that?
There could be no room for pity. The Knights Templar, from being an ancient order of warriors, was now a death squad.
So be it.
Billi looked at Kay one last time, then deleted him forever.
Chapter 16
THE ERUPTION HAD THROWN UP SO MUCH ASH THAT flights throughout Europe had been delayed. Now, two days after the eruption, the backlog of weary and irate travelers still hadn't been cleared. People slept on the seats, on the floors, up against the walls. Long lines of cars and buses blocked the entrance to Heathrow Airport as the passengers were transferred to other airports or hotels, all being managed by a forlorn airport staff.
Billi and the other knights picked their way through the groups of abandoned passengers and climbed over piles of waiting luggage. It wasn't yet seven, but the airport was overflowing.
Billi watched the news on one of the big overhead screens. The destruction of Naples dominated everything. Almost thirty feet of ash and rock had fallen over the city in the last two days, and only now were any rescue vehicles able to even approach the devastated city. Buildings had collapsed under the sheer weight of the falling debris, burying scores of people. Ash had set as hard as concrete, and the drills and picks and the desperate hands did little good.
Miracles still occurred. People continued to trickle out of the tunnels. They'd fled into the underground system, then walked out once the eruptions had ended. Thousands were gathered in an ever-growing refugee camp, and families pored over long lists plastered to wooden walls, hoping to find a relative or friend among the survivors.
"It seems so hopeless," said a woman watching the coverage.
Hopeless? Maybe. But people still fought on. Billi stared at the small figures moving over the vast gray city like ants, struggling against the wrath of nature. That's what humanity did, wasn't it? Despite the overwhelming odds, it fought on.
No weapons. Arthur didn't want anyone getting arrested at customs because they'd tried to smuggle in a broadsword. Lance knew an arms dealer in Moscow from his bad old days as a smuggler, and that was where Gwaine's team would tool up. Arthur had friends across the waters in Finland, and they would deliver gear to the Karelia team. Each Templar had a package of Elaine's wolfsbane poultices.
Billi pulled off her backpack while Elaine arranged the boarding passes. She scratched her shoulder blade. The claw marks had healed up nicely, but she had no plans to get bitten or clawed again. She'd put the roll of stinking brown cloth in an airtight Tupperware sandwich box, but still the smell seemed to linger on everything.
The Knights Templar gathered at the coffee shop on the other side of passport control. The Karelia flight was just before the Moscow one.
Arthur brought his latte over to Billi.
"How are you feeling?" He sat down stiffly.
"Better than you, I think."
"Funny girl." He stirred in his sugar, and the chair creaked as he leaned back. "It's going to be a bad one, Billi."
Like she didn't know. They were going in blind. Here in Britain the Templars had secret contacts and hideouts scattered across the country. Russia was the unknown. It was Baba Yaga and the Polenitsys' heartland. They'd be outnumbered ten to one, at least.
"Tell me about the Bogatyrs," Billi said. Everything had been so rushed, she'd had no time to find out about the Russian knights.
"Christian warriors, set up before the Templars. The Russians never got involved in the Crusades; their enemies weren't the Saracens, but the followers of the old ways—pagans, witches, the werewolves."
"And what about this Romanov bloke? Alexeithingamajig?"
"Alexei Viktorovich Romanov. Please get the pronunciation right—he is royalty. Great-grandson of Tsar Nicholas, if I remember correctly." Arthur scratched his beard, trying to remember what else he knew. "The story is that everyone in the royal family was killed at the beginning of the Russian
There could be no room for pity. The Knights Templar, from being an ancient order of warriors, was now a death squad.
So be it.
Billi looked at Kay one last time, then deleted him forever.
Chapter 16
THE ERUPTION HAD THROWN UP SO MUCH ASH THAT flights throughout Europe had been delayed. Now, two days after the eruption, the backlog of weary and irate travelers still hadn't been cleared. People slept on the seats, on the floors, up against the walls. Long lines of cars and buses blocked the entrance to Heathrow Airport as the passengers were transferred to other airports or hotels, all being managed by a forlorn airport staff.
Billi and the other knights picked their way through the groups of abandoned passengers and climbed over piles of waiting luggage. It wasn't yet seven, but the airport was overflowing.
Billi watched the news on one of the big overhead screens. The destruction of Naples dominated everything. Almost thirty feet of ash and rock had fallen over the city in the last two days, and only now were any rescue vehicles able to even approach the devastated city. Buildings had collapsed under the sheer weight of the falling debris, burying scores of people. Ash had set as hard as concrete, and the drills and picks and the desperate hands did little good.
Miracles still occurred. People continued to trickle out of the tunnels. They'd fled into the underground system, then walked out once the eruptions had ended. Thousands were gathered in an ever-growing refugee camp, and families pored over long lists plastered to wooden walls, hoping to find a relative or friend among the survivors.
"It seems so hopeless," said a woman watching the coverage.
Hopeless? Maybe. But people still fought on. Billi stared at the small figures moving over the vast gray city like ants, struggling against the wrath of nature. That's what humanity did, wasn't it? Despite the overwhelming odds, it fought on.
No weapons. Arthur didn't want anyone getting arrested at customs because they'd tried to smuggle in a broadsword. Lance knew an arms dealer in Moscow from his bad old days as a smuggler, and that was where Gwaine's team would tool up. Arthur had friends across the waters in Finland, and they would deliver gear to the Karelia team. Each Templar had a package of Elaine's wolfsbane poultices.
Billi pulled off her backpack while Elaine arranged the boarding passes. She scratched her shoulder blade. The claw marks had healed up nicely, but she had no plans to get bitten or clawed again. She'd put the roll of stinking brown cloth in an airtight Tupperware sandwich box, but still the smell seemed to linger on everything.
The Knights Templar gathered at the coffee shop on the other side of passport control. The Karelia flight was just before the Moscow one.
Arthur brought his latte over to Billi.
"How are you feeling?" He sat down stiffly.
"Better than you, I think."
"Funny girl." He stirred in his sugar, and the chair creaked as he leaned back. "It's going to be a bad one, Billi."
Like she didn't know. They were going in blind. Here in Britain the Templars had secret contacts and hideouts scattered across the country. Russia was the unknown. It was Baba Yaga and the Polenitsys' heartland. They'd be outnumbered ten to one, at least.
"Tell me about the Bogatyrs," Billi said. Everything had been so rushed, she'd had no time to find out about the Russian knights.
"Christian warriors, set up before the Templars. The Russians never got involved in the Crusades; their enemies weren't the Saracens, but the followers of the old ways—pagans, witches, the werewolves."
"And what about this Romanov bloke? Alexeithingamajig?"
"Alexei Viktorovich Romanov. Please get the pronunciation right—he is royalty. Great-grandson of Tsar Nicholas, if I remember correctly." Arthur scratched his beard, trying to remember what else he knew. "The story is that everyone in the royal family was killed at the beginning of the Russian
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