Demon's Dream (15 page)

“You may have the host fooled but you will never get the better of me.”

Destruction then tossed her into the trees as if she were but a stone tossed into a lake. Slowly he stalked towards her again, needing, wanting to finish the job for the pain she wrought in his host.

Azamel writhed on the ground, his back shredded, blood seeped about his body. He was alert, aware of the damage Destruction brought to the demons who tried to cause him harm and in truth, he cared less they were dispatched so quickly, easily and efficiently. However, his mother, the bitch of a traitor who birthed him, was another matter entirely. He was still stunned at her cold demeanor towards him and how casually she could order his death like she was ordering venison stew from the tribal cooks.

Azamel wanted to see her suffer as she made him feel the agony of her rejection. Destruction reached her and grabbed for Beloitah again but she used her Goddess abilities to increase her blow to his chin. His head snapped to the side with her punch, which otherwise barely affected him. He returned the action with one of his own, her head mirroring his movement. She wiped at her bloodied lip and conjured a blade to thrust at him. He side stepped it, grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him, his hot rancid breath on her features.

“Is this really the best you got? How did you ever get the title of a Goddess of evil? You’re puny and insignificant.”

Beloitah narrowed her eyes.

“Puny and insignificant? How dare you compare me to yourself!”

She twisted her wrist in such a way that her palm was against his body. Sending a high energy blast through her hand, he was flown back into the nearby lake, the splash of water sending spouts thirty feet into the air. Even she had to chuckle at the visual but her mirth was short lived. She waited for Destruction to get back on solid ground then knelt down and touched her palm on the earth. The land shook violently. A deep fissure opened and swallowed Destruction. She then quickly resealed the soil to look as if it had never been disturbed. Walking over to Azamel with a dagger she conjured, she was about ready to plunge the silver razor sharp blade into Azamel’s heart when she was tossed back off of her feet, landing a short distance away.

Destruction arose from the undisturbed ground, a spirit moving through the air from the depth of the soil. A black haze rose with him, its adumbrated tendrils wafted towards Beloitah. The filaments wrapped about the Goddess as she was caught by surprise, momentarily stunned. However, the web it tried to create stopped suddenly from advancing as Beloitah let it lift and surround her. She smiled evilly, drinking in the power it tried to deplete.

“You really should know your enemy better if you plan on trying to kill them.”

Beloitah let the wisps of black cloud pull around her tighter, wearing it like a clinging dress. Her eyes went solid black. She opened her mouth and the ebony mists emanated from the orifice directed straight at Destruction.

His yellow eyes shifted to a bright red as they opened wide in surprise. “Oh, fuck me.”

The dark murky cloud sped towards him, enveloping him in his own substance squeezing the very life out of him. Destruction was lost within the cloud, a strangled cry emerged and Beloitah grinned.

“Don’t fuck with a Goddess,” she murmured softly.

She was about to turn and leave when her attention was caught by the red light which pierced the thick darkness concealing Destruction. Her eyes narrowed as the light became brighter and in moments it shattered the mist which clung like a heavy drape around the demon.

Now free, Destruction wasn’t a happy camper. His previous red eyes were now a black to match her own. He was upon her in a heartbeat. His long, talon like claws wrapped around her throat. Beloitah turned and flipped him over her shoulder. She wouldn’t be taken down so easily, especially by a demon, even if he was a high-level one. Once she had him on the ground, she twisted his arm until she heard the audible crack of a broken bone. She continued to crush his hand with her own as she glared at him.

Destruction remained still, his arm and hand in excruciating agony. As Beloitah bent down to put her hand on his heart to pull it from his chest, he grabbed her hand with his good appendage and flipped her onto her back as he rolled on top of her, pinning her to the ground. His broken arm hung loosely at his side but he only needed one good arm to exact his revenge. His hand on her throat, he let his black eyes pierce her own, starring deep into them and touching her very soul.

She could feel icy fingers probing and winding through her mind, tightening on the pressure points behind her eyes. It was worse than a migraine humans constantly complained about as she struggled to breathe and focus beyond the intense pounding in her head. She felt like her head was about to explode around her and wasn’t entirely sure it wasn’t a possibility. She pushed against him, trying to dislodge him from her pinned body. The distress she was feeling within her brain was unbearable and her black eyes changed to a dull silver blue. She continued to fight and struggle against him but she was losing. Beloitah screamed, an eerie sound that crawled through every pore of any within earshot as her whole body shook so hard it burst into a huge puff of dust.

Destruction sat back and roared. His cries mingled with Azamel’s mournful bellows. They both knew the Goddess wouldn’t be gone forever but she would be immobilized for a few centuries and when she did reassemble, they would be so much stronger and more secure in their position that she would never again try and assassinate either of them.

The shattered glass brought Mel back from his reverie as the amber liquid mixed with the shards of the broken crystal were sprinkled onto the oriental carpet. He was unconcerned with the fragments scattered about the floor as he looked at his bloodied hand. He ignored the minor inconvenience of the laceration as he used his powers to clean up the mess. He also materialized a towel to wrap around his hand once he was sure all the pieces of glass were removed.

As he finished cleaning up, something he read in one of the files occurred to him. He pulled the folders about Mani back out and quickly skimmed them until he found what he was looking for.

‘
Well, fuck me sideways,’
Mel thought as he realized what it was that had been eluding him so annoyingly. Smiling triumphantly, he turned and called for Shara. He had work to do.

Chapter Fourteen

Clarissa hunched low in the darken shadows. She knew she was being hunted. Hell, nowadays, it was a miracle if she wasn’t. It was fine with her though. It kept her busy, helped her hone her growing powers. Who cared if she was a solitary figure, isolated and had been on the run for the past few months. Somehow she had become a demon magnet for every creature who wanted to obtain the power of the stone. Since she had returned from the Hell Realm, she had no chance to secure a secret location for the other half of the gem stone and the demons seemed to know it. Without being properly hidden ethereally as well as physically, it resonated throughout the realms as to its very existence.

There didn’t seem to be a day that went by which didn’t garner at least one attempt to obtain it by one creature or another. Although, in reality, she didn’t mind too much. Making sure she kept her ass out of the fire and alive to protect the ancient powerful artifact, she had been too busy to stop long enough and think. When it was late at night and the stillness settled about her, all she felt were a pair of icy cold blue eyes invading her every thought. Even though they were apart, just the thought of him made her stomach tighten deliciously remembering the feel of his body against hers, his scent invading her very being. He didn’t want her though and told her as much. Hell, after enjoying the most erotic night of passion she had ever experienced, he coldly left her without a backwards glance as he told her to get out. She meant nothing to him. His job was done. Azamel hunted, judged and executed Xon. He fulfilled his duty and no longer needed to work or even be bothered with her and her training. Mel had accomplished teaching her to isolate herself from the pain and loss of her family so others couldn’t use it against her. He had help to set her on the path to increase control of her powers and improved her already well-established fighting skills. She had honed her senses, calling her wolf sensibilities to the forefront in order to protect herself and her charge better.

She had tried several times to find a protected location in which to hide half of the gem but each time she attempted to do so, a demon would appear and attack in hopes of acquiring the power the stone bestowed on whomever succeeded in securing it in their possession.

Now she was being hunted again. Two demons had been currently tracking her for the past couple of hours. She had managed to evade them long enough to get them into a place she would have better control and freedom of movement as well as protecting mundane humans from being exposed to the preternatural world.

She crouched low in her wolf form, her animal eyes pierced the darkness easily. Her sense of smell indicated to her the demons who followed her were not very far away and would be there momentarily. She waited and watched patiently, her mind focused on the task at hand, which was to stay alive and keep the gem away from their grubby little claws. She didn’t have to wait long as twin pillars of brawn rounded the corner. Clarissa realized they were identical twin brothers, a mirror image of hideousness. The two massive creatures stood with their legs slightly apart in matching poses. Their long red hair billowed in the slight breeze. Their eyes were an eerie yellow, which shimmered glowingly in the darkness which surrounded them.

Clarissa was well aware they saw her as easily as she saw them. Standing as she shifted into human form from her hunched wolf position, she took a step forward silently. Her heart raced, pumping blood through her veins so loudly it echoed in her ears. She swallowed past the fear that threatened to take over for her. These demons were no different than the others she had fought over the past few months. Peering them over, she evaluated their stance for their method of attack. Clarissa took another step towards them soundlessly. She wondered if she should break up the stillness that surrounded them but what was she going to say? She was really not one for witty, sarcastic words while she was about to fight for her life and hoped she was able to once again be successful and walk away while they remained still at her feet. However, nothing was a guarantee and she never took anything for granted. Her time with Azamel taught her that, if it educated her in no other way.
‘Shit! Don’t think about him now. Concentrate or perish!’

Immediately, she turned her attention back to the two hulking demons. They were easily six-five or six-six in height. Their shoulders were so broad that the two of them standing side by side took up almost the entire entryway of the alley. Clarissa didn’t know what kind of demons they were but it really didn’t matter. They were after her for the gem and she had no choice but to fight them to protect it.

They stood staring down each other staring each other down, none of them moving. As if on an unheard command, the twin brothers lifted their inner arms locking their hands to the others wrists while simultaneously lifting their outside arms up, their palms outward towards her. Clarissa’s eyes widened. Wary of their impending attack, Clarissa’s eyes widened.

Her powers had grown strong enough that she could just teleport out but it would only delay the inevitable. Clarissa had lured them here on purpose, so here is where she would take the stand against them.

Within milliseconds of their palms raised towards her, two balls of fire each were dispatched from the center of their hands towards her. She immediately lifted her hands up, palms outward and the four fiery circular orbs were halted in their wake. Using her strength, she pushed her arms straight out, sending the flaming missiles back to their origination point. The brothers seemed surprised as their attack was returned to them with forceful conviction.

Since the flaming orbital projectiles were a result of the strength of their combined powers, they impacted the men’s bulks harmlessly, dissipating in a scattered flash of brilliant light.

“Impressive, Guardian.”

“Very Impressive.”

Clarissa lips gave a slight tug in an upward motion. “I don’t suppose this means you were so impressed that you’ll give up your foolish ambition of killing me and obtaining the object of your desire?”

Both demon men laughed- the sound harsh and hollow. In unison, they replied “No, Guardian. We’ll see you dead before this night is out.”

The males turned toward each other knowingly and shared a look of planning.

“Kloss, I believe she needs more hands on attention,” the right one stated matter-of-factly.

Kloss nodded in ready agreement. “I believe you’re very right, Glyus. Shall we?”

She sighed sadly, shaking her head enough to cause her blond curls to flutter slightly about her face.

“Why did I not think you would have enough brains to seriously reconsider your foolishness?”