Till the Last Breath

by Alvin Atwater

“Why not keep it for yourself?” Elly said. “Use that power to wreak havoc, have some fun.”

  “I’ll pass,” Sin replied. “I’m not trying to bring down the gods on me. No offense, Epex.”

  I shrugged. “Don’t start shit, won’t be shit.”

  Everyone laughed.

  “So the true goal is to break the tear. I’m guessing it’s some kind of gemstone or something.”

  “A rune to be exact,” Sin replied to Devante. “Supposedly dangerous to even the user. That much power from the king of gods.”

  “Conus?” Elly said.

  “No,” I said. “The King is higher than even him. I’m pretty sure he’s the god humans have been writing about this entire time.”

  Before the conversation could continue, laughter echoed throughout the entire building. I looked at Mickey, the attendant up front but she didn’t seem to hear it, nor did any other human employee. We rushed to the elevator, entered the keycode that gave us access to the basement, and went down.

  “What the hell’s going on here?” I said.

  “As soon as Amelia got the information, he sent out a psychic call for backup,” Amony said.

  “Fuck, let’s go meet them outside,” Elly said. “Devante, make yourself useful and put up a barrier so that humans won’t see anything.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” he said, adjusting the tie on his expensive suit.

  “I’m sorry I have to do this,” Amelia told Amony then placed a finger on the demon’s forehead. The demon’s laughter stopped.

  “No, no, no!” he screamed his last breath before combusting into ashes.

  “Holy shit,” Sin said softly. “Teach me that sometime, oh great goddess.”

  Amelia huffed. “Come on, let’s go beat up some demons.”

  It didn’t take them long to show up. Among them, I felt a presence that I could either describe as “super-dark,” or pure evil. Then I saw him, a purple-eyed man with long messy grey hair. He had on the trademark suit.

  I turned to Devante. “You’re not a devil, right?” Even though I saw his past, I wanted to mess with him.

  He glared. “No, unless you mean the handsome kind.”

  The power the Sunset devil ahead radiated some serious power. I assumed he was a general of some sort.

  And that’s when the fucker did the unthinkable.

  One of his minions brought him a rocket launcher. He took aim at Secure Corps. And fired.

  Chapter Seven

  The world seemed to turn gray as the tube the Sunset general, ignited, just when my crew and I finally started to see eye to eye. The innocent workers inside, our boss, and the contractors that worked around building performing maintenance, were about to die. I should’ve known better. Amelia decided to show off like a goddess.

  She held up a hand that released a flash of essence and light. The rocket froze like our breaths and then disintegrated. Heavenly-light burst around her as she entered her divine state. Oh shit, she was angry, rightfully so.

  The Sunset general angrily threw down his bazooka, stomping it in frustration.

  “A-a-attack!” he stuttered.

  The minions, about thirty so—definitely not the full force—rushed us, shapeshifting from human form to bizarre creatures such as bi-pedal lizard-like beings with human faces and four arms, some two-legged spider demons with twelve arms, oversized teeth, and hundreds of eyes. The works.

  Well the good news is that there weren’t any annoying night terror demons among them.

  I unsheathed Ruin, dashing behind Sin, who lurched into the fray a second before everyone else. I made the mistake of thinking I’d hack and slash through them like paper.

  No, this is bad. The first demon, a bird-bug thing with overly muscular human-like legs, easily knocked my sword to the side then stabbed into the side of my stomach, barely missing an organ.

  The sharp, thick, and cold pain threatened to topple me over, but I excreted a mass of force to knock the monster back to give myself a chance to recover. I sucked in as much Solar energy as possible as I pulled back.

  It took three seconds, which felt like an eternity, for my wound to close. Devante, Sin, and Elly struggled too, on the defense.

  Suddenly, these numbers weren’t looking so good. We fucked up by underestimating Sunset demons.

  “Devante, Elly, don’t hold back, nuke them with everything you got,” I said, a little surprised at myself for taking control of this gaggle-fuck formation. “Sin, fall back and hold them back with force. If you know any magic, now is the time to use it.”

  “I don’t,” he said. “I’m a swordsman. And I live for this—so I won’t be falling back.” The demi-devil’s movements changed, somehow faster—no, he was a blur.

  His sword became a whirlwind of punishment. Good as he was, the Sunset demons blocked and parried every single strike. Another group of them bashed Sin to the ground with force. Well…they beat the shit out of him. It looked comical, like a bad L.A.P.D joke.

  “Hurry up with that spell. Ego-boy is dying,” I said.

  I released my own solar fists into the crowd. At least, I tried to but a lizard-demon shot from nowhere—a stony fist knocking stars in my vision. Pretty sure the fucker hurdled me at least fifteen yards back. I quickly covered myself in solar energy then leapt up, barely dodging the lizard’s death claws.

  They were strong. Really strong. I couldn’t compare them to the gods since I haven’t successfully beat any of them. Now I see why Elly wanted nothing to do with Sunset.

  Still, we couldn’t lose here. I sheathed Ruin, noting that this sword needed a more efficient way of charging or else it’d be useless.

  I manifest ole reliable, the Desert Eagle.

  I dodged the lizard’s swipe then fired five shots to his head. He went down. That gave me a few seconds to look around.

  Amelia and the Sunset general were locked in a hand-to-hand duel of the titans….wait…Nope, Amelia’s beating the shit out of him. Her “controlled” divine state was noticeable weaker than her faith-induced version, but strong enough to easily thwart demons. Must be nice to be the number six hunter in the universe.

  Devante launched fireball after fireball, then lightning bolts. What was interesting is that if a speedy demon got too close, an invisible force knocked it back at least twelve yards.

  Elly’s energy balls of purple magic didn’t incapacitate the demons, but stunned and annoyed them long enough for Devante’s lightning bolts to finish the job. They freed Sin in a matter of seconds.

  He didn’t look injured, but the anger in his eyes set him back into the fight with even fiercer motion. The demi-devil used force against what I assumed was force-wielding demons then finished some when they were down. He made sure not to get too close into the mass of demons, else risked getting overrun again.

  I took aim and fired several more shots at the enemies, downing them in an instant. Look out demons, if you tried to war with humans, they’d take you down. At least, these class of demons. I’m not so sure about demon lords or devils. I guess that’s when heavenly-beings come in.

  In a matter of minutes of pure team work, helping each other out, not getting to close to the demons, we downed them all.

  I glared at Ruin. Something was wrong. No…I needed to enhance it, to give it some special properties, and an ability. Too bad I didn’t know how. Still, with as much charging as I gave it, the sword should’ve be able to sweep demons even better than my gun. My deity-trappers…worked on immortal beings, including the immortal demons of Hell. Wait…demons on this side have no immortality whatsoever. They wouldn’t trigger the trappers.

  Fine. Gun on the demons. Sword on the hunters. A balance until I’m reloading the gun. I looked over to see the demon general flying away with bat-like wings.

  Before Amelia could take flight to give chase, he vanished.

  Someone spoke from nowhere with a feminine voice that echoed everywhere.

  “You don’t want to cross us, worms. We’ll adjust and fire b
ack. Why that idiot insisted on bringing just melee fighters is anyone’s guess. Word of warning. Not even your goddess or even the misthanger queen could stand toe to toe with the Drifter. Interfere with our operations again and the Fallen will be the least of your worries.”

  The voice didn’t say anything else for minutes, indicating that the presence of whoever or whatever that was, left.

  “Was that his second-in-command?” I said, not to anyone in particular.

  “No, the voice you heard was from a creature called the Black Agnes,” Amelia said. “She’s dangerous. A nasty being straight from mythology.”

  I frowned.

  Mythological beings were a tricky sort, origins typically unknown. The human writers of their legends are never fully accurate with their capabilities.

  “Any guess to why she’s helping Sunset?” Elly said.

  “It has to be a deal of some sort with the tear,” Sin said.

  “Tear?” Amelia said. “Wait, please tell me my suspicions of them having one isn’t correct.”

  Sin sighed. “I wish I could tell you that but rumors from the underground don’t spawn out of nowhere.”

  Chapter Eight

  Amelia explained the mythology of the Black Agnes before we reported back to Amony. Apparently, she’s a monster or boogeyman that terrorized the English back in the olden days. Her powers are mostly unknown. She never had a collision with heavenly-beings.

  After a short brief from the witch, we headed home.

  The next few days were uneventful. I created a routine of practicing my solar powers with Amelia, charging ruin and failing at willing it a new ability. Also, I’d catch up on a little gaming while the goddess attended class.

  One afternoon, Amony personally called us all in, stating that it was time for an important meeting. When we arrived, she pointed at Elly and me.

  “You two will go pick up the new member from the bus station next to the old gas station on Selk Street. She should be arriving soon, so get going.”

  I was preparing to argue but remembered who’s signing the checks and probably have more important things to do. At least Elly would be coming along to bitch with me. There’s nothing like complaining about a job with a coworker. Fun, fun, fun.

  The bus station was completely devoid of people. One or two cars would pass by every now and then but other than that, this street resembled the gas station: abandoned.

  “Are you sure we’re at the right bus station?” I said to Elly. We were sitting on a wooden bench just a few yards in front of the building.

  “Yes, fuck-face, is it too difficult for you to read the green post above the stop sign over there.” She pointed at the obvious Selk Street sign and then resumed something on her phone.

  I sighed. “Someone’s on her period.”

  She turned off the display of her phone to glare at me.

  “Let’s see. You almost shot me, my shoulders still freaking hurt from the fight, and now Amony sends us out to do bitchwork. So excuse me if it seems like someone pissed in my cereal.” I opened my mouth to speak but she cut me off. “If you dare tell me to look on the bright side, I’ll yank off your balls and shove them down your throat.”

  I strained not to laugh but failed, spiraling into the out-of-control sorts. Elly’s glare couldn’t hold and seconds later, she joined.

  “What do you study in college?” I asked after the laughter cleared.

  “Massage therapy,” she responded. “Two years at the local college and then two years at the university.”

  “That’s two people with a better back-up than me,” I said.

  “Hunters?”

  “Hunters.”

  Elly gave me a look of sympathy.

  “Is there no way to appeal to Paradise Realm?”

  “Not for me,” I said. “At least not until the corruption in the House is dealt with. Hopefully Amelia’s mom weeds them out.”

  “That sucks,” she said. A minute of silence before she spoke again with a subject change. “Stand up. I’ve been developing a power based off something you used before. I plan to corporate it into my massages.”

  I shrugged.

  “As long as it doesn’t kill me.” Something I used before? What did she mean?

  “You’ll probably find it enjoyable, if it works.”

  Elly stood, help up a hand to my face, and then charged a strange pink light into it. It outlined that hand. She placed it on my forehead. “Alright, going to release it into you. You should feel incredibly refreshed and relaxed.” She inhaled, then exhaled. The light left her hand and entered me.

  A second later, I felt something. Oh shit. It wasn’t relaxation. What I did before… emotion. She charged emotion and flooded me we a shit ton of horniness. The succubus grinned evilly.

  My eyes simply widened and holy shit, I felt like I’d fuck anything and everything. She removed her hand but the feeling didn’t go away.

  “You motherfu—you didn’t.”

  Elly’s grin widened. “How does it feel?”

  My junk felt like steel—this was like chugging down an entire bottle of Viagra. I strained because the part she probably didn’t count on was me losing control.

  “Is that a banana or are you just happy to see me?” she laughed.

  “Shit—undo this or I…” Control vanished and I needed release. What prevented me from moving was my heavenly-being instincts, I think. Deep down, it told me: nope, you’re not a rapist. But…that part of me vanished too as Elly continued to laugh her ass off. My body moved on its own as I grabbed her.

  “Oh shit,” she said, still laughing, even as I laid her on the bench. “Do it. Go at it on me, right in public, virgin boy.” She laughed harder, truly not seeing me as a threat.

  I regained just a tiny bit of control. “Undo it, before I lose control—you injected too much essence.”

  “You sure didn’t have a problem using that disgusting power on us,” she said.

  “It was a prank. I undid it before anything happene—”

  My eyes took an eyeful of the position we were in. Elly, dressed in a designer purple shirt and skirt combo, lying on her back provocatively. And of course, being a succubus, everything is somehow suspiciously skimpy on her. My control hammered against my heavenly-being instincts.

  “It’s mental training,” Elly said. “Either break the spell or fuck my brains out. I personally don’t care what your goddess would say if you fail, but…” I ripped off her skirt. “Oh shit—Epex, it’s a joke. A joke you perverted fuck.” My hands moved on their own, against my inner voice yelling at me to not do something… What was it... The minute they touched Elly’s panties, she gave me a look of surprise and amusement. “Do it.”

  Thoughts swirled through my head—but there was one dominating it all. Someone who’s been with me all this time. That person didn’t turn her back on me when the others decided on my death. I blinked.

  As if I’m that weak.

  I took a deep breath and then exhaled the pink light Elly injected into me. She got up, did some magic thing with a light and power that fixed her skirt and put it back on. “Good, because if you went further, I’d hit you in the balls for her. I may be a succubus…And I do like you, Epex. But, I’d rather die than be a homewrecker. As long as you have a heart, you can break mental spells.” She eyed me. “I’m sorry I did that to you.”

  I looked at her with new respect.

  “Payback’s a bitch, right? Guess I had it coming.” I sat on the bench.

  “I see what you did there,” she said then sat next to me. “I failed at breaking your spell that time and out of frustration, made you promise not to do it again. My pride felt ruined. How could a succubus succumb to such a thing? I suppose I was being a bit childish.”

  “I won’t hold it against you,” I said. “It’s no worse than how I was acting.”

  “It’s probably why…I felt just a tad jealous of the goddess,” she admitted. “You and I are a like in one way.” She sighed. “At l
east you’re not giving me the plenty of fish in the sea speech.”

  “Like I know anything about giving advice,” I said. “I wasted eight years in Hell. But...even if I were single, I…” I paused. “Okay, the sappy talk is just not for me.”

  Elly laughed.

  “Fair enough.”

  I glowered for a second.

  “It’s not like I’m getting any, anytime soon.”

  “Only in your dreams?” she said.

  “Not even that. When I dream, my spirit goes to the dream world. I’m able to experience it instead of watching it. And you couldn’t pay me to go near a fairy.”

  “If it’s in the dream, does it count?”

  “Why?” I said.

  “Just curious.”

  “You’re not planning to invade my dreams are you?” I said with a laugh. “I’m pretty sure the fairies will kick you out faster than you could say—oh shit.”

  “What?”

  “Watch out,” I unleashed force at the dust-devil that formed behind her.

  The second she turned around, a fuck ton of them oozed out of the gas station. Maybe like twenty, thirty, or maybe even forty.

  “Let’s get the fuck out of here,” I said then pulled the succubus out of her daze.

  We didn’t get far when someone…appeared. She aimed a hand at the dust-devils and did something.

  Reality seemed to bend and spiral around the dust-spirits. It was like watching a miniature galaxy form at the center of the pack the poof. A fuck ton of power—I mean essence, burst into toward the sky like a geyser, surrounding and incinerating them. Holy shit.

  The woman looked at us, smiled, then spoke with what sounded like an Australian accent.

  “Amony’s clutch, right? I’m Layla,” she said then looked at the gas station. “The bloody hell you do to tick them off?”

  The woman, who looked to be in her early twenties, gave me an uncomfortable feeling. Like meeting a witch or sorcerer for the first time, though a bit different. She was about five-five, dark brown hair and matching eyes, wearing a black cloak of some sorts.

  I wasn’t a fan of human magicians—the irresponsible use of their power could really fuck up the balance of nature. I didn’t break out of Hell just to live on a ruined planet.