Skulduggery Pleasant: The End of the World (5 page)

V
alkyrie stepped in front of Ryan, and Skulduggery straightened his tie. “Excellent,” he said. “You’ve fallen right into our trap.”

Foe looked around at the otherwise empty mall, eyebrow raised. “This is a trap, is it? So this is the bit where all the Cleavers appear? This is the part where we surrender due to being completely outnumbered and you cart us off to our cells?”

“Roughly, yes.”

Foe’s grin grew wider. “Has the trap been sprung yet?”

“I’m simply not going to dignify that with an answer,” said Skulduggery.

Standing behind Obloquy, Samuel was sweating badly. Ryan could see the lines of tension on his face. He looked to be in pain.

“Your pet doesn’t look too good,” Valkyrie said.

Foe glanced back, then shrugged. “When the sun goes down, all a vampire wants to do is rip off his skin and kill everything in sight. Right now, the only thing keeping all of us safe is the last drop of a serum he took. Your boyfriend took something similar, didn’t he? What was his name? Caelan?”

Valkyrie’s shoulders stiffened and her voice grew harder. “He was
not
my boyfriend.”

“Bad break-up, was it? Actually, don’t answer that. I heard it was. Bad for him more than you, though, wasn’t it?”

“We don’t talk about vampires,” Ryan muttered.

Foe smiled and Mercy laughed. “See?” she said. “Told you he fancies her.”

“So what if he does?” Valkyrie snapped back. “He’s a nice guy. After we’ve smacked you lot around, we may as well give it a go. What’s the matter, Mercy – jealous that two people can like each other when nobody in their right mind would ever like you?”

Mercy glared. “Plenty have liked me.”

“Yeah,” Valkyrie said, “I’ve heard.”

The glare turned to a scowl. “Not like that.”

“You don’t have to justify yourself to me.”

“Says the girl who dated a vampire.”

“Says the psycho who dated everyone.”

“Detective Pleasant,” Foe said, interrupting the conversation just when it was getting interesting, “you’ve gone suspiciously quiet. It’s not like you to miss an argument.”

“Carry on,” Skulduggery said, his head down, “don’t mind me…”

Foe frowned. “What are you doing?”

Skulduggery waited a moment, then looked up, and showed them his phone. “Just sending a message. Reinforcements should be here soon.”

Obloquy sagged. “I told you we should have just attacked them,” he rumbled. “But no, you wanted to talk and trade witty banter.”

“Shut up, Obloquy,” Foe said. “Fine, Detective. You want to skip straight to business? Fine with me. Kill them.”

Valkyrie pushed Ryan back slightly as Obloquy headed for her and Mercy zeroed in on Skulduggery.

“Oh sure,” Valkyrie said, “I’ll take the big one, no problem.”

Foe stayed where he was, his eyes on Ryan. Behind him, Samuel sweated.

Mercy opened her mouth and Skulduggery ducked the stream of energy that carved a furrow across the wall behind him. He dodged behind a pillar, but the stream intensified, melting right through the pillar and taking Skulduggery’s hat off his head.

Obloquy pressed his hands to his temples and he squeezed, like he wanted to pop his own head open. Valkyrie staggered. She fell to one knee, bringing up her own hands like she was trying to shield herself. Ryan wanted to run and help, but now Foe was walking towards him.

“This doesn’t have to hurt,” Foe said.

Ryan turned, ran up the still travelator, swung around at the top and ran up the next one. He was halfway up when he started to seriously regret his choice. His legs were already screaming at him and his lungs were burning. He’d never been able to run for any length of time – not even in the school that he remembered but had never actually attended.

He glanced down, saw Skulduggery waving a hand and Mercy flying backwards. Valkyrie was on both knees now, with Obloquy standing directly over her. Darkness pulsed from the ring on her finger and Obloquy jerked back in shock. His psychic attack must have faltered, because Valkyrie immediately wrapped an arm around each leg. She pressed her shoulder against his belly and as she lifted she launched herself forward. Obloquy yelled as he hit the ground, Valkyrie on top, and Ryan saw her first headbutt go in before he reached the top floor and lost her to sight.

Staggering slightly, Ryan ran on, no idea where he was going or what he would do when he got there. The mall was terrifying at night. The few lights that were on cast the deepest shadows. Anyone could be hiding in those shadows.

Foe stepped out ahead of him and Ryan yelled and changed course and ran into a potted plant, tripped over it and sprawled on to the floor.

“I’d ask you to activate the Machine,” Foe said, walking up, “but I don’t have the time for an argument. So I’m going to be rude. I hope you don’t mind, me being rude. It’s nothing personal. I’m not going to kill you. Don’t think I’m going to kill you. I’m just going to cut off your hand a little bit. You might die from blood loss or trauma or shock – let’s not kid ourselves – but you will not die from me cutting off your hand. When you think about it like that, you have nothing to fear from me or my giant knife.”

Foe took a machete from his jacket.

Ryan crawled away on his hands and knees, panting too hard to get up.

“I know some people say they like the thrill of the chase,” Foe said, stepping on Ryan’s ankle and pinning it there, “but I’m not one of those people. The only thing I care about is ending this world.”

Ryan collapsed, and rolled over on to his back. “Why?” he gasped. “Why do you want to… want to kill everyone?”

Foe looked down at him, and shrugged. “Because it’s Wednesday.”

The machete swung down and Ryan screamed and Skulduggery crashed into Foe from behind. They both went stumbling off. Ryan sat up, looking at his hand, making sure it was still there. He realised he was still screaming so he stopped that and looked around. Skulduggery kicked at Foe’s knee, grabbed his head when he bent forward and cracked it against a narrow pillar. Foe staggered and swung a fist, but Skulduggery stepped inside the swing, latched on and started hitting him with elbows. It was all very violent. Ryan’s mother, if she’d existed, would not have approved.

“Skulduggery!” Valkyrie shouted from below them.

“Ryan,” Skulduggery muttered, as Foe grabbed him round the waist and slammed him back against the wall, “could you take a look and see what she’s shouting about now?”

Ryan got up, hurried to the railing, looked over. Mercy and Obloquy were down and not moving, but Valkyrie was backing away from Samuel, who was lurching towards her, bent over like he had stomach cramps.

Ryan looked back. Foe had his arm wrapped around Skulduggery’s neck from behind, and he was dragging him like he wanted to pull Skulduggery’s head from his spinal column. Skulduggery twisted but Foe adapted, turning his hold into a headlock. Skulduggery reached up, his gloved fingers digging into Foe’s eyes. Foe jerked away and lost his grip and Skulduggery pushed against him, tripping him with a sneaky sweep to the ankle. Foe went down and Skulduggery landed on top of him.

“Well?” Skulduggery asked as he pounded Foe with punches.

“Uh, I don’t know,” said Ryan. “Samuel looks like he’s about to throw up.”

Surprisingly, Skulduggery and Foe stopped fighting and they both looked over.

“He’s doubled over?” Foe asked, panting for breath.

“Yeah,” said Ryan.

Foe looked at Skulduggery, and they both stood up.

“You’re on your own,” Foe said, and ran.

Ryan frowned, looked down at Samuel again. Samuel’s moan of pain drifted up, and then suddenly it turned to a growl. Samuel straightened, digging his fingers into his shirt and ripping it open. No, not just his shirt. His skin, too. Samuel ripped his flesh and his clothes from his body, from the bone-white body that lay beneath. His hands, and even from where he stood, Ryan could see the claws on those hands, tore Samuel’s face off and threw it to one side, revealing the smooth head and big black eyes and jagged, jagged teeth.

Valkyrie turned and ran, and the vampire bounded after her. Something blurred out of the corner of Ryan’s eye and suddenly Skulduggery was vaulting over the railing and dropping to the ground far below.

Ryan ran for the travelator, heading down, heading down to help Valkyrie. He heard her cry out and nearly tripped, nearly went head first. There was a crash of breaking glass and Ryan glimpsed Skulduggery disappearing through a shop window. He was almost at the ground floor when he saw her, saw Valkyrie, hurling fireballs and whipping shadows at the vampire that came at her like a wild animal. It twisted in mid-air, avoiding the slash of darkness Valkyrie sent its way. It landed on her, took her down, its claws raking across her body. She gasped and it raked again, and again, trying to get through her protective clothing, trying to rend flesh and puncture skin, trying to draw blood.

“Hey!” Ryan screamed, running into full view of the monster. “Hey you! Hey! Come and get me! Come on!”

The vampire snapped its head up, snarling.

“I’ve got what you want!” Ryan shouted, holding up his imprinted palm. If Samuel the man was still in there somewhere, maybe he’d remember why all this was going on in the first place. Maybe he’d remember that Ryan was the real target. Or maybe the vampire would just see an easy kill and—

The vampire leaped off Valkyrie. Ryan howled in terror and started running again. He glanced back in time to see it claws and its teeth and feel the rush of air as it swooped up and over him.

Ryan’s feet got mixed up and he tripped over himself. He sat on the ground, looking up. The vampire hung in the air, looking down. It writhed and snarled, slashed at him with its claws.

Skulduggery walked over, hands open, fingers flexing slightly as he held the creature in place. His suit was torn and his tie was crooked. Valkyrie limped over, holding his hat. She showed it to him, and he groaned. There was a large hole burned through the top.

The vampire snarled at them all.

Skulduggery raised his arms, and the vampire rose in the air. Higher and higher it went, up past every floor. Valkyrie took Ryan’s arm, escorted him to the benches. When the vampire couldn’t rise any higher, Skulduggery dropped his hands quickly, and the vampire plunged downwards.

“This won’t kill it,” Valkyrie told Ryan as the vampire fell. “But it’ll break enough bones to stop it from bothering us.”

The vampire hit the ground with a satisfying
thwack
, and didn’t get up.

Skulduggery examined his poor hat, and laid it to one side. “Ryan,” he said. “I know you’ve been through a lot, but there is the small matter of dismantling a bomb to get through, and then I’ll let you rest. I promise.”

W
ith Skulduggery’s guidance, Ryan dismantled the Doomsday Machine. He rendered each and every part of it inert. When it was done, when the last piece was made useless, his hand started to burn. He hissed, looked at his palm, and the imprint faded to nothing.

“Well done, Ryan,” Skulduggery said. “You saved the world.”

“You knew exactly what to do,” Ryan said. “You
did
know how to dismantle it after all.”

“I’m glad you got that impression,” Skulduggery said kindly. “But really I could have just as easily killed us all. Still, it’s better than waiting around for the experts, isn’t it?”

He took a set of handcuffs from his belt and went to shackle the unconscious prisoners, leaving Ryan and Valkyrie alone.

“How long do I have?” Ryan asked.

Valkyrie hesitated. “Skulduggery said… he said that as soon as this was over, one way or the other, Deacon’s personality would start to reassert itself.”

“So I don’t have long,” Ryan said quietly.

“I’m… I’m afraid not.”

Ryan nodded. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t trust his voice not to break.

“You probably saved my life back there,” Valkyrie said. “That was a very brave thing you did.”

Ryan managed a smile. “Maybe it’s something you’ll remember me for.”

“I definitely think so.”

“I don’t feel very brave right now. To be honest, I kind of feel like crying.”

Valkyrie’s hand rested on his shoulder.

“I really don’t want to die,” Ryan said. He was crying now. He didn’t care. The only thing he cared about was that in a few moments he wouldn’t be here any more. He wouldn’t exist. They’d stopped Foe and the others from destroying the world, but Ryan’s world was ending just the same. “It’s not fair. How come Deacon gets to live and I don’t?”

“I don’t know,” Valkyrie said softly.

“Isn’t there anything you can do? Maybe Skulduggery can do something? Maybe he knows someone who can, who can block Deacon from coming back, or…”

“I’m sorry, Ryan,” Valkyrie said. She was crying too. This pretty girl with the single dimple when she smiled, she was crying for him. This pretty girl who would never go out with a guy like Ryan, not in a million years, was sitting here with her arm round him, and they were crying together.

He fought to control his sobs. When he could speak, he spoke quietly. “Could I have that kiss now?”

She looked at him. “Definitely,” she said, and leaned in. He turned his head slightly, didn’t know if he should close his eyes or keep them open, but when their lips met his eyes closed. His first kiss in fifteen years of false memories. His only kiss in fifteen hours of real life.

They parted. His head was clouded. His thoughts were fuzzy.

“I really like you, Valkyrie,” he managed to mumble.

“I really like you, Ryan,” she said back to him.

Ryan smiled and tried to kiss her again, this pretty girl with the dimple, what was her name again, Valkyrie, that was it, seventeen years old and cute as a button, the kind of girl who had never even noticed Deacon when he was that age. He grinned and leaned in and felt her hand against his chest, keeping him back, and then her eyes were narrowing.

“Ryan?”

“I’ll be whoever you want me to be,” Deacon said, and she hit him so hard the whole world spun.

She stood over him. “Get rid of that face,” she said. “Stop using Ryan’s face right now or I swear to God I’ll batter you.”

“OK!” he cried. “Just don’t hit me again!”

Deacon got to his feet, his jaw aching. “Ain’t that something?” he muttered, and at those words, the image around him flickered and withdrew, and suddenly he was back to his old self again.

Valkyrie’s eyes sparkled with tears. She was looking at him like she was going to hit him again anyway.

“I just want to thank you,” he said before she did. “I was in a serious bind and you, you came in and you really helped me. I was in over my head, I don’t mind admitting it. If it makes any difference, I never intended for the Machine to end up in enemy hands. The moment I sold the key, I was going to alert the Sanctuary and get an army of Cleavers in here to—”

“You risked the lives of everyone on the
planet
,” Valkyrie said, her voice tight.

“I did,” he said, nodding sadly, “and I truly regret that. It was stupid. It was short-sighted, and selfish. If I knew then what I know now, I would never have tried it. But we all make mistakes, isn’t that right? And I made a mistake. A terrible, terrible mistake that could have had untold consequences for—”

He didn’t even see the punch. He saw her shoulder shift and then he was toppling backwards. He hit the ground and his face felt three sizes too big. Good
God
, she hit hard.

“You better get up,” she said, standing over him. “The Cleavers are coming, and if you’re here when they arrive, you’ll get arrested too.”

He blinked. “You’re letting me go?”

“We’re letting
Ryan
go,” Skulduggery Pleasant said, walking up behind her. “Ryan was a friend of ours. He deserved better than to be you, Deacon.”

“I know he did,” Deacon said, rising slowly to his feet for the second time in the last sixty seconds. “I only hope I can make it up to him somehow, maybe by being a better person, by treating people with the same kind of—”

“If you want me to hit you again, you’ll keep talking like that,” Valkyrie said.

Deacon shut up. If looks could kill, he’d be skewered. “I know I did wrong,” he said, hanging his head. “I know I did. And I’ve already paid for it. My brother. My poor brother Dafydd. Foe thought Dafydd was me. He chased him and Dafydd… Dafydd fell into that wood chipper. He was always the clumsy one, was Dafydd. So, so clumsy…”

Valkyrie shoved him to get his attention, and when he looked up she leaned in. “If we ever hear of you doing something like that again, creating an innocent person just so you can hide behind them…”

Deacon held up his hands. “I won’t, I swear. I’ve learned my lesson. I was greedy, and selfish. But now I see that it was wrong to—”

“We don’t care,” Skulduggery said. “Run away before I shoot you.”

Deacon nodded, and started walking.

“He said
run
,” Valkyrie snarled, and Deacon did just that.