I - The Ascent

First chapter of "The Angel Ascends".

Chapter I

The Ascent

It is unusually quiet.

Apart from a steady dripping of water from the higher levels of the ruined and decaying structure there was little sound. There was, of course, the ever present distant rattle of gunfire and explosions that everyone on this world had become accustomed to, but nothing immediate. Harl looked around, taking a heavy drag on his cigarette, this had been some sort of apartment building, it was at least a century old, and had probably been abandoned since the start of the war. All around nature had begun to reclaim its rightful property, roots grew from open wounds in the structure's walls and vines adorned artistic looking pillars. Rain now leaked through the huge domed ceiling. He thought the architect of this place must have enjoyed designing it, with its curving arches and cascading staircases, more suited to a painting than a functioning building. He thought it a shame he had never met the man, he had probably had countless opportunities. He stood up, stretching inside his armour. Stooping down with powered joints that made a quiet whirring as he did, he picked up a large black cape, the silhouette of an angel sewn into the fabric. It was a ridiculous name that they gave him, Angel, as if he was here on some holy task. Far from it. Harl Trigron of the Skykin, Outsider, Justicar, Messiah, Alien, countless worlds, countless names, on this one he was Angel. Harl stepped across the lobby of the ancient looking building, preparing to check the charges he had set, when there was a heavy explosion, very close. Gunfire pierced the silence and dust and bricks began to fall from the higher levels, Harl flung himself over a makeshift barricade. A thin, grey skinned creature burst through the main door firing his automatic pistol behind him.

“Harl you f****r, thought you were on watch” The being leapt over the barrier and lay down, bullets flying over the wall.

“Well I thought you could handle it”, Harl took another drag on the cigarette and tossed the creature a weapon. “How many?”

“Basic detachment, about eleven left.” It primed and readied the huge alien looking weapon.

“You're getting old B'tarth” Harl grinned.

“F**k you” B'tarth replied, standing and firing explosive bolts across the room that detonated in a burst of purple and blue. Harl heard the enemy gunfire slow as a result of the barrage and jumped to his feet, running over to the door a round struck him in the chestplate, almost knocking him over as he sprinted and pressed his back against the wall. He let the computer in his visor locate the enemies and took note of locations. With inhuman swiftness he swung from his cover, fired a single shot and returned to his position. B'tarth watched the shot strike one of the men in the chest and ducked again as a powerful spray of machine gun fire nearly struck his head. There was a large explosion as one of the royalists fired a heavy weapon.

“I'm getting up top.” Angel said, beginning to climb the stairs. As he has suspected the royalists had begun to climb the walls and break through windows. He caught one by surprise and shot straight through his ceremonial armour. Dispatching the other by tossing him down the stairs, he took point by a window and fired heavy explosive rounds down into the mass of men. Seeing now how many had died in the firefight with B'tarth, he almost felt like retracting his statement on the Sceran's age. As the rounds exploded furiously the men were torn apart. One began to run in fear, arms up in surrender. Harl took aim and fired a single precise round into the fleeing Sceran's spine. He sighed.

“Incompetent inbred children” B'tarth said, closing the doors to the building, leaving the bodies outside in the pouring rain. “You wonder why they don't give up when they see you”. Harl walked back down the stairs and grinned.

“That would take all the joy out of it”, He put his gun down gently, like it could be hurt and walked over to B'tarth, cape ripped and stained with blood. B'tarth shook his hand firmly and the spines along the sides of his head lowered, a sign of respect. “Good to see you again old friend, I trust everything is in order?”.

“It is. We have an hour” The Sceran's all black eyes and shaking voice betrayed some concern. He wiped the rain off his leathery skin and tried to smile.

“You worried?” Harl began to clear debris from the battlefield. Scerans were not subtle with emotion, made them terrible spies.

“I am about to be canonized, my planet may never forget my name after this moment, I am concerned that I may not be remembered well.” B'tarth took a small book from inside his armour and caressed it.

“History is written by the victor, be remembered however you want.” Harl replied, pushing bodies out of the windows. “You're a hero to the Democratic Covenant”.

“Hm, perhaps.” B'tarth flicked through the tenets of democracy he held in his hands. “Will you go home when this is over?”

“My home is not worth going back to” Angel replied, his bulky human form crouching at the charges.

“So you will stay?” He began moving charges around the room, positioning them as they had planned.

“For a time. You're beginning to sound a lot like you care about me B'tarth” He grinned and primed the first of the explosives. B'tarth laughed and raised his spines.

“You flatter yourself, your words carry a lot of weight, as they should, no one expected first contact to happen like it did” B'tarth still found himself a little disgusted by Harl's form, it was inelegant and grotesque, so unlike his graceful Sceran body.

“Oh trust me, second contact will be a lot more boring, you're lucky to have me.” Harl finished setting charges and picked up a sniper rifle. “Let's open the window shall we?”

“Very well” Came the reply, B'tarth picked up a second rifle and climbed the steps to the top floor of the building. Harl opened the shutters to the window slightly and peered out onto the empty rain soaked street. There were other, taller buildings they could have chosen but this one was old enough and tall enough to fulfil their requirements. Harl glanced through the scope at the charges in the street that they had placed, they looked in order, but it was hard to tell through the rain and the debris littering the war torn city roads. There were bodies everywhere, hanging from rooftops and sprawled in the streets, soldiers and civilians who couldn't get out in time when the fighting started. A lot of people couldn't get out. The worst of the gas attacks had ended after he had destroyed the Royalist chemical plants and persuaded the Democratic Covenant to stop using it. Hetriat was now Royalist territory, it was their last major stronghold, they won it in the early stages of the war and had held on to it against all odds. Now the armies were on their way. Harl had been on this planet for the thirty two year duration of the war and had seen some terrible things done, and had done some terrible things.

After an hour had passed with only distant gunfire and explosions, there was movement on the streets. The first members of the royalist lancers walked through the street, mine fodder. With a roar a convoy of trucks and tanks turned the corner.

“Steady” Harl said through his radio. “Don't rush this.” The convoy came fully into view, it hadn't seen them through the rain, B'tarth thanked fate, Angel just smiled. “Ready?” Harl asked, as the tanks rolled over the charges.

“Ready” Came the response. Harl activated the charges, there was a short high pitched whine which panicked the horses a little, followed by a serious of vast explosions in the street below. Shrapnel and plasma tore through the tanks weak belly armour and the vehicles set alight from the inside, the trucks began to pull away.

“Fire”. Harl said over the radio. A series of skilfully places sniper rounds struck the fleeing trucks and horsemen. “Ten 'o' clock” Harl said, B'tarth followed the direction and sent four rounds into the driver cabin of an armoured car. Infantry burst out of the trucks and began firing wildly at buildings, unable to tell where the shots had been fired from. A group of them took aim at Harl's window and he was forced to take cover as rounds ricocheted off the shutters. There was a shout as he was spotted. “S**t, B'tarth, don't let up, just keep killing off those b******s.”. Angel jumped off the top floor into the lobby. He could hear men behind the main doors laying breaching explosives. Grabbing his carefully placed automatic weapon he took aim at the door and prepared to detonate the surrounding charges. He heard B'tarth firing swiftly out of the window, the Sceran was a damn good shot, but he never told him so. The doors burst open and two grenades were tossed into the room, Harl pushed himself against the barricade and closed his eyes, a dazzling flash pierced his eyelids and a series explosions ripped through the room. Leaping to his feet Harl fired three rounds across the room, two hits and one miss, he ducked again as the royalists fired enough rounds to begin to break down the barricade. Harl detonated the charges at the door, the detonation stunned or killed most of the men, and almost all gunfire had stopped. Relying on his armour he leapt over the barricade shooting the men still standing, clutching their eyes. Bricks began falling from above and Harl panicked.

“Holy s**t, B'tarth, get up we're leaving”. As he finished his sentence the building collapsed without extra warning. B'tarth leapt from his window, landing badly on a nearby wall, then falling to the floor. Harl sprinted out of the door, taking gunfire to the back and chest. The building collapsed with a roar in a shower of dust and smoke, Harl nearly thanked the God of the Sceran that he chose a building with only three floors, but kept running, heart beating like machine gun fire.

“Do it!” B'tarth screamed. Harl detonated the final charges, causing further destruction and killing more of the infantry. A vehicle escaped the wreckage and most of the Royalist soldiers followed. Harl fell to the floor and looked up into the grey sky.

“S**t”, He wiped rain from his face, then grinned. “That was great”. B'tarth shot the wheels of the escaping car and cleared the final infantry. He ran over to the vehicle, saturated and angered. He took a pistol from his belt and shot the driver and passenger, then opened the back door of the car to find a whimpering Sceran, dressed in ceremonial armour. B'tarth signalled for him to get out of the car.

“You get him?” Asked Angel.

“Yeah he's here.” B'tarth forced the man to kneel and pressed the barrel of the pistol to the king's skull. Harl ran over and stopped some distance away, seeing B'tarth a strong and powerful revolutionary, holding a tyrannical king on his knees in the pouring rain, surrounded by a war torn city. These were the moments that shaped a planet's history. Harl walked over and looked at the king.

“Angel, we meet, I thought only you could have pulled off such an attack on my men.” The king lowered his spines. Harl said nothing.

“You will be tried publicly and judged by your people” B'tarth said.

Are you quite done?

A voice resounded in Harl's head.

“If you are found guilty, you will be put to death” B'tarth continued.

Not yet.

He responded

“You have enslaved and controlled this planet like a warlord, and your people will no longer have it.”

We aren't waiting in orbit much longer.

It was impatient.

Fine.

“B'tarth” Harl interrupted. “I'm afraid I am going to have to leave somewhat earlier than planned, this revolution has been great fun. I'll come visit when I can.” B'tarth looked horrifed.

“You would leave us now?” His Sceran voice betrayed his sadness.

“Honestly, I would stay if I could, and I would take you with me if it was an option, but you have work to do here. Thanks for this.” Harl grinned in his signature style and stepped backwards. There was a low rumble as a sleek silvery ship landed in the street behind him.

“I don't understand” B'tarth let up his guard on the king for a moment and the man made a desperate last struggle which ended in B'tarth beating him unconscious with a single strike to the skull.

“I don't expect you to” Harl grinned, “Business elsewhere”.

“It has been an honour” B'tarth tried to remain the soldier, but could not help but show his pain at the departing of a dear friend and comrade. Harl said nothing more and walked backwards to the waiting ship, leaving the rain soaked Sceran with the unconscious body of his former king. The ship took off with nothing more than a hum as Democratic Covenant helicopters landed on rooftops nearby.

B'tarth had difficulty explaining why Angel had left, only that he had performed the task he came to do and had now chosen to ascend.

Author's Note

This is my first attempt at writing an action sequence. Please let me know how I can improve, this is by no means a final draft.

Reviews

[A. Bennett]

This really interested me and I found myself absorbed in it. The action was conveyed believably and the banter between Harl and B'tarth wasn't strained at all, adding another element to what was occurring. I like it, and would love to read more if it were at all possible.