4. Door Knight for the Win #2
The room is a decent size, and most of it is cast in darkness, only lit by a few candles.
If it weren’t for the fact that I physically walked here, I would guess we are back inside a cave like I was in when I was with the Rebels.
The rough walls and demonic pictures scream their presence.
That and the fucking colossal pentagram etched into the stone ground.
We came in from one tunnel, but I see two more on the right and a few smaller possible entrances at the back, though I’m not sure if it’s just how it looks with the dim light.
Levi sits on a stool, head bowed, with his arms pulled tight behind him smack dab in the middle of the room.
A typical bad B-movie plot. Can’t these Harpies do better?
Even our Robot deserves better treatment than this. Pfft.
‘What do you think about creeping in the dark to Levi and doing a snatch-and-run?’ I ask as I survey which harpies are in attendance.
It seems like it’s the same old ones except for the witch. She’s a new one, along with her familiar, the amphibian.
‘Sounds good to me,’ Knots concurs.
As I move, I easily slip into a creature I’m sure no one has ever seen here in Purgatory, although a few have claimed it on Earth. Though what they call it is nothing close to what it originally is; it’s been modified from what the true purpose of the beast was.
I wonder who’s running around imitating the beast or who decided to mate with the damn thing before the original monster went extinct?
My body elongates and doubles in size as my muzzle flattens out and my eyes shift, so I lose the tapetum lucidum. Can’t let my eyes reflect what little light the room gives off. My front paws shift to accommodate opposable thumbs, and my knuckles thicken with pads to soften my approach.
‘What the fuck are you?’ Knots asks as my tail waves in front of his face, pausing his approach.
‘A cross between a Werewolf and Bigfoot. So, let’s call me a Werefoot. You know what they say about people and their foot size, right?’ I smirk, even though he can’t see it.
‘Yeah, they’re clumsy and often trip over their feet.’ He tilts his head. ‘Hmm. That explains so much now,’ he continues, returning a smirk.
Have I mentioned how strong the urge is for me to sharpen my claws on this scratching post?
I almost gag as Emer kneels before Levi, mooning me with her bare ass. “Lied? Baby, why would you say that?” Emer pouts.
“I’ve done everything you’ve asked. I came with you willingly, didn’t fight you, and you still haven’t told me what you guys did to Nerezza,” Levi points out through a grimace.
Huh. Is he in pain? I don’t see any blood on him. What did they do to him?
Emer stands and looks at him with pity.
“That pain will go away once she’s out of your system and you're truly mine. Until then, any memory, talk, or thoughts of her will trigger pain for you, Leviathan.” Emer smiles at him before her eyes briefly flash to black.
“I told you. You belong to me, but you forced my hand. I didn’t want to hurt you, but that human has become harder to get rid of than I first imagined. ’
So the pain he’s feeling is tied to Rezzi-bear? What the hell is going on?
Emer moves aside and waves at Angel. “Go ahead, Angel, have at it,” she tells her cousin as she takes a robe from one of her minions.
“Oh goody!” The little blonde devil claps and prances around Levi like the sociopath that she is.
“Did you know that there are artifacts that Heaven held in high regard that they have lost and are willing to do almost anything to get back?” She twirls around, looks at Levi’s blank stare, and cackles when he doesn’t respond.
“Neither did I, until my father showed me this angelic dagger that once was in his possession to guard, but when he fell, he stole it. Can you believe there’s an Angel Blessed dagger in Hell of all places? ”
It’s the words Angel Blessed dagger that hit my soul like a punch to the gut. I don’t recognize the term, but my soul understands it on a primal level, and a chill runs through me at the words.
‘She’s speaking of the Eternal Flower. It went missing when the chosen fell.’ Knots’ words verify the truth of Angel’s tale.
“Did you know the first cut of an Angel Blessed dagger binds what’s on it to the soul of the target?
So poor Rez, there’s no help for her. That’s what’s great about this whole thing, Levi,” Angel mocks as Levi lets out a grunt of pain.
“There’s no cure for God’s Trumpet. So, no matter what you all try to do, she can’t be saved.
” Angel throws her head back and laughs.
‘Ready?’ Knots asks, preparing to run.
‘Yep. Snatch and dash,’ I concur.
‘Now!’ Knots yells as we both push away from the wall, but neither of us sticks the landing as the room suddenly shakes and engulfs us with a blinding white light, and a roar rips across the room.
Shit!
Knots
My senses are discombobulated as the room explodes in chaos. I can’t see, and the roar temporarily takes my hearing.
‘Turn off your Rainbow Bright, Tree trunk!’ Lynx screams into my head.
‘What the fuck is a Rainbow Bright?’ I shoot back as I quickly shield my eyes and turn my body towards where I last saw Levi.
‘It’s a flashlight,’ he growls as he inches along the ground by my side.
‘I would be happy to if I were doing it,’ I growl back.
No sooner than the words are out of my head does the light flicker out, leaving just the candles, when the birds from Hell rise from the deep and start squawking.
‘What the fuck are the Harpies screaming for?’ Lynx asks, focusing only on Levi.
‘I’m not sure you want to know, Hairball,’ I admit as I slowly back up and step over Lynx’s shifting camouflage tail, sliding back into the shadows.
Across the room is a towering demon that has decided to join this secret backroom of kidnapping occult Harpies, and apparently, it wasn’t invited.
The mage in the room goes on offense and throws a powerful spell at the massive demon at one of the openings.
It hits him directly in the chest, and it bounces off with a blinding light, causing me to shield my eyes once again for a brief moment.
His skin is either made up of reflective plates or he has one powerful spell to blind his enemies when he’s hit.
I’ve never seen a demon such as this. He’s taller than Bez and me put together and as wide as my wing span, which in this case, is helpful since he can’t simply walk into the room.
We only saw three tunnels coming from our way, but there could be more; either way, they are too narrow for his body, and he will have to come in at an angle.
“Take it down!” Emer screams as she conjures Fae Fire in her hands. The other harpies move in front of Levi to take on a more offensive stance, leaving Levi unmonitored.
‘This would be the perfect time for our snatch and grab,’ I remind Lynx, glancing back down at my feet when I feel his tail hit me.
‘What do you think I’m doing? Window shopping?’ he snaps, changing directions when Levi tips over in his chair and hits the floor hard. His head bounces off the ground, and his eyes shutter closed. Shit.
‘Levi? You good?’
Nothing.
‘Lynx. I think Levi’s out. So he’s not going to be much help,’ I tell him as I shuffle over, keeping my eyes on the fight in front of us.
‘It’s okay, I almost got him,’ Lynx shares as the ground slowly vibrates.
Focusing on the demon in the furthest doorway across the room, my jaw drops as shadows violently shake off him and become corporeal.
One of the Harpy twins throws lightning, and it hits one of the shadows, evaporating it within seconds.
Screeches ring out from the shadows, the ground shakes, and the debris falls from the ceiling as the Demon starts ramming into the archway it’s stuck behind, trying to get into the room.
Seriously, where the hell did he come from? We didn’t see him come in with us.