Chapter 16
“You must be, Evander, I’ve heard so much about you. Supposedly, you’re the one that killed Mammon,” Rathor remarks, looking me over.
Lilith runs her hands across my chest. “Don’t fucking touch me,” I growl and she laughs, ignoring me.
“I see you brought some friends along,” she says to Rathor, grinning. “Let’s see, we have Molech on the left and Dagon on the right, holding my plaything. Oh, is that Belial and Mazikeen in the back? I see you weren’t playing around, taking some of my best,” she remarks, glancing at Rathor.
“Who said you could talk, you fucking whore, get over here,” he snaps.
“You should know that this one just dispa-” she shouts just before Rathor cuts her off.
“I said get over here. NOW!” he barks.
“Ugh, fine I’ll play with you later,” she replies, almost pouting, turning and slithering her tail up my leg as she walks back. She moves past Frida, winking and licking her lips.
“I wonder if he is as tasty as you were?” she coos. This causes Frida to lunge at her, which in turn, makes Molech and Dagon pull harder on the chains. This jars her off her feet and she falls to the ground, as Belial and Mazikeen push the tip of the spears into her back.
Forcing a scream out of her and pulling her back to her feet.
“Let her go now or I will kill all of you,” I scream, preparing to lunge.
“Do it, fucking kill all of them,” Fenrir shouts as I feel his anger building, watching his beloved Serafine writhing in agony.
“As much as I would love to see that, oh sorry, was that a private conversation? You forget I’m a Lycan as well and with the help of Lilith’s magic I can hear your inner thoughts.
That aside, you seem a little hesitant, so let me help you with that, let’s give you a little motivation,” Rathor says, then starts walking over to Frida.
“I wouldn’t Rathor he just k…” Lilith starts but I shout over her.
“Don’t you fucking touch…” I begin, yelling in a commanding tone and my voice dies out by the sight of Rathor partially shifting and plunging his left claws through Frida’s back and out the right side of her chest.
The sight of his bloodied claws, moving around as they protrude through her chest, puts me in so much shock I’m frozen in place, and time seems to stop as every detail is crystal clear.
Terror, disbelief and pain cover Frida’s face, as her beautiful green eyes roll back, her face becomes expressionless and she goes limp. A sly smirk appears on his lips as he pulls his arm free of her body, dropping her to the ground.
Then it hits me, and my soul shatters. “NO,” I scream for what seems like forever. My shout expands into a deafening roar that sends shockwaves throughout all of Purgatory, as I shift and everything goes red.
I viciously lunge at Molech and Dagon. They release the chain and run forward, drawing their axes. Before they have time to swing, I dig my claws into both of their chests, shattering the steel armor.
Before I can react, Belial thrusts his spear into the left side of my gut. Pulling my right claws free from Dagon’s chest, I slash at the spear, snapping the shaft, causing him to stagger free from my grasp.
Dagon attempts to get up as I pull the spearhead from my gut and drive it through his helmet and into his skull. As he falls to the ground, I take my right paw, grabbing the still pinned Molech under the chin, digging deep into his throat and jaw.
Pulling back, I bite down onto his exposed throat, feeling the gurgling of his last breath, spewing his blood into my mouth. I snap my maw shut, decapitating him.
Then I feel a slash across my back, and look up. Belial drew his sword and is attempting to swing it again at me. Lunging at him mid swing, I wildly slash at the sword, deflecting it. He swings again, and as each time my claws connect, a cling rings out.
Over and over again until I hit the sword so hard it flies from his hands.
Slashing once more my claws rip through the armor, digging into his chest and carving long deep gashes across his body. Falling to his knees, I swipe up, burying my claws into the underside of his chin, through the roof of his mouth and into his brain, ripping his head from his torso.
His headless body flaps and scratches at me as its head is still stuck to my paw, biting at me. I flick my wrist, throwing the head free once and for all.
I then give my attention to Mazikeen, who is baffled by what she just witnessed. She throws her spear at me, turns and attempts to fly away. Catching the spear, I laugh.
“You’re not getting away from me,” I yell, hurling it back at her. It punches through her chest, forcing a bloody screech from her. As she falls to the ground, I jump and with a single swipe, sever one of her wings.
Crashing to the ground, she lands in a heap of demonic skeletons. She tries to pull the spear free, but as soon as my nails touch the dirt, I lunge at her again, digging both claws into her chest on either side of the spear.
Pulling with all of my strength, ripping her in half. The sound of her beating wing against the ground and her torso flopping around ceases as I turn my attention to Rathor. The look on his face is a mix of shock and impressed with how fast I dispatched the Knights.
He shifts and lunges at me. I respond in kind. We hit with such force it sends shockwaves throughout Purgatory once more.
Viciously we both swipe, block, bite and tear at each other. He finally connects with a swipe from his right arm, as his claws dig into my left shoulder. A searing pain pulsates from the wound like I’ve never felt before.
I stagger back. What the fuck is this pain?
“You have no idea what you have gotten yourself into,” Rathor barks at me.
Then Lilith appears behind me, stabbing me with her dagger in the small of my back, just missing my spine. I let out a painful roar.
“Oh, where is that power I saw a minute ago?” she whispers into my ear, then she twists and pulls the dagger out, vanishing again as I drop to a knee.
She’s right, I lost control and I’m not using my true power.
“Fenrir, we need to calm down.”
“I’m going to kill them,” he snaps back.
“I know how you feel, but if we don’t calm down we will die too.”
“NO, if you won’t kill them, I will, for what they did to Serafine,” he yells.
Lost in my argument with my wolf, Rathor catches me off guard, and smashes his knee into my chin, sending me flying back, crashing into a pile of rotting corpses.
“WE HAVE TO DO THIS TOGETHER, FENRIR!” I command. I need him to snap out of it. But his anger is too strong and he takes over, throwing the carcasses of dead demons and angels off of us.
He rushes at them wildly, slashing, biting, and clawing. Each miss increases his anger, until Lilith drives her dagger into our shoulder, then Rathor bolts behind us, slashing our back with his right claw, immobilizing us.
We fall face down and Fenrir’s spirit begins to fade quickly, allowing me to regain control once more.
“Trust me, Fenrir, we will make them pay, but you need to calm down.”
Rathor stands over us, pushing us into the dirt, gore and splintered bones, with his foot and nails digging into our back.
I feel Fenrir reluctantly settle down, finally allowing me to focus, tapping into my divinity, letting it envelop my body. As I do the wounds I sustained heal. Rathor’s nails are forced out of my back and that feeling of calmness washes over me.
My silver fur begins to shine as my black fur darkens to a vantablack.
“No, you have no idea what you have gotten yourself into,” I shout, grinning, and push myself off of the ground so hard he falls back.
“I’m going to erase you both from existence and enjoy watching you helplessly struggle as I do so,” I reply with a frightful calmness to my voice.
“What the hell is th..?” He responds, but is cut off by me instantly appearing above him and smashing my fist into his head, driving it into the ground with such force that it creates a crater, sending splintered stone hurling into the air around the impact site.
Before the rocks begin to fall I rush Lilith so fast she doesn’t have time to react as I appear behind her, not giving her a chance to flee, I grab the base of her left wing, snapping it like a toothpick.
As she screams in pain, I grab the back of her neck with my claws that wrap all the way around.
I squeeze and her screams fade to a squeak.
Leaning in as she tries to free herself from my grasp, I whisper, “I thought you enjoyed pain, let’s see how true that is.”
Lifting her off her feet, I squeeze even harder as her flailing and struggling turns to convulsions. I deliver blow after blow to her back. With every strike her convulsions get weaker and weaker as her spine shatters and begins protruding through her flesh.
Just as she becomes limp, I notice Rathor attempting to get back on his feet.
I throw her aside like the trash she is.
Looking around I see the Knights are not dead yet, in fact Belial is reattaching his head, while Mazikeen is crawling toward her lower half, desperately grasping at its entrails, trying to be whole again.
I blitz Rathor, punching him in the chest so hard he is sent hurtling toward and smashing into the obsidian mountain.
I rush Belial just as he finishes reattaching his head and drive my claws into his chest, quickly injecting my divinity into his body, rendering it to ash from the inside out. Dagon pulls the spear tip from his head and jumps at me.
I imbue my claws and slash at him wildly, turning him to dust. Then Molech jumps onto my back. I throw my paw up over my shoulder, digging it into his shoulder. I pull him over my head, slamming him to the ground, sending stones hurling through the air with the impact.
I then drive my claws through his helmet into his skull, writhing about, he screeches in pain just before falling motionless and being reduced to ashes too.
Finally, Mazikeen pulls the spear free from her body and charges. Thrusting it at me, it shatters like glass upon contact with my chest. Disbelief washes over her twisted, bloodied face as I dig my claws into her rib cage and rip out her heart, then devour it.
Falling onto her back, I stomp my foot into her gaping chest wound, digging my nails deep in her chest cavity and let my divinity flow into her, erasing her from existence. Looking back I see Rathor pulling himself from the shattered obsidian.
He sees my attention has shifted back to him. Turning to run, I catch him and drive my claws into his back, grabbing his spine. He howls in agony.
“You’re going to pay for taking away the only thing I cared about,” I snap, through gritted bloody fangs. Rearing back, I bite down onto his shoulder, shaking my head violently, as my teeth tear through his flesh, while pulling on his spine.
The pain forces him to shift back. I pull my maw free from his shoulder and rake my claws up his back, stripping the flesh from his spine.
I see Lilith getting back up. Letting go of Rathor, I charged her again, slashing her hard with my right claws, opening her gut and digging my left claws deep into her right shoulder.
As I’m about to bite down on her throat, something stops me dead in my tracks. My ears perk back as I hear a faint, weak voice call out, “Evander.” Catching me off guard, I pull my claws from her shoulder and she falls to the ground.
Turning and looking back everything falls away as I see Frida’s arm is outstretched reaching for me through the chains.
“Evander,” she tries to call out again, collapsing.
Rushing over to her, I shatter the chains with a swipe, then scoop her up and see her emerald eyes open.
I can’t believe she’s still alive. Looking back I spot Rathor staggering over to Lilith, he grabs her and they limp away, vanishing into Hell’s gate.
With all of my strength I take flight as fast as I can to get Frida to Heaven and before I know it I’m standing in the infirmary. I shift back as I set her onto the bed. Angels swarm her, pushing me out of the way, trying to save her.
I hear a loud thunderous crack and see a blinding light as someone appears behind me. Before I can see who it is something smashes into the back of my head, causing me to black out.