Kiss of the Demon Girl

by Eddie R. Hicks

  I threw the rock up at the balcony above me.

  And missed.

  The rock hit the side of the wall, thus forcing me to blink where it had hit. It placed me in midair along the side of the wall. I felt the whoosh of air pass across my tumbling body and fell right on my ass seconds later. Fuck, that hurt. I picked up another rock and stepped back to get a better aim at the balcony. Wherever it landed I teleported, my aim had to be exact. I tossed the rock, it hit its mark, and my body appeared next to it on the balcony. One down, three to go.

  I blinked onto his balcony at last. I banged my fists on the glass sliding door. Ryan came trotting toward it after the second round of banging, wearing his boxers and a tank top shirt, with a damp towel over his shoulders. I must have pulled him out of the shower.

  I lowered the hoodie and removed the shades I had on. He looked flabbergasted once he realized who was at the door as he opened it. “Jesus Christ, Reika, where have you been?”

  I slithered inside from the autumn cold. “Doing a fucking terrible job at saving the world.”

  “You left me all alone back there.”

  I wrapped my arms around his built body hoping that a nice hug would lighten his mood. “Sorry about that. Shit happened.”

  “Like this?” Ryan walked toward the TV which had been playing the news. News that had images of me strutting my stuff at the subway amongst other things, like the quake and the breaking news of a certain apartment exploding. I felt it was odd for Ryan to be watching the news considering he never cared for stuff like that. Then again, what the hell was there to watch at this time? “Did they find out about your talents?”

  I crossed my arms and gave the TV screen a hard stare. “I don’t think so, but I didn’t hold back either.”

  But enough about that. I faced away from the screen and ventured deeper into his place. It was a lot cleaner than mine—not a single dish in the sink. Stove tops were pristine free of splatter from cooking, hell even the microwave looked pretty. And a working fridge, fuck yes, this will do nicely.

  “Hey Ryan, I’m going to need a place to stay for a few days.” Staying at Jim’s safe house would have made more sense, but that would cost extra and I sure as hell wasn’t going to make the trek across the city at this time to do that.

  Besides, being here with Ryan, it sent warming, comforting vibes throughout my body. I felt safer, like I walked into the only place in this city that was free of the insanity that was going on.

  “Of course,” Ryan said. “Just make sure none of the stuff you’re doing comes back on me.”

  “If the cops find us, I’ll tell them I forced you to help.”

  “Don’t do that—"

  “I don’t want you to get dragged down with me.”

  I sat down and stretched my tired and sore legs at the dinner table. Ryan shoved a few slices of leftover pizza in the microwave for us to munch on while his cell phone served as radio and played music, instrumental drill trap songs. Not exactly your typical romantic dinner, but beggars can’t be choosy.

  The microwave dinged its chime, and he joined me seconds later offering me a plate of steaming but somewhat soggy slices of pizza. I stuffed my face in the most unladylike manner, it was the first time I ate since the quake. No fucks were given.

  “So, what’s this about saving the world?” he asked as I bit into my second slice.

  Well here goes nothing, the moment I chase Ryan out of my life forever because I’m too much of a special person. “What if I told you I might be a product of the work of a mad scientist?”

  “I’ve seen the powers you got, I’ll believe anything.”

  “Did you see what happened on stage after the quake hit?”

  “You left me there out cold remember? When I woke up you were gone, and rescuers were pulling me out.”

  Ryan was still with me in the conversation, as his attention focused on me. Good sign. “Lexi… isn’t who she really is. She’s just like me. She has talents, talents far more powerful than mine.”

  “Oh, shit.”

  “Oh, wait there’s more.” I snickered and folded my hands together. “There’s a lot more, so sit down.”

  “I am sitting.”

  “Then stand up.” His eyebrow rose, mine didn’t. He stood up. “Okay, now sit down.” I laughed at the what-the-fuck gaze he gave me while he sat back down. “She’s been possessed by a demon, a succubus at that from what I’ve gathered, and she’s not the only one. Other people are possessed and got talents like mine.”

  “So, what you’re telling me is… you’re one of them? A demon?”

  “Fuck no! I’m still not sure what I am, but I’m sure as hell not one of them. The people killed in the news reports? They were killed by Lexi and her possessed friends, not by the quake, someone is covering things up to prevent the public from knowing that there are demons strolling into New York like they own the city.”

  “So, you and that other woman at the subway?”

  “I was chasing Lexi, that other woman in the picture… she’s a demon too, not possessed though, she was born a full-on demon. Yeah, don’t get me started on her, that’s another story.”

  “Succubus…” He grumbled and picked up his phone, typing and swiping on its screen. “I heard that name.” A minute later he flipped the phone around, showing me information about the legends of the succubus he pulled off the internet. “Demons of the night whose sole purpose is to take advantage of men. World domination seems slightly out of their league.”

  I winced. “Well the succubus in control of Lexi is at large, planning something, and the public knows fuck all about it.”

  “I can see what you mean about saving the world. If what you say is true—”

  “It is true Ryan, which is why I really need you to keep your mouth shut about this shit.” Seriously, Jim, Gabe, maybe even Emily. They were all possible allies in this, allies that needed to be low key. I could handle the random encounters from the stalkers but those three? Only Emily had talents and hers were different than mine, Lexi’s, and Lucifer. In any case should they be found and ambushed, that’d be the end of them and my help.

  “Hey, my lips are sealed,” Ryan assured me.

  “The fewer people know about this the better; I don’t want Lexi or the people hunting me to know that I have outside help. So, I’m trusting you with this!”

  “Trust is the most important part of a relationship.”

  I tried to hide my body language by crossing my arms as my thighs got a little bit excited. “So, we’re a thing now?”

  He shot me a smile brimming with confidence. “Give me one good reason why we shouldn’t be?”

  I couldn’t think of any while a warm feeling fluttered away from my chest. Ryan smiled thereafter, I couldn’t help but return the gesture, and my flushing face gave away what I was starting to feel about his company.

  It made sleeping arrangements quick and easy later that night as we shared his bed, our clothes however didn’t. I stripped him naked after he did the same to me. Our intertwined bodies fell upon the mattress, giving each other a proper intimate introduction, unlike the bathroom encounter. My kisses moved down from his face, exploring every part of his muscular body, right down to his junk, where I took my time to indulge him with my mouth.

  I spent the rest of the night riding him, moaning our cries of ecstasy in perfect harmony until we were both winded, drenched in sweat, and in a dire need of a smoke break. If only Emily was there to see us go at it; visual proof that I wasn’t a succubus. Ryan’s ass would have been dead by now if I was.

  Chapter Eleven

  I woke up the next day in sections…

  In other words, I woke up three times during my ten-hour sleep. The first time was early in the morning when Ryan dragged his nude body out from the bed at the sound of his phone’s alarm. He had errands to run before heading to work, the sole reason why I didn’t go back to sleep right away was to steal another look at his ass before he leapt into the shower
, and then covered up with clothes.

  He left his phone for me to use while he was gone after learning I had to destroy mine, it sent another one of those warm fuzzy feelings throughout my body. I needed to watch myself I was becoming soft; emotional. That shit will get you killed in the heat of battle, a battle that was going to encompass all of New York City. Besides, the inner beast of mine didn’t like it, it was cool with the pure lusting, but the love? It fucking hated it.

  Helicopters roaring in the skies above woke me up for the second time. It was the first morning in the aftermath of the quake. I suspected they were trying to get a better overview of the extent of the damage done to the city. That thought got me a bit worried. What caused the quake? Lexi’s talents, or was it Lucifer’s? Or perhaps the earth elemental security guard? I have yet to encounter an opponent using talents of that nature, and it made me worry about what else they could do.

  My third awakening was my final one for the day. My body was energized, and my mind focused and motivated more than ever. I didn’t have to show up to work anymore after all. I was free to do what I wanted, and what I wanted was this madness to end and my life to return to the way it was before I started doing stupid shit.

  I emptied the pockets of my clothes which were still on the floor. Brianna’s ID fell out, the ID Emily had on her, and seconds later the wallet. I could have sworn I left the ID inside of the wallet… no matter, that wasn’t what I was looking for. It was Gabe’s number. I sat at the foot of the bed still in the nude, though my Yakuza tattoos gave off the illusion that I had an opened half robe over my body.

  I dialed Gabe’s number on Ryan’s phone, Gabe’s voice replied. “Hello?”

  “Hey it’s me, Reika.”

  “Got a new number already I see.”

  “And you got one hell of a way of predicting the future.”

  “I do my best. Are you free?”

  “I’m kinda seeing someone now.” Yes, I felt great saying that.

  “Funny.”

  “I’m staying low key as fuck right now, so yeah no job to bash my head over anymore. I got hella free time.”

  “We need to talk in person; I’ll text you the location.”

  “Just like that?”

  “There’s stuff I can’t talk about right now, I’ll explain it all when we meet.”

  “Lit.”

  The call ended. As promised, Gabe sent a text message listing the location he’d be at. I wrote it down then deleted the text and all logs on the phone about our conversation. No need for Ryan to think I’m cheating on him with a tall black dude. This was just business in a growing war against a potential demonic invasion of New York.

  It had dawned upon me as I showered that I’ll be making a public appearance… during the day. I grimaced knowing that if someone saw through my hoodie and shades I’d have cops coming after me. Somehow, I doubt there would have been much Gabe could do to prevent that. Hell, he might get called out for being corrupt, then both our assess will be in the shit.

  Having Gabe swing by to pick me up would have been a safer option, except he’d know where I’m staying, and Ryan might get dragged into this. Low key as fuck was the name of the game, I needed to play it hard, I needed nobody, allies or not, to know where I was staying.

  I got dressed after my shower, to the disappointment of the inner evil beast. It really seemed to enjoy the idea of being nude for a long time. Perhaps clothing covering my body lowered its ability to focus? I wouldn’t be surprised, it did feel as though I had a slightly better grasp over my talents naked than I did while clothed.

  Busses were still running, though with limited service. Some areas of the city were blocked off as rescue workers went digging through buildings that weren’t so lucky when the quake hit. From what I was able to see during my endless gazing through the bus window, the city remained mostly unchanged.

  Ten minutes into the bus ride signaled the passing of the first test, it didn’t explode and there were no shifty people to be seen. Ten minutes after that the second test was passed, nobody realized who I really was. The lengthy bus ride gave me the chance to muse about my talents and how to effectively use them again when the time came.

  First up was the Fireball, a long-range attack that could allow me to kill a fleeing target. The downside was it seemed to lose its power the further it traveled. I’m guessing it had to do with air friction cooling it down the longer it traveled through the air. If I was going to rely on that talent, I’d need my target to be as close as possible to get that one-hit kill.

  The Flamethrower talent I used to torch Lucifer’s second incarnation was pretty fucking badass. Only downside was, like a real flamethrower, I was only able to use it in front of me in a cone-shaped pattern. The flaming katana was a nifty part of my arsenal, let’s call it the Burning Blade. The biggest advantage was, I needed to do nothing else on my part other than set the blade on fire, and then swing it around. If my talents were active, so was the imbued flaming katana.

  Long-range, midrange, and at close range. Three offensive talents for three combat situations. Next up were my defensive ones like the Flame Shield that melted Emily’s ice bullets. That shit was powerful, though from what I could remember I had no way to directly control it. It was more of a reaction to the situation. I suspected my inner beast was the powerhouse to that. Thankfully the remaining two defensive talents I had control over, being the Flame Armor that covered my body in flames and had the adverse effect of deterring people without talents from getting too close to me.

  Finally, the fiery leap backwards I did to evade getting sliced in half by one of Lexi’s minions. It set the floor on fire in my wake, fires that I was able to further control and spread. Anyone stupid enough to run through it deserved what they got. Anyone stupid enough to hesitate about what to do as they stood at the other side of the flames would eat a fireball to the face delivered by yours truly.

  Can’t forget about blink talent, I’ll call this a utility talent, one I had to be very careful with. Throwing objects to dictate where I should teleport too was fine and dandy, but if my aim was off, I’ll appear wherever the object I threw hit first. My climb up onto Ryan’s balcony was a not-so-pleasant reminder of that. I’ll need to make sure that the object I choose as my teleportation guide doesn’t end up in a river when I toss it. I can’t fucking swim.

  Three offensive talents, three defensive, one utility. If Lucifer and Lexi were any sign, there were a lot more to be learned outside of the element of fire.

  I got off the bus and meandered my way past the busy intersection of 78th and Lexington Avenue as droves of cars and taxis honked on the streets next to me. I was surprised to see so many people up and about as if nothing happened last night. That’s the rat race life for you, doesn’t matter what’s going on in the world, if you got bills to pay, kids to feed, and your boss needs your ass to come to work on Sunday, you go in.

  I arrived at a decent-looking Starbucks coffee shop and verified that I had the address right. I did, Google maps confirmed as well. Gabe wanted to meet inside. Makes sense, public place, he probably didn’t trust me fully as I didn’t trust him totally as well. I stepped up to the glass door and peered briefly at my reflection. Just some New York girl coming for her caffeine fix looked back.

  Half the people waiting in line had their faces buried in their phones, way too distracted to notice the hoodie and shades walk in. Excellent, another layer of defense. Gabe sat at the far corner of the cafe in front of the window looking out into the busy streets. He was wearing a thick fall coat and holding a steaming cup of coffee in his hands. I sat beside him acted as if we were just two friends catching up during our break. The aroma of fresh coffee around me gave me the need to grab one… and maybe snack. I did skip breakfast after all.

  But first thing was first, a conversation that couldn’t be recorded or traced over phone. “You sure this is a good place?” I said to him with a lowered voice.

  “Not all cameras are working cor
rectly in the city; this is one of those blind spots.”

  “Is that so?”

  He gulped his beverage. “Government project, what did you expect?”

  “Alright, let’s talk.”

  “Things are pretty fucked-up thanks to the quake and the fiasco at your place.”

  “Things have been pretty fucked-up for the last month for me.”

  “The blast is being blamed on a gas line that broke during the quake and went unnoticed.”

  I snorted. “Unnoticed by everyone except you, and you don’t even live there.”

  “I got the heads-up about it minutes before it blew up. It was planned.”

  That pretty much proved that Lucifer and his gang of merry men were at it again, turning this city into a warzone. And I’m the center of it all. Why? It’s a shame whoever tipped Gabe off didn’t do it earlier, it would have given him more time to warn everyone rather than directly contact me. I could tell by the burden that he tried to hide in his face that he felt conflicted about that fiasco. Choosing to save me over everyone else including his fellow cops that were inside due to the lack of time, not an easy call. My continued existence was important, and he knew it, and knew more than what he was letting on.

  My lips curled. “Someone wants my hospital stay erased and me.”

  Gabe heaved his tall body up and headed out, signaling me to follow. “You, walking around right now, is a giant middle finger to somebody.”

  We ventured back outside into the cold and entered his car, which was parked along the side of the road next to trees whose leaves had littered the sidewalks. He pulled out a brown envelope from his glove compartment and handed it off to me.

  “What do we have here?” I asked, tearing open the envelope.

  “That ‘somebody’ I think is this person here. Look familiar?”

  I slipped my hands into the envelope and out came photos from what appeared to be the security cameras at the same hospital I was admitted to, Lenox Hill Hospital.