Armageddon Run

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The SEAL rolled to a stop and Blade threw the door open and leaped to the ground. He ran up to the stark figure and paused, his very soul in agonizing distress.

No!

Dear Spirit, no! He seemed to be dead!

“Hey! Wait for me, dimples!” Lynx emerged from the passenger side of the transport and joined Blade. He stared at the object before him, puzzled. “What is it?” he asked. “I ain’t never seen one of these before.”

“It’s a cross,” Blade replied softly.

“Is Josh alive?” Lynx inquired.

Joshua had been stripped naked. Two boards had been nailed together at right angles to one another in the traditional form of a cross, with the upright beam imbedded in the ground not ten feet to the east of U.S. Highway 85. Large nails had been used to tack Joshua’s arms to the crossbeam, with one nail in each wrist serving to secure him to the wood.

A third nail had been utilized to fasten his legs to the upright beam; they had crossed his legs and hammered the nail through both of them just above his ankles, effectively impaling his slim body to the cross.

“That must hurt like crazy,” Lynx callously remarked.

Blade frowned. “Lynx, I want you to go look in the back of the SEAL. There are some tools in a metal box under the rear storage area. Dig through our pile of supplies and find the tool box.”

“No problem, chuckles,” Lynx said.

“The tool box is in a recessed compartment under the floor,” Blade clarified as Lynx hurried off. “Look for a small handle near the back seat and lift it up.”

Lynx nodded and kept going.

Blade walked up to the cross and gently laid his right hand on Joshua’s knees. “Joshua? Can you hear me?”

Joshua’s brown eyes slowly opened. “Blade?” His voice was a ragged whisper.

“None other,” Blade affirmed. “We’ll have you down in a bit. Hang in there.”

Joshua, incredibly, mustered a feeble grin.

“Can you talk?” Blade inquired.

“Yes,” Joshua replied, the word scarcely audible. “Throat… so… dry.”

“I’ll give you some water as soon as we have you down from there,” Blade promised.

“Thank you.”

“How long have you been here?” Blade queried.

Joshua licked his parched lips. “Lost track… of time. Two days… I think. Not… certain.”

Blade glanced at the SEAL, wishing Lynx would hurry.

“The… Doktor?” Joshua asked.

Blade looked up. “Dead,” he succinctly answered.

Joshua closed his eyes and sobbed.

“Joshua? What is it?” Blade inquired apprehensively.

“Failed,” Joshua mumbled. “Failed all… of… you.” He spoke haltingly, as if the mere act of speaking entailed monumental effort.

“Joshua, this may not be the right time to bring it up,” Blade stated, “but if you can tell me, I’d really like to know what you were doing here.”

Joshua tried to laugh, but it sounded more like a sorrowful wheeze.

“Why, Joshua?” Blade pressed him. “I know Plato didn’t send you. So why?”

Joshua stared into the Warrior’s eyes. “Wanted to… prove to all of… you. Wanted to do as… I… did in… Twin Cities.”

“The Twin Cities? You succeeded there because everyone wanted to end the decades of bloodshed. The Doktor was just the opposite. He reveled in spilling innocent blood, in slaughtering others for the thrill of it.” Blade paused. “Did you really believe you could change him?”

“Had to try,” Joshua insisted. “But… forgot…”

“Forgot what?” Blade queried.

Joshua quoted from memory: “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.”

“You must realize by now that not every man and woman craves peace and brotherhood,” Blade emphasized diplomatically. “Until everyone does, those who do must beware of those who don’t.”

“I think… I’ve… learned my lesson,” Joshua said. His chin dropped and his eyes flickered.

Blade spun around and cupped his hands around his mouth. “Lynx! Where the hell is that tool box!”