The two Archangels exchanged looks. "That's sort-of the problem," Gabe admitted. "We won't be able to track them, let alone play them, until Lucifer actually arrives."
"I've been observing the ripples we leave in this universe," Rafe explained, and then grinned. "There's method to my not taking bed-rest, y'know. Unfortunately, while there's similarities, in the end the exact tune is going to be specific to each one of us. Which means we need to observe Lucifer in this universe before we can figure out how to trigger the slingshot back to ours."
"But," Gabe went on, "I'm going to establish a perimeter around the Earth, to keep him from getting off it." He managed a faint, grim smile. "It's going to frustrate him rather terribly, being unable to leave Earth, but if he does he could hide somewhere out in the cosmos and then we'd have a harder time finding him. At least on Earth he's got finite space and metaspace to play around with."
"And if he's frustrated he tends to be obvious," Rafe muttered.
Gabe nodded and glanced at Skulduggery. "Lucifer's pride and anger are his weak points. I've lost count of how many times he's gotten angry because he's expected something that hasn't followed through. And when he gets angry, he makes stupidly grandiose gestures just to satisfy his temper tantrum. It makes him easy to find. Just ..." He sighed. "Just not much fun for anyone in his way. Usually that means his damned and his subordinates, but unless he goes directly to Sanguine or the Temples, he won't have them here."
"In which case it could be to our benefit if he did make an alliance," Merlin pointed out, fingers tapping the side of his cup in thought as he looked out the window. "It gives him a physical base of operations he can't do without, and which we can track. It will also give him someone to punish when things don't go his way."
"But there are innocents in the Temple," Gabe said softly. "People who can be saved. How long will they last if Lucifer takes it over?"
"More to the point," Rafe added grimly, "how long will our existence remain secret if people like Tenny find out?"
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"I've been observing the ripples we leave in this universe," Rafe explained, and then grinned. "There's method to my not taking bed-rest, y'know. Unfortunately, while there's similarities, in the end the exact tune is going to be specific to each one of us. Which means we need to observe Lucifer in this universe before we can figure out how to trigger the slingshot back to ours."
"But," Gabe went on, "I'm going to establish a perimeter around the Earth, to keep him from getting off it." He managed a faint, grim smile. "It's going to frustrate him rather terribly, being unable to leave Earth, but if he does he could hide somewhere out in the cosmos and then we'd have a harder time finding him. At least on Earth he's got finite space and metaspace to play around with."
"And if he's frustrated he tends to be obvious," Rafe muttered.
Gabe nodded and glanced at Skulduggery. "Lucifer's pride and anger are his weak points. I've lost count of how many times he's gotten angry because he's expected something that hasn't followed through. And when he gets angry, he makes stupidly grandiose gestures just to satisfy his temper tantrum. It makes him easy to find. Just ..." He sighed. "Just not much fun for anyone in his way. Usually that means his damned and his subordinates, but unless he goes directly to Sanguine or the Temples, he won't have them here."
"In which case it could be to our benefit if he did make an alliance," Merlin pointed out, fingers tapping the side of his cup in thought as he looked out the window. "It gives him a physical base of operations he can't do without, and which we can track. It will also give him someone to punish when things don't go his way."
"But there are innocents in the Temple," Gabe said softly. "People who can be saved. How long will they last if Lucifer takes it over?"
"More to the point," Rafe added grimly, "how long will our existence remain secret if people like Tenny find out?"
Merlin didn't reply.