" Hellboy grumbled. "Archon is a much nicer term. 'World destroyer' lacks finesse. Got anything else that could be useful?"

  "Supposedly they're a trinity, so the idea of only one being summoned has caused some problems with the siblings. At least that's what Liz is saying."

  "Little friction in the family," Hellboy said. "Good to know. And that's the wedge we can use, maybe get their help in taking down baby brother."

  He told the Director he'd communicate with operations as soon as he knew something more, then signed off with a casual, catch ya later, but Hellboy wasn't feeling all that sure about this one.

  These clowns are actually on the verge of pulling this one off, he thought. They were summoning an Archon. Why does it have to be destruction? he wondered. Why not the god of Buffalo wings or crazy dancing? Like he would be so lucky.

  "We've just received clearance from Logan to land, sir," the pilot informed him.

  The Chinook landed with a slight bounce, and Hellboy got up from his seat to help the others. They were dropping off the kids, but as far as Hellboy was concerned the rest of the Gosnolt team was going as well.

  "Keep the engine warm, boys, we ain't staying long," he told the pilots.

  He opened the door to the craft to see that a van was indeed waiting for them. "All ashore who's going ashore." He waved them out the door as Agent Dexter approached, holding the hand of the little girl named Rebecca.

  "We'll get the kids settled and be right back," she said.

  Hellboy shook his head. "No dice," he told her. "Stay with the kids." He looked to see that Agents Delaney and Feig were retrieving Holmes's body. "I'm doing this next part solo."

  They tried to argue, but he wouldn't hear any of it, and besides, he was bigger. He waved good-bye to them as he pulled the door to the copter closed, turning the latch and locking it.

  When Hellboy returned to his seat, the ghost hung shimmering in the shadowy interior of the chopper, waiting for him.

  "It's just you and me, eh pal?" the specter asked, an excited grin upon his translucent features.

  "Looks like it." Hellboy patted the wall between the hold and the cockpit of the craft, signaling to the crew that it was time to depart.

  "You're the only one that I don't have to worry about getting killed."

  It's worth the pain, Mary Hudnell tried to convince herself, as she reclined upon the cot that had been brought outside into the cold from the warmth of the enclosure. Her breath was coming in gasps, and her body was wracked with spasms.

  They had inserted multiple needles into her pregnant belly, twelve-inch spears of metal connected to multiple strands of colored wire that trailed upon the ground like hundreds of thin-bodied tropical snakes. The wires were connected to all manner of machines, and the machines were in turn connected to a pyramid-shaped cabinet of copper and glass that contained the most unusual items.

  Is that a Styrofoam cup? she wondered through her pain-addled delirium. She wished she had the strength to rise and examine the objects stored within the pyramid. Absolom had referred to them as objects of faith, explaining that each had absorbed the power of adulation, and that this power would be what their god would use to make its final transition.

  Now the power from the collected items was being extracted, flowing down the wired connection, through the needles, and into her womb, where Qemu'el was gathering his strength to begin the journey to his new home.

  The pain was unlike anything she had ever experienced, but she tried to look past it, imagining the good that she was doing for the world--the good that they all were doing for the world.

  She watched her fellow Electricizers through a pain-induced haze as they maintained the many machines that had been built by the man she loved. Mary looked for Absolom, sure that she would receive a certain amount of strength from the sight of the great man. He stood by the vessel that would soon contain the essence of a god--that would soon be a god--and her heart took flight at the sight of him. The wind whipped across the barren island, his long, graying hair tousled by the blow. She would have preferred his old body, but this one would certainly do fine. It was so nice to have him here with her again.

  Mary felt cold and wished that someone would at least give her a sweater to throw over her shoulders.

  Monkeylike, Absolom scaled the scaffolding erected around the god-body, making sure that the cables that would conduct the quintessence of their most holy god into the human-shaped receptacle were properly secured. She gasped, fearing for his safety, as he spun around upon the interlocking metal rods, and gave a thumbs-up to Wickham, who waited below.

  The woman--Mary wondered if she would ever get used to Geoffrey looking this way--stood behind a control panel, flicking a series of switches that caused the machinery close to her to hum to life.

  The being within her squirmed, eagerly anticipating his birth. She felt him peering out through her eyes, watching as the final steps were taken to assure his coming. Mary Hudnell's spidery hands slowly went to her prominent belly, avoiding contact with the needles protruding from her flesh and the wires emanating from them. She didn't want to risk disturbing anything of importance. Wouldn't that be a sin, she thought. To be so close, and then have my own carelessness cause us to fail again.

  She splayed her fingers across the hard, tight flesh, as she'd seen Absolom do on numerous occasions, and attempted to connect with the entity within. Since becoming impregnated with his essence, she'd always been aware of his existence--feeling him move inside her womb, experiencing his growth--but never had he spoken to her. Mary wanted him to know how much she truly loved him, what she had sacrificed over the long years in his name.

  She wanted Qemu'el to know that she had done everything for her god. And suddenly, as the cold winds blew around her, and the hum of the unearthly machines filled her ears, Mary Hudnell experienced, however briefly, what it was like to be touched by the god.

  The hate Qemu'el had for her was second only to the seething rage he felt for mankind and the world upon which it thrived. She was his prison, and he took no pity upon her in letting her know this--letting her feel this. She tried to explain the bond that she felt for him, the love that she carried, but the god just laughed, a horrible, horrible sound lacking all mirth. And then he showed her, showed the woman what he was going to do to the world, and Mary's vision become engorged with the sight of the world exploding in flames, mushroom clouds blossoming all across the planet, eradicating every living thing that walked, crawled or squirmed upon its surface, or swam in its oceans.

  She felt his joy, as only a mother who had truly bonded with the unborn life within her womb could. But she was unable to share in his happiness.

  You promised us Heaven, she thought, trying desperately to understand. You said that you would bring us--all of us, all of humanity--that much closer to being one with the divine.

  And again her mind was filled with the most powerful of images.

  The Earth burned molten hot from the countless explosions and nuclear fire. Rising from the destruction came a being of unearthly beauty, its body clad in armor burning white from the intensity of the heat. As it spread its arms, enormous wings unfurled from its back. The wings begin to flap, arousing the surface of the dead world; clouds of black ash stirred from the ground, the remains of all life upon the Earth floating up into the sky, carried upon the thermal updrafts, drifting higher, and higher.

  On their way to Heaven.

  The god then broke the connection to his mother, ejecting her forcibly from his vision of the future. Mary's eyes came open, seeing the world for what it was, remembering the sight of how it would soon be.

  She could n
ot allow this to happen.

  Fitfully, she struggled upon the cot, her hands no longer concerned with disturbing anything of importance. She wrapped her hands around the wires, preparing to pull the needles from her body, and suddenly she felt a hand fall upon hers. It was cool, comforting, and she was awash with the feeling that everything would be just fine.

  Mary looked up into the eyes of Absolom, the man whom she loved, the man who had transcended death in order to fulfill his holy objective.

  "It's time, Mary," he said, and she felt the cool bliss of his touch as he laid his hand upon her swollen stomach.

  "Time to change the world."

  The mechanical hands worked like a dream.

  Silas Udell leaped up on his back legs, using his newly enhanced front paws to manipulate the controls upon the panel.

  Absolom Spearz is a saint, the Electricizer within the body of a dog thought, experiencing a kind of euphoric joy as the segmented digits of his artificial hands performed their tasks as competently as if they were made of skin, muscle and bone.

  In his canine form, he had been concerned about his ability to perform the appropriate task, his worry becoming even more pronounced when learning the fate of their brethren at the hands of the monster, Hellboy.

  The hands had been a gift--something that the high priest had whipped up in a moment of divine inspiration. Silas could not comprehend his good luck as Absolom had slid the mechanisms, glovelike, over his paws. There had been some pain as he had drilled holes and stretched tendons to anchor the hands and ensure that they worked properly, but it was pain Silas would have experienced threefold to continue to have these gifts that had been bestowed upon him. Now he was complete, the happiest he could ever recall being in his troubled existence: all this, plus the fact that the savior was coming. Silas Udell seriously had to consider the question as to why he, of all people, had been so blessed.

  All was in readiness. The power being siphoned from the objects of worship flowed smoothly out of the pyramid and into the stomach of the Madonna, feeding Qemu'el, giving him the strength to complete his ascendance...his transition from the ether to the physical world. Silas had the urge to bark--to toss his head back and howl his joy at what they were on the cusp of accomplishing--but he held his animal excitement in check, focusing instead on the task that he had been assigned.