by Jack Crosby
“Listen to me very carefully, that woman is probably the most dangerous being on this plane right now. Roxanne was her mother and she came from a very powerful bloodline. Should the need arise, you abandon this place and you go to the safety of Shangri-La. Khloros will get you there.”
Personally I was half tempted to send her there myself, but I knew she wouldn’t want to go. Her presence would throw the whole dynamic of leadership into flux and she wouldn’t want to rock the boat for her brother.
I stared hard at her until she agreed. “I will do whatever Khloros tells me to do, is that what you want to hear?”
“Yes it is.”
With that settled and it getting increasingly later in the afternoon, I jumped my girl one more time. She wasn’t expecting that and she gave a small half yelp before understanding what was going on. Her shirt came off faster than the starting gun at one of those silly car races. My shorts hit the floor with a soft thud.
Astrid’s body was like a well-tuned machine. She’s not very tall, but her legs with long and shapely. Her breasts weren’t big, but what was there was like a picture from a dream. Her sensitive nipples were easily brought to full attention, almost at will. The best part was her ass, like a perfectly shaped bubble that could make any man cry.
Her body was so damn flexible that every time we had sex, it was like a new adventure. She arched her back in such a way that her breasts reached up to me. I took the opportunity to take a nibble and her moans of appreciation broke the silence of the moment.
From there she closed the gap and began kissing me, deep passionate ones that spoke to the coming time we’d be spending apart. The longer we kissed, the more force she put into each one. Her tongue wrestled with mine and kept winning. Her hand stroked my ear, my weak spot as she well knew.
I felt the heat of her lady parts hovering right over me. Not wanting to wait anymore, I thrusted upwards, piercing in and getting the reaction I’d hoped for. Astrid clamped around me and slowly started moving up and down, pushing me back down on to the bed.
As this happened, her mouth never left mine. Refusing to stop kissing me, she multitasked as she continued to work me over. As her kissing speeds up, so does her movements on me. Not letting her take control, I grab her arms and flip her over, with me still inside.
This sudden outburst of control tightens Astrid up even more. The friction I feel is bringing me even closer, but I bite down and continue to work. A few more thrusts in and she reaches her climax, drawing me into my own.
Her nails dug into my side as she refused to let go. “OHHHHHH SHHIIITTT!”
I wasn’t in any place to pull out either as I was letting everything go. I couldn’t help myself as I finished I kept going, bringing myself to the brink again. Astrid saw what I was doing and pushed me off of her. As I landed on my back, her cat-like reflexes pounced on me and I reentered as quickly as I exited.
“It’s my turn to control the terms of your orgasm Mr. Grimm.” She almost purrs the words, the slight accent to her voice driving me crazy.
She moved in circular motions, wiggling against me until I burst. Gripping on to me as I send wave after wave into her, “UGHHHH!!!” Astrid joins me in climaxing again before we both fall on to the bed, panting yet laughing.
“You jerk! You could give a girl a moment’s notice before you jump her!”
She began hitting me with a pillow, only stopping when a knock came at our bedroom door. She looked at me and I grabbed my shorts off the floor and went over. “Who is it?”
“It is Michael. It is time to go.”
“Already?” A feeling of dread that wasn’t there a second ago reared its ugly head. “Don’t I have like another hour or two?”
I opened the door slightly to see him staring at me. “I am afraid not. Gather your belongings and say your goodbye’s old friend. We need to make haste.”
Chapter 6 – …New Jersey is Hell?
After a long and tear-filled goodbye with Astrid, I was out on the beach with Michael. The others were standing across from us with Dante at the front of the rag-tag group. “So this is the start of it Michael?”
“Yes Dante. I will be taking Death to a portal that leads to Hell. Once there, he will do everything in his power to retrieve the Morningstar Bade. Upon his success, I will have preparations ready to open a gate to Tartarus.”
Veronica stepped forward and bowed to her superior. “I will remember the instructions you gave me and I will use the blade to strike down Abaddon.”
“I know you will my pupil.”
Dante turned to the rest of them. “The time has come. We will make our way to the north a few miles and open the portal in the barren desert. Death, I expect to see you with that sword.”
My three brothers come over to me, the four of us together for the first time in centuries. “Well guys, it looks like we got business to attend to again.”
“Will you be alright Death?”
“Yeah, thanks for the concern Conquest. If it ain’t easy, they wouldn’t need us.”
The four of us laughed at my joke, knowing it was true. Even old Famine seemed a little less uptight. “This is true; they only come to us when they are up against something exceedingly dangerous.”
“The creatures of Tartarus will feel the fury of War! I do not promise there will be much for you to do by the time you get there brother!”
We all rolled our eyes at our ridiculous brother. “In that case, when I get there I expect to get hearty congratulations for getting the blade that we won’t be needing.”
War stuck his hand out and I took it. “A deal then brother. Be safe Downstairs, as it is a place few willingly go.”
The four of us came together, much like a football huddle. “And the three of you try not to do anything stupid until I get there. Tartarus makes Hell look like one of those bounce houses.”
“What is a bounce house brother?”
Conquest laughed at Famine. He was probably the only other one of the four who understood my comparison. “It’s something for kids. It’s like a big inflatable box that kids jump around in.”
Seeing the look of confusion on my little brother’s face was worth it. “Anyways, trust each other and if Dante gets too aggressive, don’t be afraid to put him in his place.”
“Agreed. We Horsemen will be the ones doing the heavy lifting.” War would be the one who would question the angel, that was for sure.
Breaking away, I stood there and watched them join with the three angels and their horses. The mismatched group left north along the beach to meet their fate.
I walked over to Khloros for the final time. “You’re in charge buddy.”
“Nothing shall happen to your homestead while you are away.”
Michael was apparently right behind me. “He is right. I will have a rotation of angels on duty as well. This place will be under constant surveillance.”
Knowing that, “Well better now than never. Let’s get this over with!”
As I looked at Khloros, Michael grabbed me and we took off into the sky. The speed at which the angel flew was incredible. I had to keep my eyes shut as tight as they’d go as air rushed over my face. And just as quickly as it started, it stopped with a soft landing on a hard surface. Opening my eyes, “Oh shit no, why did you bring me here?”
We were outside of the private eye agency Roxanne and I had started in Philadelphia. Michael walked up to the abandoned door and waved for me to follow. A rush of feelings that I certainly didn’t want to deal with came to the surface. “No I’m good right here.”
“It is time you stopped beating yourself up over Roxanne’s death. We are here because if you go Downstairs with all of these negative emotions, you will not survive. Trust me, there are places that will eat you alive, make you completely vulnerable.”
I wasn’t convinced because I considered myself the fore most expert in my feelings, but the way he said that made me at least consider whatever crap he was about to spin. Walking up to the f
ront door, “Fine, I’ll listen.”
He opened the door and walked right in. I jogged to catch up, seeing him sitting on the old couch in the front room. “A great many good memories still linger here. The positive energy is refreshing.”
The place smelled musty from months of no one being here. “You got a weird sense of happiness don’t you?”
“Sit down, shut up, and listen.”
I did exactly as I was told. Sitting on the couch, the only thing that began stirring was my allergies from all the dust. “If you have a point, sooner, rather than later, you should make it.”
“Are your walls that guarded that you cannot even feel the energy Roxanne and you left behind at this establishment?”
I didn’t get why he was forcing the issue so much. “I failed her okay? Even worse, I chose someone else over her. Nothing anyone can say or do will change that fact.” I didn’t raise my voice, but my tone was filled with annoyance and a hint of anger.
He actually had the nerve to smile. “Good, this is progress.”
“Progress? This fucking sucks man! The last thing I want to relive is my greatest failure! Everything here reeks of how I let her down because I couldn’t kill that bitch!”
Slugging me on the shoulder, “Let it all out man! Holding on to feelings is not good even for you Death.”
“AHHHHH!!! Happy now?!” I grabbed my hair, probably looking like a mad man. “All I wanted to do was protect her and I couldn’t!” My anger fading, replaced with sadness, “Everything I got is because of her and she doesn’t even know it.”
Pleased with how things went, “This was most insightful. Your negative energy has drastically reduced. We can go if you wish.”
I wanted to, but I sat on the couch, lingering for a few minutes before forcing myself up. “Yeah, let’s get outta here.”
“As you wish.” He opened the door and allowed me the honor of going first. The cool air on the street was in stark contrast to how hot it was in there. Or maybe it was just me.
I stood there waiting for Michael to take us to the next spot, but he didn’t move. No, he just looked down at his watch and then smiled at me. “Beautiful evening is it not?”
“Yeah, I guess so, for south Philly anyways.”
Going from me to the horizon line, “One of the easiest access points to the downstairs is across the river. Granted only an Arch Angel can open it or else the world would be full of demons.”
Across the river? “You mean New Jersey literally sits on top of Hell?”
“I know the irony, but it explains a lot does it not?”
It certainly did. I hadn’t met a person from Jersey who wasn’t a bit on the angry side. I’d always chalked it up to all the waste coming from New York City. “So, are we going to stand around here or are we going to go open this super-secret passage?”
“We will, but we are currently waiting for someone.”
“Whoa, when were you going to tell me that?”
He just kept smiling, looking at his watch from time to time. I stood there with a look of disbelief, hoping the angel would explain. He did not.”
Finally, “Ahhh here he is.”
I looked down the street and walking up was a familiar face. His light brown skin and sunken eyes were exactly the same as when I dropped him off at the witch coven house. “I’ll be a monkey’s uncle…”
“Death!” For a Pride demon he was sickeningly nice. “It has been too long my friend!”
As he picked me up in a weird man hug, “Jacar, a pleasure as always.”
He addressed Michael with a small bow. “Thank you Arch-Angel for giving me a chance to redeem myself.”
Michael looked pleased that we remembered each other. “Jacar, former general of Baal. Your assistance and discretion in this operation is greatly appreciated.”
“He knew about this?”
Not that Michael owed me an explanation, but at least he gave one. “Jacar has kindly kept watch of the entrance for me. As far as we can tell, your initial path will be free of any hostile entities.”
The Pride demon added on. “The pathway leads directly into the heart of Astaroth’s territory. With the Arch-Demon having been sent into the deepest circles by you, his territory is in great turmoil.”
“And we can use that to our advantage.”
“That is our hope.” Michael turned to Jacar. “In no way am I forcing you to return to the place you spent years attempting to break out from.”
“I choose to take this mission and know the consequences if my former master catches me. Whatever happens to me is not on your soul Michael.”
“Very well.” The angel reached out and grabbed us each by the shirt. “We make our way to the portal and our mission begins!” With two more huge gusts of wind powered by his wings, the three of us were sky bound once again, heading towards New Jersey of all places.
Once we landed, we were standing in front of a large sewer drain. “Don’t tell me we have to go in there?”
“Jacar went over and removed the grate with ease. “The entrance is only steps away. The smell is not too bad.”
Oh it was bad, but I put my arm up over my nose and braved on. When we got to the portal, the power of hell was boiling just under the surface. The angel’s lock made it almost impossible to feel. “So this is it huh?”
Michael’s sword blazed to life and he stuck it into the portal’s lock. “I will reseal the door as soon as the two of you cross over. Take care and know that I will be here when we return.”
I didn’t know how Michael would know, but I trusted he would. “Don’t get too bored waiting for us.”
“I have much to attend to. There is so much more at work than either of you know.” I didn’t have time to ask him what he meant. He was getting cryptic in his old age.
He twisted the sword in the lock and it popped. The portal blazed to life and all of the demonic energy just beyond reach poured over. Jacar and I looked at each other and without a second thought jumped in.
Chapter 7 – Anyone Got Some Ice?
The long, dark tunnel was so hot and it reeked of brimstone. Thank goodness I was still wearing shorts and a t-shirt. Jacar, who was wearing ridiculous leather pants and some weird looking shirt you’d find at a Goth kid’s party seemed unaffected. “When was the last time you delved into the depths Master Death?”
“Oh man, it’s been awhile.” By a while, I meant hundreds of years. The last time the Horsemen were sent down here was to stop the Demon Wars. Suffice to say our interference wasn’t appreciated by the denizens down here.
Leviathan was practically glued to my leg due to the heat. Was it this hot the last time I was down here? At that moment a wind swept through the tunnel. Jacar seemed excited about this. “We are almost free from this cursed channel.”
Sure enough we came to a large opening that led us straight into the plains of Hell. People get Tartarus and Hell confused all the time. Tartarus is a perpetually red area with living traps all over the place (i.e. the forest of death if you remember). Hell on the other hand was a land filled of darkness, with only the lanterns of hell-fire to produce light. These lanterns are like fissures in the ground where the fire burns consistently.
Across the blackened plain we could see an army marching. “That is Yezial, Astaroth’s strongest general and his army. I wonder what he is doing out here.”
I didn’t really care. “I’m sure it doesn’t concern us. We need to get a move on and get to Pandemonium.”
Everyone sitting down? Great, class is back in session. Today’s lesson is geography, mainly concerning the Downstairs land. Get your pencils out and take notes, you never know when I might throw a surprise test in there.
Hell is divided amongst the Arch-Demons, each with the own territory, with Pandemonium at the center. The large city is ruled by Lucifer. Currently, Jacar and I are in Astaroth’s realm, to the southeast of Pandemonium. The denizens of this flat, arid place include hell worms, purebred werewolves, and demoni
c stallions. None of which has a pleasant demeanor to them.
As the army of different demons marched forward, I couldn’t help but notice just how many Wrath demons were basically foot soldiers. “Yezial isn’t messing around, is he?”
“Something tells me that particular Pride demon is marching over the land, making a bid to ascend to Arch-Demon.”
“Well good luck to him. Let’s get a move on and find the path of least resistance.”
Jacar pointed to a partially rocky trail that would provide some cover. “That way is due north. I believe we are at least a day or two out from reaching the edge of Pandemonium.”
He led the way and I followed. I was tempted to bring Leviathan out to play, but the power of the weapon would attract demons from all over. Keeping our heads down and our noses clean was the key to this operation. We stuck to the path until the sounds of the marching army were well away from us.
Straightening back up, “We dodged a bullet there. The last thing I want to deal with on this cursed trip is some mad demon general. No offense.”
“None taken, for I am well past the point of being recognized as a general. Hopefully that will be the last army we see.”
The heat coming off the hell fire lanterns was intense. We were too close to this one for my comfort. “So this way is north? That’s keep moving.”
We continued on the path, the fire glowing all around us, providing an eerie feeling. I also got the nagging suspicion something was tracking us. No matter where I looked though, I didn’t see anything. “Jacar, could a hell worm have already picked up our scent?”
“It is possible I guess. What makes you think that?”
I stopped and listened to the ground. “I just get that feeling you know?” I didn’t hear any noises.
“What are you doing?”
“Listening to see if anything is under us.”
He laughed at my effort. “Hell worms make no noises. If one was trailing us as you think…”
The ground from under us erupted in chucks of dirt and rock. I was thrown backwards and Jacar’s body disappeared in the dust from the explosion. I didn’t get a chance to see the head as it reentered the ground, but I saw its long centipede like body. The legs attached were nearly as long as me.
