“And Vengeous doesn’t know about it,” Valkyrie said.
Skulduggery put the phone away. “That’s a mystery for tomorrow,” he said. “Providing there is a tomorrow.”
He turned to Bliss and nodded. Bliss took a little run and then leaped, caught the edge of the roof and effortlessly pulled himself up. Tanith adjusted her centre of gravity and walked up the wall after him. Skulduggery held Valkyrie around the waist and the air shimmered as they shot upwards, gently touching down on the roof. Keeping very quiet, they crossed the rooftop.
There were four big, sturdy old buildings surrounding a large concrete courtyard. The courtyard had a small island of green where a spindly tree tried to grow.
The Grotesquery stood in the exact centre, unmoving. It was wearing a garment of sorts, made of thick, black leather that hung from its waist and gathered on the ground behind it.
Out here in the moonlight, the Grotesquery seemed even more wrong. Nothing this horrible should be allowed to exist on a night so beautiful. Its right arm glistened and the sac on its left wrist bulged with yellow acid. The silver light displayed its cracked and splintered ribcage in sickening detail, and black blood soaked the bandages covering its face.
Valkyrie and her companions crouched. The Cleavers took up positions all the way along the rooftop, surrounding the courtyard. Valkyrie’s stomach churned. Her fingertips tingled. She needed to do something and soon. The anticipation, the excitement and the dread and the fear, were overpowering. Their first encounter with the Grotesquery had not ended well, but there were more of them now. They were stronger – but it was stronger too. She wondered if they were strong enough to kill it.
It was like Skulduggery was reading her mind. “This thing,” he said softly, “the part of it that is a Faceless One, it died once. It can do so again.” She nodded, but didn’t speak. She didn’t trust her voice.
Skulduggery looked over at Mr Bliss and he nodded, and then Mr Bliss stood, stepped off the edge of the roof and dropped all the way to the ground. Tanith ran down the side of the building, sliding the sword from its scabbard. Skulduggery and Valkyrie jumped, displacing the air beneath them to ease their descent. Valkyrie landed heavily, but managed not to stumble.
“I thought we were going to use the element of surprise,” she said as they strode towards their target.
“We never had it,” Skulduggery said calmly. “It knew we were here all along. It just doesn’t care.”
All four of them moved apart, coming at the Grotesquery from different angles.
Bliss didn’t waste time with words, threats, vows or demands. He just walked right up to it and threw a punch. Valkyrie felt the concussion of the blow as it landed. The Grotesquery didn’t even stagger. Instead it looked at Bliss through its filthy bandages, drew back its right fist and hit him. Bliss was launched backwards and crashed through the wall of the old building.
Skulduggery moved in and Tanith leaped, her sword flashing in the moonlight. The Grotesquery’s right arm unravelled and its talons sliced towards Skulduggery. They cut his jacket then wrapped around him. He was picked up and swung towards Tanith. She twisted in mid-air and sprang off Skulduggery’s shoulder, flipping over the Grotesquery’s head. Skulduggery broke free and the Grotesquery reformed its arm and swung its massive fist. Skulduggery drew in the air to block it and Tanith slashed at the arm, which healed instantly.
Valkyrie clicked her fingers, turned the sparks to fireballs and threw them. The first missed, but the second exploded against the Grotesquery’s side. Its stinger darted and Tanith ducked then lunged, her sword piercing its chest, but the Grotesquery smashed down on her arm and the bone snapped. Tanith cried out and was shoved away. The Grotesquery removed the sword and dropped it, and the wound healed.
Bliss extricated himself from the hole he had made in the side of the building. He dusted himself off, like being thrown through a wall was a mere minor inconvenience, but the first step he took was unsteady. He’d been hurt.
Skulduggery reached into his jacket, pulled out his revolver. Then he reached in with the other hand, to the other side, and pulled out an identical revolver. He thumbed back both hammers and fired. Twelve shots, hitting the Grotesquery with unerring accuracy, and then he dropped the guns and ran forward. Valkyrie saw something in his hand, a metal cylinder attached to a metal spike.
Skulduggery jumped, stabbing the spike into the area he’d been shooting. The Grotesquery took hold of him and flung him back, but the cylinder had a red light on top and it was flashing. The explosion sent Valkyrie to her knees, her ears ringing, spots dancing before her eyes. She looked back, hopeful, but the Grotesquery was standing there as if nothing had happened. A wound on its arm opened for a split second, enough for a drop of black blood to leak out, but then it closed. Was it weakening?
Tanith gathered her strength and sprang, but the Grotesquery batted her away. Her body twisted as she fell and when she hit the ground, she tried to get up again but couldn’t.
The Grotesquery raised its left arm and Valkyrie dived. She held both hands out towards Tanith, felt the spaces between them, felt how they linked together, and when the stinger darted out she pushed and the air rippled. Tanith was sent skidding along the ground and the stinger missed. Valkyrie looked up, realising that she was now the Grotesquery’s main focus of attention.
“The Cleavers,” Valkyrie whispered. “Somebody signal the Cleavers …”
And then Bliss was there, standing between Valkyrie and the approaching Grotesquery. Instead of striking, Bliss pressed both hands to its chest and started to push. The creature kept walking. Bliss locked his body, but he was being driven slowly back. Valkyrie could hear him straining. Not even Bliss’s legendary strength could stop it.
And then, amazingly, it faltered. Bliss gave another heave and the Grotesquery was actually forced to take a step back.
Tanith made herself get up on one knee and finally stand. The Grotesquery had stopped walking altogether and now seemed to be examining Bliss. It held up its left hand close to him.
“Tanith?” Bliss said through gritted teeth. His face was drenched with sweat. “If you wouldn’t mind …”
Tanith looked quickly to Valkyrie. “Sword.”
Valkyrie reached out, felt the air around them, used the air to close around the fallen sword and then she twisted her wrist and the sword flew from the ground into Tanith’s left hand. Tanith was already swinging when the stinger darted, her blade intercepting it before it could reach Bliss.
The tip of the stinger fell to the ground. Valkyrie and Tanith stared down at it.
“I hurt it,” Tanith said in disbelief.
“About time,” Bliss muttered, drew back his right hand and let loose with an almighty punch that sent the Grotesquery reeling.
“Cleavers!” Bliss roared. “Attack!”
Skulduggery and Valkyrie stood together. Tanith cradled her broken arm. Bliss had taken a step back to catch his breath. They watched the Cleavers attack and it was a sight to behold. They moved as a perfect team, silently and without the need for orders. They knew what they had to do, and they backed each other up, compensated for injuries, reinforced and provided distraction. The Grotesquery was not granted a single moment to recover.