by Laura Hawks
She thought maybe one day she might actually make it back there to visit them. Apologize to them for leaving so quickly without even saying goodbye. She hoped there would be a time she wouldn’t have to worry about their safety as she renewed broken ties she once had a chance to establish.
Breaking her reverie, she entered the Ambassador and took the stairs up to her room on the fourth floor. Letting herself into the apartment, she shut and locked the door behind her. Turning towards the window, she was startled to see the raven sitting on the ledge and starring at her. She chuckled softly at herself for being so jumpy that a bird made her heart skip a beat. Shaking her head at her own silliness, she headed towards the kitchen to make a pot of tea.
Once she was out of sight, the raven allowed the glass window to coalesce around him as he entered the apartment, his feathers lengthening as his body shifted to elongate into a male human form. Dahdahwat was bare-chested, his long, black hair braided down his back with one loose feather hanging from the side of his head. He wore beige buckskins and matching moccasins. His eyes though striking showed a swirling amber. The gold’s, browns and red flecks intermingling as they shifted about his irises.
He moved silently as he came up behind the woman wolf. Clarissa spun the teapot in her hand and knocked it hard against the intruder. While he was disoriented, she kicked him away from her then scissor kicked him again. The second time she clipped his jaw. She could tell he was slightly stunned and she grabbed his arm and flashed out of the apartment, taking him with her. She would be damned if she allowed a fight to occur there in such a beautiful old building. She couldn’t allow for that to happen, so she took it to a more isolated area.
She flashed them to Southeast way Park’s Prairie area. When Clarissa first arrived in Indianapolis, she scouted locations that would be hidden enough for major fights without being readily discovered. She had built her powers up extensively over the past few months, so transporting him to the area was nothing more than a thought.
The one good thing Clarissa had with all the past attacks, on top of Azamel’s training, was the practice and growth of her powers. She could hold her own and had a few surprise tricks up her sleeve.
The male stood and shook his head as if to clear it of cobwebs from her assault. She was ready, unsure what he would throw at her. She was perplexed as to what he was but the one thing she was positive about, he definitely wasn’t a demon.
He spun on her, his eyes almost glowing yellow in their intensity. He must be an animal of some sort. This was a first. All the others who assailed her had been one type of demon or another. She was still contemplating it when the male smiled at her as if she were the mouse, he the cat and she just fell in his trap. She prepared herself for his charge against her, unsure how he would proceed.
Instead Dahdahwat starred at her with a bemused look on his face.
“You have no idea what you’re up against, little one. Surrender the stone and I’ll allow you to walk away unscathed.”
“Oh good. I was worried we were going to skip the banter portion of our fight. Sorry to be a disappointment but I’ll not surrender the gem while there is still breath in my body.”
“I was afraid you wouldn’t have enough sense to know when you were beaten.”
“Beaten? How am I beaten when we are still having a battle of wits, albeit with you being at a slight disadvantage?”
“I am neither unarmed nor one to be taken lightly. I can crush you with a thought, should I desire. I was trying to give you a chance to live.”
“Aw. Thanks. Tell you what. Why don’t I live and keep the powerful artifact. Then I’m happy and you, well, you can crawl back to wherever you came from and watch the Big Bang Theory for entertainment instead of whatever you plan to do with the stone.”
With blazing eyes, he lifted his hand, throwing her fifty feet to hit the trunk of a red oak before she slid down the bark slightly dazed and certainly surprised. She mumbled softly as she rose to her feet, “Guess he doesn’t like the Big Bang Theory.”
Throwing her hand out, palm up, she sent several balls of fire towards him. He seemed to chuckle as he did nothing to stop their approach. Instead, the balls of flame evaporated just as they got within striking distance of him.
“Oh shit.” She muttered achingly.
Clarissa’s eyes widened as she realized this was going to be harder than she originally thought. She certainly underestimated his powers if he disintegrated her fiery orbs so easily. She would have to try another approach since he obviously had a strong negation to powers. She might get something on hand to hand combat but he looked like a formidable foe. Still, if it was her only option then that’s what she would resort to.
While she was trying to analyze and come up with a viable plan of action, he sent a bolt of electricity towards her. Immediately, she generated her force field to block the attack. He raised his eyes in astonishment. He didn’t know she had that kind of power or control. Nana was correct in informing the council of her growth. Dahdahwat sighed. She wasn’t going to be easy to subdue after all. Even his omnipotent powers were limited against a Guardian such as her. Their abilities were almost an equal match in negating their attacks towards each other.
As a God of animals, he took the form of one of his more fearsome beings. He shifted into a grizzly bear and stood on his hind quarters to an impressive ten feet in height. Clarissa had to tilt her head up to meet his yellow eyes. Taking a line from Azamel, she couldn’t help but exclaim, “Fuck,” at his increased size and bulk. She would fare better as a wolf and so immediately allowed her body to elongate, the fur to expand upon her skin as she hunched over to get on her four legs as she transmogrified into her lupus form.
Clarissa hunched into an attack position, snarling, her fangs dripped with saliva. As she charged the bear, she feinted to the right before she jumped to the left and managed to take a bite out of his hind quarters.
The bear howled as his fur was torn from his leg. He succeeded to swat at the white wolf throwing her aside. A small whimper sounded from her as she skidded to a halt on her side. Scrambling to her feet, her first instinct was to lick her injured body but she couldn’t afford to slacken up on her defense or her attack.
The bear charged her, giving her no respite. The wound on his limb completely healed due to his Godly powers. The ground thundered as Dahdahwat stampeded towards her. His large paws reached for her, electricity bouncing between his pads.
Ducking between his legs, she used her claws to scrape and tear at his lower privates. Dahdahwat stumbled as he yelped even louder, clutching low in agony. Not giving him a chance to recoup, she pounced onto his back. Her claws pierced his fur tearing it as she bit the back of his neck and tasted the metallic blood as it flowed into her mouth from his wound.
He tried to dislodge her from his body, twisting and pawing unsuccessfully. Dahdahwat sent an electrical shock through his whole being, forcing her off of him. Her paws slightly burned from the jolt as she struggled to stand on them.
She knew she was stronger in humanoid form, so she took a moment to shift back. Her fur retreated, her long snout shortened as she metamorphosed back to her human appearance. She had one chance to defeat him. It was an ability she had never used in such a way before. The idea of taking a life with this power wasn’t something she preferred, even though she knew she could. Previously, Clarissa had only used the talent to heal and help others, never to harm. However, she felt she had little choice at the moment. This creature was way too strong, too powerful to win the battle against him.
The bear turned towards her, again all the wounds were healed and he charged at her, grinning inwardly since she was a woman again and no longer a wolf. Which made her more vulnerable, or so he thought. When he got close, she ducked under his massive swiping paw and placed her hand on his heart. She reversed her healing process and started to suck the life out of him. She saw the look of surprise in the bear’s eyes as he stood stock still for a moment. Roaring loudly,
as he used his strength to push her aside, his claws tearing the skin across her chest. He had to stop and catch his breath, regenerating while she lay still for a moment on the ground, probably doing the same.
He quickly shifted back and looked down at her, fully healed once again. “Are you ready to surrender? In case you have not figured it out yet, you cannot hurt me enough to do any serious damage. I am a God. I am Dahdahwat.”
She tilted her head to the side and up to stare in astonishment at him. “A God?” She allowed herself to fall back on the ground her arms spread to either side of her as she starred up at the stars. Shit, she was so Timbuktu screwed and tattooed. Still, the Gem of Avarice would give power to anyone, including those who already had quite a bit. With the powerful artifact, a God could be a God enslaver or even a God killer. She couldn’t allow such an event to happen. She realized should a God try, a war within the pantheon would break out, exactly as Mel tried to impress upon her which might occur. She rolled over and stood once again, albeit a bit unsteadily. She wasn’t sure what would stop, much less slow down a God, so she threw everything at him that she could. Summoning up every bit of strength and power that she had, she sent it all towards him in one major blast of electrical, fire balls in constant, rapid succession.
Dah stood as the barrage encase him then disappeared from within the melee. Before she was aware of it, he flashed behind her, grabbed her and knocked her out with a single touch to her temple. He cradled her crumpling figure and dematerialized from the park.
The fire burned brightly, its blue-orange flames danced in the air as they licked their way towards the heavens. He sat in front of the fire, cross-legged. Clarissa lay unmoving on a traditional blanket nearby. His eyes were closed as he sensed everything around him, waiting, anticipating Jes’ arrival. He could feel the disruption in the air as Jes materialized. He kept his eyes closed and chuckled when Jes tried to touch the unconscious woman, just to be rebuffed by a stasis field. Only then did he open them and peer at the God of Malignant Man.
“I’m not a fool, Jes. I’m not just going to hand her over to you with no guarantee that I will get what I want when this is over.”
“What do you want, Dah?”
“I know you want the stone. Fine. You can have it but I want to be your right hand man when it comes to service. I want freedom to do as I wish and the power to back it up. I want to absorb Nana’s powers.”
Jes sat down across from him for a couple of minutes to think about the offer as he looked at the young Guardian. “Do you have the stone?”
“No. However, with her in your custody you should be able to find it through its vibrations or however else you’ve been tracking it. Or you can always torture her until she gives it up. Whatever works for you, I don’t care. Do I have your word on the deal or not?”
Jes was virtually salivating at the thought of getting the artifact in his hands and seeing everything he wanted, all he desired become a reality. After countless generations of time, his deepest wish could finally be fulfilled.
“How can I possibly refuse? Although, I do wonder why you’re helping me get the gem instead of securing it for yourself?”
Dah snorted. “Because I don’t want to be in charge of the entire universe. Too much fucking work. No, just a small piece of it and I’ll be happy.”
Jes had to wonder if this were not a trick but the Guardian lay unconscious in front of him and he could feel the vibrations emitted from the stone. The odd thing was it seemed to be coming from two different areas. The opportunity was before him to achieve all his goals, all he had to do was agree to Dah’s terms. After another moments thought, he nodded and stood approaching the God of Animals.
“Blood deal.”
“I was going to insist on it.”
Dah took a knife from his britches and slashed his palm, the blood flowed freely. Jes took the reddened blade and imitated the process with his own hand. Jes gave the knife back to Dah. They joined hands, their blood intermingling, completing the deal.
Chapter Twenty-One
Shara felt the disruption in the home and headed to the receiving area. She was rather surprised to see Nanaboojoo there for he rarely came and this was the second time in less than a year. She approached him respectfully.
“Welcome to Azamel’s. He is busy at the moment. May I help you?”
Nana nodded towards her. “Please. Tell him I need to see him immediately. No. Wait. Let me ask you something first.”
“Yes, Sir?”
“Since the Guardian has left, how has he been acting these last several months?”
Shara tilted her head, perplexed. A warning went off inside of her and she responded cautiously. Weighing her answers for potential problems, she replied, “He has done his job capably as he always has.”
“I wasn’t questioning his abilities. I meant personally.”
Nana immediately understood she was hesitant about saying anything negative against Mel. He was also very aware Shara had been with Azamel for several millennia and that she cared about the demon judge. She may even love the man although Nana was pretty sure Mel never thought of her as anything more than a loyal servant.
Nana moved towards her and placed a gentle, fatherly hand on her arm. “I’m not here to judge him.” He chuckled softly to lighten up the tension that she felt. “I just want to know the truth so I have an idea of how to approach him with what I have to tell him.”
Shara wanted to know what news he had for Mel and his hand on her sent a warm glow through her, which instantly relaxed her. “Since the wolf has left, he has been more focused, less tolerant. He has buried himself in his work, eaten only when I reminded him and rested only when I pestered him enough that he would go to his private chambers. He has paced the halls more at night, even though he thinks I’m unaware of it. He has his hunters constantly report back to him about her and he has been far more hands on with the crueler punishments as if to get his frustrations out through the serving of the prisoners sentences.”
“Thank you, Shara. You couldn’t be a better companion for him. I’m glad he has you to take care of him. Please let him know I need to see him urgently. Thank you.” He let go of her.
She nodded as she beamed at him. “Right away, Sir.”
Shara scurried from the room and down to the cells below. Azamel was with one particularly heinous demon exacting the creature’s punishment personally, each day as awful as the one before. Mel had seemed lost lately, worse than before he departed his realm to visit his brother. Upon his return he was dourer than before, more sullen.
Entering the chamber, Shara stopped and waited to attract his attention. She wouldn’t forget when she had interrupted him for the first time after his return from his brothers. She was lucky her head was still attached. She quickly learned to wait until he acknowledged her as she stood shifting from foot to foot. After several minutes and countless screams from the prisoner, Mel stepped back, an impassive look on his face. He flashed in a wet towel and used it to wipe his face and hands as he finally gave her his regard. “What is it now, Shara?”
“Nanaboojoo is waiting to see you, Sir. He says it is extremely important.”
Mel grumbled and threw the towel to the side. As he strode out of the room, he called back to the bailiffs, “See that this mess is cleaned up.”
Nana had sat while he waited. Although he looked relaxed, he was far from feeling it. He glanced up as Mel entered and stood to meet him part way. He didn’t waste time on preambles or pointless salutations. The situation was too dire. “We have a problem and I need your assistance.”
Mel frowned. Truthfully, he could care less what the problem was. He had neither the energy nor the desire to do anything but his job. For some reason, his heart wasn’t even in that.
“Unless it’s a rogue demon I’m unaware of, figure it out for yourself. I’m too busy otherwise.”
“Too busy even to help the Guardian, Clarissa?”
Mel froze, his eyes narrowed,
his inner demon fully alert. “Is this a trick? You, yourself said I couldn’t see or help her in any way.”
“Circumstances have changed and a war has been started because of the stone she guards. If we don’t nip it in the bud now, this conflict will escalate and nothing will save her or the innocent who roam this world.”
Mel wanted to jump at the chance but if he was truthful to himself he wasn’t sure he could say goodbye to her again. He had already done it twice and it literally tore him apart each time.
“Why are you asking me to help? Surely there are others more qualified.”
Nana moved towards him to stand and peer down into Mel’s face. The God of Good’s wise, old features reflected understanding and compassion.
“Because you love her,” he said simply.
Mel growled and ran a hand through his hair. “No I don’t. I love no one. I’m incapable of it.”
“Just because you have closed yourself off to it for eons, denied its very existence, doesn’t mean that it’s not there.”
“I don’t love or trust her.”
“You actually do both and so does she.”
“We each have our duties and can’t be together. Why torture us? Is it fucking fun for you to play these games?”
Nana sighed, patient as if with a petulant child. “The universe is very mysterious and when two hearts are destined to be together, it will find a way to make it happen.” He paused a moment before he continued, “Regardless, I need your help. She needs your help. Even if you deny me, can you deny her?”
