by Hunter Blain
“Give me the dog and save your own life.”
“Yeah, about that…He’s a rescue, and I kinda like having him around. So, as much as I appreciate the offer, and I really do, honestly, I’m going to have to politely decline.” As I finished, I slowly brought my hand up in a gesture that let my new friend know that he was number one, at least to me.
Asmodeus didn’t react to my insult, and it made me uncomfortable and unsure that his malicious smile never faded. It was as if he had expected me to act precisely as I had.
“Your time in Hell will be biblical, abomination. Souls being flayed alive for all eternity will find solace in knowing that their fate is nothing compared to what will happen to you. There are scores of demons preparing unspeakable tortures for you. We will have you. It is but a matter of time, and time, abomination, is truly eternal for those that had the long fall.”
My mouth dried like a sponge in a raging oven. I wavered on my feet as my vision swam from the impact of his words. I clenched my lips to prevent a pathetic moan of hopelessness from escaping.
The slow-mo BBQ scene of all my friends laughing sprang back to mind. This time, Locke’s face was covered in a cream pie that I apparently had thrown, and was giving me a friendly expression that said, “Oh, you…” while everyone held their bellies in laughter. Lily was giving me a comically-sized beer mug full of blood while she wore an American flag bikini that revealed so much gorgeous flesh.
My nerves steadied and I stared daggers at the demon while sticking my jaw out.
“If I were you,” I said coldly and with complete seriousness, “I would pray to your Father that I don’t end up below when I die.” My red eyes pulsed once, and I realized I still had the Norse Sight as the lightning turned crimson and arced upward like a Jacob’s ladder.
A thought formed and I let it grow like a weed in my brain.
I sheathed my cold-iron sword and willed Mjolnir into my right hand and began lifting into the air, levitating by grabbing onto the planet’s own magnetic field. The wind tore at my coat, making it flap ominously as I rose higher.
Flashes of power cracked the sky all around me as crimson energy forked from my scowling, determined eyes. Sand burst from the ground where lightning struck from the clouds, instantly creating pillars of brown glass that seemed to freeze as they reached several yards toward the sky.
Asmodeus’ smirk finally faded as I tapped into a vast elemental power fueled by an undeniable resolve not to let my friends die or let myself be taken from them.
Lily’s genuine smile flashed through my mind as her eyes gazed into mine sensually, lovingly.
Slowly, purposefully, I lifted my hand and extended my index finger to aim directly at the one who had made a terrible judgment call this night.
His huge body tensed in preparation as the energy blasts halted their onslaught on the ground and instead rushed toward my hammer. It began glowing with building elemental magic as an evil grin touched my features.
For a brief moment, the entire world fell completely silent. Not even the wind dared to move as the universe watched the scene unfold.
Blinding power rocketed from my fingertip with enough ferocity to create a sonic boom and smashed into the demon lord’s chest, dead center.
Lightning danced over Asmodeus’ form and he was sent crashing to the ground as if a battering ram the size of the Empire State Building had collided with his sternum.
The desert floor fractured from the massive impact, forking like the lightning that danced over the demon’s frame. A wall of debris was thrown up in a half circle, like a tsunami wave that was as high as the nearby mountains.
Asmodeus lay there for a spell while the energy that licked his skin began to diminish and fade. The heavy aroma of brimstone flooded my nostrils, and I scrunched my face in disgust while letting myself lower to the ground.
Content that my enemy had been defeated, I scanned the ground for Joey with my predatory Norse eyes. It didn’t take long to spot the still form of a man crumpled on the ground about sixty yards away.
Landing gently, I let Mjolnir fade away as I rushed to where my friend lay, unconscious. Three of his limbs were broken, his right arm and leg shattered based on how they rested in the sand. They looked like the limbs of an inflatable tube man you saw at car lots that had had the air taken out. His arm was doing its best impression of the letter s.
“Joey!” I yelled in shock as I knelt by his head to feel for a pulse. His breathing was shallow, and sweat coated his skin, creating mud where the sand covered his body.
I knew I could heal cuts by knitting the skin back together, and even grow entire limbs back, but I didn’t know how to repair bones that had been pulverized to dust. I mean, when I healed my own body, it was mostly on autopilot.
My choices were either feed Joey or cut off his three broken limbs and grow them back, which would use a lot of energy. It required less energy to heal my own body than that of another supe. Mortals were easier, for some reason I’d have to think about later.
As if to accentuate the point of time prioritization, Asmodeus began to stir by repositioning his hands and edging his way back to his feet. That had been a freaking powerful attack, and it had only knocked the SOB down for a minute.
“Shit, shit, shit,” I said in agitation. If I didn’t heal Joey, he could die from his injuries, but if I gave him too much of my own energy, Asmodeus would surely kill us both. “SHIT!” I barked as something in my mind clicked into place and a decision was made.
My face went flat as I knew what I had to do. Still kneeling, I lifted my pant leg and willed a surgically sharp razor in my left hand while placing the blade against my bulging calf muscle. Taking in a deep breath, I exhaled as I began cutting into the dense meat of my leg, removing manageable strips of muscle that I thought would be able to slide down Joey’s human throat without choking him.
While focusing on healing my calf, I turned Joey’s head to face the sky, lifting his chin slightly. I placed my bloody muscle strip into his mouth and pushed the entire chunk of flesh past his lips before pressing on his jaw and closing his mouth.
My eyes shot to Asmodeus, who was standing upright again, his flaming eyes locking onto mine, which had reverted to just my predatory red.
“Come on, man. You gotta chew for me, alright? Can ya do that for me, buddy?” I pleaded with the unconscious Joey as I gingerly shook his good shoulder.
In answer, Joey’s jaw clenched once before relaxing.
“That’s it, buddy. Who’s a good werewolf? It’s you! Yes, it is!” I whispered with a voice that was more concerned than jovial as my head slowly turned to see the demon lord extend a massive hand our way. There was a wall of dirt that extended to the clouds all around him, and the wind tugged at the earthen tsunami he had created.
Bright light stung my eyes as hellfire began to form a sphere in his outstretched palm.
Shooting my gaze back to Joey, I saw he was chewing with a tad more enthusiasm and his eyes had begun to flutter.
“Come on, man! COME ON!” I was losing my composure while my body screamed at me to flee from the building attack. If I had a heartbeat, it would be thudding in my ears like a metal drummer’s double bass.
The desert lit up as if it were dawn while my shadow elongated like a fleeing specter on the ground.
Not daring to look at my attacker, I cursed and grabbed Joey’s unbroken arm and leapt into the air, extending my wings.
I heard and felt a pop as I ripped his arm out of his socket with the force I had put into the jump. Apparently, that woke Joey up from his stupor, as he let out a muffled scream with a mouth full of my meat. There was a joke there, I was sure of it, but now wasn’t the time.
“Shut up and chew!” I called over the howling wind as the heat emanating from the hellfire sphere threatened to catch my cotton clothing on fire. At least I wasn’t naked with my dangly bits hanging out, unlike someone I knew.
Some of my hair plastered across my face, and I
had to shake my head to let the wind pull it back. Damn, I missed my beanie already.
There was another pop and I looked down in alarm until I saw that Joey’s dislocated shoulder was back in place. He was wide awake and had swallowed my load (I…I’m so sorry, I just couldn’t help myself).
Holding his wrist with one hand while I flew, I bit on my sleeve and pulled it back to my elbow, exposing my flesh.
“Here. Eat this,” I instructed the were as I lowered my forearm to his face. He looked up at me, prompting me to say, “We don’t have time for this. Just do— OOOOOOWWWWW!” I shrieked as he ripped a huge chunk of meat from my arm. I was impressed he had the strength in his human suit to pierce my tough flesh. Yet another Post-it added to an already impressive pile of things I needed to stop and think about once able.
“Could you at least make your teeth sharp or something? Damn!” I cried out as I dared a glance over my shoulder.
The ball was now the size of the demon’s torso and required both his hands to hold. I could feel my eyes start to sizzle from the brightness and intensity, so I turned forward.
“Hurry up!” I yelled as I repeatedly healed my flesh for Joey’s consumption. It was like an all-you-can-eat buffet, emphasis on buff.
Dull teeth pierced my skin and tore my muscle which, let me tell you, felt dandy.
Orienting on the path Depweg had taken out of the city, I began flapping my wings with a concentration that only anxiety and fear could provide.
Feeling we were far enough away to not melt my eyeballs, I craned my neck to see Asmodeus separate his hands, leaving the ball floating in midair, then slam them together in a wide clap, creating a massive explosion that rained flaming debris down for miles in all directions.
Something tugged at my focus, and I saw that it wasn’t debris that was falling, but hideous figures comprised of fierce hellfire.
“Oh, fuck…” I breathed as the scores of flame demons slowed their trajectories and countless furious eyes seemed to lock onto me.
Asmodeus glared at me, raised his impressive hand, and snapped his boney fingers. Every fire demon instantly reacted by jetting through the air in my direction as if each one had its own private jet engine strapped to its back.
“YAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOHHHHH SHIT!” I screamed like a super manly man and not at all like a newborn puppy trying to howl for the first time.
Outstretched hands guided flaming monsters, drawing distressingly closer with each passing second.
“Grab my belt!” I commanded as I maneuvered his body down to my waist from where I held onto his wrist. I tried to push on his fingers with my stomach like I had done with Ludvig, but the lack of said stomach made it harder to keep him in place. It would have to do.
Once Joey was secured, I willed my hammer in one hand while drawing my sword with the other.
“Don’t cut your own wings. Don’t cut your own freaking wings,” I instructed myself just under my breath.
“We need to land,” Joey yelled over the howling wind and shrieks of the approaching monsters.
Assessing the situation, I decided he was right. Folding in my wings, we descended to the ground like a missile before I spread them out just before hitting land. Joey dropped to the ground with a cry of pain, as his legs were nowhere near fully healed, and I winced in sympathy.
From the corner of my eye I saw a whole fleet of military helicopters crest the horizon with—no doubt—supe-killing ordinance on board.
“Could this night get any better?” I asked the universe before I could stop myself.
“Asmodeus!” bellowed a commanding voice. “The wolf first. We save the vampire for last.”
My eyes, which had been aimlessly scanning the oncoming attackers, landed on Grand Master Silver, who was walking through a skeleton door at the feet of his enslaved minion.
Asmodeus grimaced slightly before lifting his hand just as a score of flaming demons dove at Joey and me, hellfire claws extended.
The demon lord snapped his fingers again, and the flaming monsters immediately shifted course, flying uncomfortably close to my head. My hair whipped around in all directions from the sweltering drafts created by the streaking demons as I crouched to the ground.
The flaming shitheads charged toward the helicopters, where I knew in my heart Depweg was.
“How the fuck can they track us?” I asked aloud as the incoming military seemed to shift focus from their intended target to the oncoming beasts that rocketed through the night sky.
A volley of silver rounds let loose, shredding through the unprepared hellfire demons with ease. However, before I let my hopes get up, I reminded myself that a swarm of army ants could overtake a grown man with their sheer numbers and relentlessness.
Standing, I shifted my focus to Silver and Asmodeus. I played back what Silver had said to his minion and then sheathed my katana while making my way quickly to Joey. His right side had regained some semblance of normality but was still heavily busted.
“Silver wants Depweg first. No sense in causing the apocalypse before he gets to have his fun,” I whispered as I picked him up with my free hand. My other still held Mjolnir, and I hoisted it to the sky and toward the fray, summoning a slipstream to carry us quickly.
Through the slipstream, I saw that the helicopters and demons were almost evenly matched, but evil would win this day. Flaming machines careened to the ground to explode as demons landed on the metal skin and began melting important parts into molten liquid.
Looking down, I saw Depweg running at full speed, all but ignoring the battle going on above him. A helicopter crashed and exploded a few yards away from him, but he simply braced against the shock wave and kept moving. I was in awe of his raw power and determination.
“There’re more coming,” Joey called out, pointing to a road stemming from the mountain pass. I noticed he had some use of his appendage now. I was hoping my supernatural flesh would speed up his were-healing. To his credit, Joey began the transformation—while in mid-freaking-air—intent on fighting for his pack leader until his last breath. I watched with a perfect mixture of pride and amazement as the black wolf came into being, though it was comically difficult to hold him with one hand as we flew. I may have dropped a paragraph of curses under my breath before my arm finally wrapped around his torso.
My attention shifted back to the mountain pass, which deepened the scowl on my face. Armed troop carriers filed in one by one, right toward Depweg, who wouldn’t be able to avoid them without changing his path. I knew if his predatory side was anything like mine, he viewed the approaching vehicles as a challenge to be met head-on.
Asmodeus behind. A platoon of men and machines armed with silver in front. Helicopters and flame demons above. Depweg smack-dab in the middle of it all like some sort of A-list celebrity visiting a small-town Walmart.
With my bloodwings still out, I grabbed Joey in a cradle to put as little pressure as possible on his shoulder joints, and took off toward our friend.
Closer and closer I flew, intent on saving the life—and mind—of my brother from another supernatural mother. I wasn’t sure how I was going to hold both weres, given how big Depweg was, but I had a few precious seconds to figure it out.
Asmodeus roared from behind, and the remaining flame demons changed target to my friend, ignoring the few remaining helicopters which burped silver rounds with surprising precision. A few tracers streaked past where we flew, creating sharp whistles as they passed. Looking up, I saw the military aircraft were still targeting the flame demons who were dive-bombing toward Depweg, causing a crossfire that Joey and I happened to be at the center of. I couldn’t help but wonder if Asmodeus had done that intentionally without Silver’s knowledge. I decided the answer an instant later, as the demons appeared to be streaking toward Depweg but were taking arcing trajectories that would bring the automatic fire of the helicopters close to my path.
“Sonofa…” I barked in a single syllable as one of the rounds grazed my wing. The mental perso
nification of white-hot pain zipped up my body, tapped on the shoulder of my mind-self inside my control room, and when I turned around, the projection of pain punched me right in the face while whispering, Ooooooowwwwww.
Doing my best to ignore the incessant pain, I set my jaw and kept my eyes on my best friend, who was only yards away now. I began shifting Joey around in my arms, ready to grab Depweg’s scruff.
Sensing, or maybe hearing, my approach, the massive were turned, claws outstretched, and barked a horrifying staccato in challenge just as a hole opened up in the air between us. Joey and I sailed right through it, unable to stop, though I was confident that I looked like Wile E. Coyote as I attempted to run in midair in the opposite direction, all too late.
We passed through the hole to land in the center of a room made out of decorative stones. I could tell immediately they were Aztec in nature, with their distinguishing markings and jade coloring. I jerked around and took a step toward where the hole was, only to discover it was gone. Only a stone wall greeted me with an implied wave and a wordless, yet innocent, “Hi!” I scowled in annoyance.
Turning back around, I saw an impressive man sitting on an ornate obsidian throne, with his legs crossed and fingers steepled in front of him. I squinted to see one of his feet up to the knee was made of carved and polished obsidian with such attention to detail that I was able to make out neatly trimmed toenails atop a fancy-looking sandal.
Moving up his body, I saw a loincloth before quickly letting my eyes continue their path upward lest I be scarred by the sight of a—presumably—Aztec deity’s junk. I had already had my fill of masculinity-questioning packages this day and didn’t need to see any more.
A square face was painted orange, with a black line cutting across his face from ear to ear, covering both eyes in the process. An ornate necklace made from obsidian polished to mirror perfection and holding a gold pendant hung around his neck. White teeth stood in stark contrast to orange lips.
