Chapter 10

"Out of fifteen awake so far, all of them have complete memory loss", Ignat chucked the last patient chart onto the desk.

"But why does Semyon remember me?" Sveta looked frustrated. "Why no one else?"

"When the seals were set, you had him in a shield, you were linked to him." Ilya picked up the discarded medical records and began to file them away. Ignat paced slowly, transparent scales shedding as he moved.

"But so were you Ilya. You were linked to him to."

"No, Sveta, I was linked to you, not to him, we all were in that room. Obviously some sort of memory from you must have leached across and stayed."

"So what do we do now then?"

Ilya shrugged. Sveta looked towards Ignat, who did the same.

"Surely there's something..."

"If we knew how, we would."

"I wonder if its because..."

She then related her recent experiences in the Twilight. Ignat looked horrified. Ilya shook his head. "Its possible I suppose, the link that Others have to the Twilight must be weakening. There isn't anyway I can check though. I'll send a message through to the other Watches, if anyone is able they can devise a way, and maybe a cure?"

"I doubt the cure bit, I think we know the answer to that one ourselves." Suddenly Ilya spun round and flung the files in his hand, scattering the paperwork across the room. "What's the point? Why am I bothering with this, no ones left to care about it!"

Sveta looked stunned but Ignat just quietly bent and picked up the documents from the floor. "Forgive him for that little outburst, he's been having mood swings of late, coupled with the lack of sleep..."

"Ilya, are you not sleeping again?" she asked. But Ignat continued.

"A lot of us aren't Sveta, the insomnia is coming back...and getting worse...for the sealed ones."

Sveta said nothing, but her look of pity made Ignat wince. "No, don't feel sorry for us Sveta, just get out there and do what you can...for all our sakes."...

As the car pulled up along the riverside, the three men got out. Looking around Anton declared "The trail ends here, somewhere. I can't pinpoint it exactly."

"Why here I wonder." said Gesar as he looked up. Towering above them was the large girders of the London Eye, the largest Ferris wheel in Europe.

Kardos was looking behind them, at a tall building, some twenty-five stories high or more. Gesturing with his head towards the tower block, he said "In here perhaps?"

"Possibly." said Anton, but he wasn't sure. There were numerous buildings nearby, and he couldn't find a trail from any of them. "It'll be a good spot to get our bearings from at least." He hastily hid the car, knowing it shouldn't be there, and followed the other two men. Once inside the building they took the lift to the top floor, climbing the stairs to an observation deck above that. They had a clear view of the Eye as it lazily turned with its tourist occupants. Gesar indicated to Anton towards the egg shaped carriages but he shook his head. No sign.

Spending the next hour intensely concentrating, Anton scoured the area, but could find nothing. Kardos spent the time smiling at the human tourists near them, who all had the sudden urge to be somewhere else. Soon the deck area was empty apart from themselves.

Gesar asked "Found anything yet?"

Anton shook his head. "Not yet" he answered.

Kardos snored in disgust. "Lets go, we're wasting time here."

"Wait!" said Anton. He sensed something. "We have company..."

Gesar tensed. "Who Anton...?"

Kardos pointed down to the waterfront. "Its that man there isn't it?"

"How do you know?"

"Gut feeling. And thousands of years of watching my own back. It's Zabulon."

"But..."

"I don't need to sense him to know, he's looking directly at us..." It was true, the man was looking directly at them and smirking. It sent a chill down Anton's spine. "He's been looking this way for a while...he was sat over there..." the Inquisitor pointed over by the wheel. "I thought he was just a tourist at first, with an unusual fixation on this building..." Kardos sneered. "He's jumped me once, he wont do it again."

"What's to stop him?" Gesar followed the man as he headed towards the building. "Anton can't draw on power here, its too dangerous. It'll show where we are, like a huge beacon to Robert, who is bound to feel anything Anton does this close."

"Fuck..." Kardos swore. "Still, I'll not let him take me again."

"Should we leave?" Anton gestured towards the stairs.

"No good, only one set of stairs up or down."

"Portal away?"

"Not now! Not this close!" Kardos almost raged at the idea, and Anton knew that the Inquisitor didn't just mean Zabulon. "Can you draw enough to shield him without it being obvious?"

Anton shrugged. "I doubt it, but I might be able to neutralise anything he tries, but I could only draw from us here, any further and it would be seen. But I don't know if it would be strong enough to last long..."

"I wouldn't need long." The feral grin on Kardos's face chilled Anton.

"We'll soon know..." said Gesar, pointing down to the ground, "..he's just entered the building."

"Anton, stand at the side of the entrance, Gesar and I will stand in full view, hopefully it'll distract him for a moment." Kardos took off his glasses and began cleaning the one intact lens. "He will either try to rush us or send some power before him, trying to catch us off guard. Lets give him the chance."

Anton was just glad the look on Kardos's face wasn't aimed at him...

Zabulon stood at the bottom of the observation decks stairway, drawing power gradually so as not to draw attention to himself. It was easy here, there was a low, but palpable miasma of fear from the tourists on the wheel. He scoffed. If they were afraid of heights they shouldn't be riding the thing. But then he of all people understood the thrill of fear.

The ecstasy of it...

He could hear their voices above him. They sounded agitated... good. He wanted them to know who was bringing their demise. A small seed of doubt irritated the back of his mind, but he ignored it.

So then, the best way to do this... he pondered different scenarios as he climbed the stairs. Gesar and Kardos were no threat, impotent of power. He felt confident enough to eliminate them with one blow, he wouldn't even need magic. Anton however, that was a different matter. Magically he couldn't touch him. Physically, well Anton was a young man, in his prime and strong enough to overpower this human form. But would he be willing to use his new, strange power in retaliation? And be in danger of alerting Robert? Zabulon doubted it.

He began to cast off the human form, swelling to his full, demonic size, and tried to guess at their positioning in the room. Kardos would be centre, the egotistical bastard wouldn't stand for anything less. Gesar was the same... Anton...?

He reached the top stair, and lunged. His guess was true. In a shout of victory he grabbed Anton by the throat and lifted him off his feet. Kardos and Gesar leaped forward and were smashed back by Zabulon's other free, massive arm. Anton struggled, gasping for air. He balled his hands into a fist and struck the Dark one full force on the nose. Zabulon laughed as a small trickle of blood oozed from his nostrils.

"You couldn't give me enough pain to drop you, boy." he gloated.

Anton tried again, but his strength was fading. Zabulon began to laugh maniacally, forgetting about the other two. Kardos dragged himself to his feet and, enraged, aimed a huge kick into Zabulon's groin. Zabulon's face suddenly turned to surprise as the immense, almost erotic, pain shot through him. His gripped loosened for a moment as Kardos grabbed Zabulon's leg and executed a perfect judo throw to the ground.

"Demons have gonads to!" he yelled, kicking Zabulon a second time as the apoplectic demon rose to his feet.

Gesar yanked Anton free of Zabulon's grip and dragged him away. He didn't need power to feel the crackle of building energy surrounding the fighting pair. "Now Anton, neutralise him!" he shouted, gripping Anton's face, willing his life force into him.

Sucking in lungfuls of air, Anton began to weave, the threads began to wrap invisibly around Zabulon. Gesar staggered but held on, sweat flooding from his face. Kardos continued to pound the Dark one with increasing skill, blows so fast the lumbering form couldn't return them. Dropping to his knees Zabulon roared and released an immense fireball of energy...which didn't appear. Howling with rage he began to fling spell after spell into nothingness.

Kardos stepped back and watched the helpless display of frustration with great satisfaction. He turned to Anton just in time to see him jerking Gesar's hands away from his head and the former Light leader slump to the floor. Anton was shaking violently, his own energy used up as well. He glanced at the prone figure. "Oh...no...I...think I...killed him..." Anton whispered.

Kardos felt Gesars wrist for a pulse. "No, he's alive. If this demon bastard had fought a moment longer he might have been though."

Zabulon screamed in frustration but stayed kneeling on the floor. Without immediate power, even in such a large frame, he was still no match for Kardos's fighting tricks.

Kardos began to walk slowly around Zabulon, looking relax but every sense wired, every muscle taut and ready to spring again. Zabulon watched him circling and for a split second thought of a vulture. It was a disconcerting thought.

"You didn't jump me that time, did you, you bastard." Kardos said, his light hearted tone all the more menacing. "Did you really think I learned nothing from nearly ten thousand years of life? I know every type of martial arts in the world, plus some that have long been forgotten. Without power I still live, without power you are nothing!" He spat on the floor by Zabulon's legs. "I could kill you with a flick of my finger, despite your size. I could make you feel pain for the rest of your life...imagine that, millennia long suffering... but then you'd enjoy that, wouldn't you...?"

Zabulon just stared. Without the use of power he realised Kardos was right, he was completely outclassed by the Inquisitor, and cursed himself for not foreseeing such a glaring oversight. 'You can only prepare for so much..' the thought fermented like bile in his brain.

"Now then..." Kardos continued. "...its time we were going." He turned to Anton. "Is it still secured?" He thumbed a gesture at the Dark one. Zabulon bristled, hating being referred to as 'it'.

Anton nodded. "But Gesar is in no state to move... And...I'm not strong enough to carry him yet."

"And I need my hands free for that bastard. Stand up..." Kardos ordered Zabulon, who reacted and stood before he even realised. "You are going to have to carry him."

"What!" Zabulon almost bolted until Kardos struck him a stinging blow across his face.

"You WILL carry him."

"Idiot...looking like this? How far do you think we would get!" Zabulon could hardly contain his rage, but knowing to strike out at the little man would probably mean his death.

"Anton, have you got enough energy to disguise him? Only to outside observers though. I want to see him as he is, easier to find if he tries to make a run for it."

Anton nodded and cast the spell. Zabulon shimmered for a moment but stayed the same. "We can see him..." Anton replied, leaving the rest unsaid.

Kardos nodded and indicated for Zabulon to pick up Gesar. Seething, Zabulon snatched up the Light one and unceremoniously flung him over his shoulder. Gesar murmured something unintelligible as he hung like a rag doll before passing out fully again. Kardos checked Gesar and when satisfied, moved towards the stairs.

Anton suddenly reeled. It felt like a massive backdraft of power flooded over him. All his senses screamed of danger. His soul felt ripped from his body and, glancing briefly through the Twilight, the diamond in his chest was spinning so fast it blurred, cracking with an intensity he hadn't seen.

"Wait!" He managed to shout just as an enormous buffeting shook the building, followed a fraction of a second later by a gut wrenching thud.

Rushing over to the observation window, Kardos spat... "Gentlemen, it seems we have been lead into a trap..."