Agent of Chaos (The X-Files: Origins #1)(43)

“As long as you’ve got money to pay the bill, you can order whatever you’d like.” She turned to Phoebe. “How about you, hon?”

“A cheeseburger with a side of fries, and coffee with cream and sugar.”

“I’ll just have an iced tea,” Mulder said.

“All right, then.” The waitress tapped her pen on the copy of Stormbringer Phoebe had put on the table. “You kids read this? My nephew read it. It’s all about the devil, if you ask me.” She glared at the book as she ripped off their ticket, slipped her pad back into the top pocket of her shirt, and tucked the pen behind her ear.

Phoebe flipped through pages of Stormbringer. “Now that I know Miss Fire and Brimstone over there disapproves, I really want to read it.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to eat anything?” Gimble asked Mulder.

“Don’t bother.” Phoebe didn’t look up from the book. “Fox is stubborn. If he didn’t order, he won’t eat. Give me the highlights of this thing, Gimble. I’m not sure I can get through this whole book without frying my brain.”

“It’s what the Major is always babbling about. The Eternal Champion series is all about the relationship between Chaos and Law and maintaining a balance between them. They call it the Cosmic Balance. That’s where the Eternal Champion comes in. If one side gets a leg up, an Eternal Champion is summoned to restore the balance.”

“And that’s Elric, the albino elf, right?” Phoebe continued to skim and flip pages.

Gimble sighed. “Elric isn’t an elf.”

“Right. He’s the hero and a badass warrior who comes to save everyone,” she said.

Mulder shook his head. “Nope. Elric is weak and sickly. He gets his power from Stormbringer.”

“The sword?” Phoebe asked.

The waitress arrived with their food and mixed up their orders, giving each person the wrong plate. Phoebe stirred her coffee and waited for her to leave before swapping plates.

“Yeah.” Gimble took a bite of his burger. “There are two swords—Stormbringer, an Agent of Chaos, and its brother sword, Mournblade, an Agent of Law. But they’re not regular swords. Stormbringer and Mournblade are actually demons that take the form of swords, and they feed on souls.”

“Where do they get the souls?” Phoebe popped a fry into her mouth.

“If the Eternal Champion—”

“This guy, Elric.” She flashed the cover at Gimble.

“Right. In that book it’s Elric.” He stole a fry from Phoebe’s plate. “So if Elric kills, or even cuts someone with Stormbringer, it’s demon dinnertime. And when Stormbringer gets a soul, Elric gets a hit of strength.”

Mulder took over. “But there’s a catch. Since Stormbringer is a demon, it has a mind and will of its own, meaning Elric doesn’t have complete control over the sword. Sometimes, it’s the other way around.”

“The sword controls him?” Phoebe nodded her approval. “That’s a cool twist.”

Gimble waved at Mulder to get him to stop talking. “Don’t give away the end. It’s the best part.” He turned to Phoebe. “The swords can cause bloodlust in the Eternal Champion, and the only way to satiate it is by killing. Just skip to the end and read the last couple pages.”

“Keep talking.” She started skimming the end of the book.

Mulder and Gimble ignored her and waited while she read.

Phoebe’s eyes went wide. “This is intense. Stormbringer turns on the Eternal Champion … and the sword kills him!”

Gimble nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, it’s the big finale to the series.” He sipped his milk shake and looked down at the table. “I hope my mom had a chance to finish it. I don’t know if she ever got to the end.”

Phoebe sensed she was missing something. She looked at Mulder, but he shook his head. She took the cue and went back to her fries and her conversation with Gimble.

“I’ll stick with Star Trek,” she said. “If Earl Roy really believes this stuff, he’s certifiable.”

“But he probably doesn’t think he’s crazy.” Mulder turned the idea over in his mind. “Beliefs have power, like the Illuminates were talking about in the meeting. If a person believes in something enough, that belief becomes a reality. Rain and the other girl at the meeting said Earl Roy talked about having an important role in restoring the balance between Chaos and Law, and he was obsessed with the Eternal Champion. Maybe Earl Roy thinks he’s the Eternal Champion, the big hero who’s going to save the world.”

Gimble nodded. “It makes sense. All the adults he killed were breaking the law or doing shady things. Taking them out could be his way of tipping the scales in Law’s favor.”

Phoebe wasn’t buying it. “If Earl Roy is going after bad people like some kind of a vigilante, why would he kill innocent kids?”

“He wouldn’t,” Gimble said. “Not if he’s playing the hero.”

“And if Earl Roy thinks he’s the Eternal Champion, wouldn’t he have a soul-eating sword like the one in the book?” she asked. “Why would he poison Billy Christian instead of using a sword to stab him?”

“We’re missing something, but we don’t have time to figure it out now,” Mulder said under his breath. “Are you guys done yet? We can’t waste any more time.” He fished some money out of his pocket and left it on the table to cover the bill.