Battle Angel (Immortal City 3)

How could she have failed so miserably already? Why did they ever send her here in the first place? Maddy wasn’t a soldier, no matter what the others said. And now she’d maybe made things even worse, because people thought they could count on her. Turned out they could only count on her to make a mess of things, she thought to herself miserably.

A deafening roar erupted as an F-18 fired off the deck of the aircraft carrier.

“At least we have one jet up,” the captain said. He grabbed the mic. “Get out there and raise some hell.”

Suddenly the line of demons on the radar shifted rapidly.

On the radio, one of the battleships started shouting. “They’ve come around on us! They’re flanking us from the south! Mayday! Mayday!”

“What the hell happened?” one of the radiomen yelled at Maddy.

“This is it! This is it!”

Drops of sweat formed on Maddy’s forehead as she looked out toward the horizon. Why couldn’t she get a read on them? With the first wave of demons, she’d been almost clubbed to the ground with her premonition. Had they figured out some way to avoid her?

A panicked voice crackled through the radio from a jet’s transmission. “Tower, we have bogies everywhere—everywhere! I can’t even count them. They’re all over my radar.”

“Hold. Hold. Hold!” the captain yelled. “Wait until you have a clean shot and we have a lock.” Maddy could tell the captain was trying to keep his voice calm. Everyone on the bridge was frozen in anticipation, just waiting, motionless, for a full formation of demons, ready to destroy them all.

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; Suddenly the black line of demons appeared on the horizon, emerging from wispy clouds. So close. Dark silhouettes against the sky, the demons rushed inevitably toward the carrier and the rest of the ships.

Maddy felt sick.

The demon shapes made sharp black silhouettes against the bright sky, moving with menace toward them, gathering speed as they approached. A cold-sweat sheen broke out on the radarman’s forehead.

“They’re everywhere!”

The shadowed wings were almost there, blocking out the very sun. Searing toward them with dread certainty. This was the moment everyone had been fearing. The Darkness was coming.

“Prepare to open fire on the enemy,” the captain said.

“We have missile lock,” the pilot of the jet said. “Engaging, in three, two—”

Maddy jolted straight up, as if electrified.

With all her strength, Maddy shoved the captain out of the way and grabbed the microphone from his hands.

“Hold your fire—that’s a direct order!” she screamed.

Maddy slid down onto the floor, tears streaming down her face, utterly overwhelmed with what she had seen. The stunned captain was picking himself off the floor, staring at Maddy in utter disbelief and rage.

“You just have to trust me,” she said through sobs.

The captain looked to the horizon as the demons drew nearer and nearer. In the tussle, the microphone had toppled over and slid to the other side of the floor. It was too late, anyway. He watched the messengers of death emerging from the clouds. He crossed himself. This was the end.

Maddy wiped the tears away from her cheeks and looked out the window.

She recognized the sleek white angles of the wings. These were no demons.

They were Angels.

And leading the charge was Jackson Godspeed.

“Jacks,” Maddy said under her breath, still gasping on the floor. Suddenly she woke from her stunned state. “They’re Angels. Angels! They’re here to help, not to attack!”

The captain took one look at her face and decided to trust her.