The Builder's Throne

by J. A. Cipriano

  “Oh.” I wasn’t sure how to take that, and while I felt like I should step in or something, the kitchen was really not my element. I mean, I liked to eat food, but to me, most things tasted pretty good. “I’m going to just go then.”

  There was a loud crash as Erin knocked all the dishes the chefs had been preparing to the floor with a sweep of her arm.

  “That would be best,” Aika murmured, turning toward Erin. “Let me handle this.”

  Before I could even say anything, Aika left me standing there. She wrapped one arm around Erin in a headlock and pulled her away from the other chefs while the golden-haired angel struggled to free herself. Then Aika tossed Erin in the freezer and locked the door with a huge padlock.

  “Okay.” Aika put her hands on her hips. “We have hungry people who need to eat. Perfect is the enemy of the damned table.” She clapped her hands together. “Chop, chop. Back to work.”

  There was a loud crash from inside the freezer, and an Erin-shaped dent appeared in the door while the lock shook mightily.

  “Yeah, I want no part of whatever this is,” I muttered, turning away from the scene and rushing out of the kitchen. Takumi could deal with her two erstwhile apprentices after I got her better. So, if I wanted to help things, I had to help her.

  Clutching my goodies tightly, I hurried back across the town to the bathrooms. Even from outside, I could still hear her violently retching. It sounded painful. I mean, I remembered one time I’d thrown up for ten minutes straight, and my abs had been so sore the next day I could barely sit up. Takumi had been violently vomiting for hours. Hours.

  “Well, I guess it’s one way to get a six-pack,” I said, trying to keep an eye on the bright side. If I didn’t, I was going to feel like an ass because ostensibly, this was my fault for making her take up the mantle. The sad thing was? I’d make her do it again because it needed to happen, and worse? Takumi would accept again. That, I could tell. Her heart was just that big.

  “I come bearing gifts,” I said, pushing into the room to find Gabriella slap-fighting Raphael.

  “I will not go,” Gabriella snapped as Raphael tried to drag the Archangel of Love from the room.

  “You’re not helping,” Raphael said as Gabriella slipped free like an eel.

  “I’m an excellent helper!” Gabriella replied, eyes fixing on me. “You got the stuff!” With a flick of her wrist, Gabriella flung Raphael away.

  The Archangel of Providence smashed into the far wall with a loud thwack, and as she slid to the floor, Gabriella grabbed the jar of pickles and the bag of strawberries from me.

  “How do you want it?” Gabriella asked, spinning on her heel and marching toward Takumi, who looked to be in the eye of her vomiting storm.

  “Throw away the pickles and pour the strawberries into the pickle water.” Takumi’s cheeks bulged as she finished speaking, and she whirled back to the toilet. The sound of vomit hitting the toilet like a bucket of slop filled my ears.

  “Done and done!” Gabriella chimed, her voice a sing-song as she tried to twist the lid off the jar. Only, after a moment, she frowned. “Arthur, can you help?” She offered me the jar.

  “Um… sure,” I said, taking the jar of pickles from her so I could twist the lid off with my big strong man muscles. Or, I tried anyway because it was kind of a bitch and wouldn’t budge.

  “Maybe try putting it under some hot water?” Gabriella asked, looking at me.

  “No. I can get it.” I smacked the jar against the counter a couple times before trying again. This time the jar opened. “There we go.”

  “Oh, for Christ’s sake. Give me the jar,” Takumi exclaimed, rising from the toilet like a demigod. Her eyes flared with black light as she reached out toward me, and like magic, the lid unscrewed itself the rest of the way and fell to the ground with a clang. Then the pickles levitated out before crashing to the ground beside the lid, splattering the floor with slimy goo.

  “Whoa,” I murmured right before the frozen strawberries burst from Gabriella’s hands, ripping free of the bag and somersaulting through the air before landing in the pickle water.

  Takumi curled her left index finger toward herself, and the jar flew from my grip and landed in her outstretched hand. Then her mouth seemed to unhinge as she poured the contents of it in all at once. Her entire demeanor seemed to shift, and more flame shot from her eyes as she dropped the jar.

  “I require more,” she snarled as the jar shattered into a million pieces on the stone floor. “Feed me!” Her eyes flicked around the room before settling on the fried food Gabriella had discarded earlier.

  With a cry of animalistic need, she leaped through the air, pouncing on the platter and shoving fried bits into her mouth.

  “Takumi,” I said, reaching out toward her.

  She turned her eyes toward me, and they were devoid of everything save for sheer, unrelenting hunger.

  “Arthur.” She took a deep breath, trying to regain herself. “I’m so hungry.”

  “I know. Let me help,” I said, and as I touched her, crippling hunger nearly overwhelmed me.

  Light flared across my stomach as her mark solidified across my flesh. Then I got light-headed, collapsing to my knees.

  Gabriella caught me, her arms wrapping around me and keeping me from braining myself on the floor as an achievement flashed across the air in golden script.

  Achievement: Pinnacle of Hell unlocked.

  Pinnacle of Hell – Have all seven Marks of Hell bestowed upon you by the Archangels of Hell.

  Achievement: Pinnacle of Hell completed. The stat limit for your Hell-based companions has been doubled.

  Achievement: Alpha and Omega unlocked.

  Alpha and Omega – Complete Achievements: Pinnacle of Hell and Pinnacle of Heaven.

  15

  “Is it everything you hoped for and more?” Takumi asked around a mouthful of some chicken-like bird as she pointed at my stomach with her drumstick. “The mark?”

  “Yes. Trust me, while it wasn’t as fun as getting Gwen’s mark, this ranks a close second.” I smiled at her as my stomach rumbled with near-uncontrollable hunger. The moment she’d given me the mark, I’d become ravenous. We’d parked ourselves in the kitchen and gone to town.

  We had been eating for the last six or so hours, and I’d tried nearly every food I could think of and then some. While Erin and Aika had done a good job keeping us in food, even now, after putting away nearly a million calories, I felt like I could eat my way through an all-you-can-eat restaurant … chain.

  “Aww, you’re just saying that.” She smiled at me before putting the drumstick in her mouth and swallowing it whole. “I know you aren’t having fun, anymore but I appreciate the effort.” She speared a piece of cake with her fork. “Still, I think I’m going to be here a while.”

  “Well, to be fair, it was fun to actually eat all the cupcakes.” I patted my stomach. “And I don’t even have to worry about getting fat.”

  “Snacks go in a separate stomach.” Takumi nodded at me before shoving the entire slice of cake into her mouth and chewing thoughtfully. “Is it weird that I can actually feel how hungry you are?” she reached out and touched my stomach with her finger. “I can even taste what you eat.”

  “Yeah, it works both ways.” I frowned. “Which was why I asked you to stop eating liver.” I stuck out my tongue.

  “It’s chock full of vitamins.” She nodded toward the kitchen. “I know Erin tries, but I can make liver that melts in your mouth.” She hopped to her feet. “I’m going to go do that—”

  Her words were cut off by the blare of trumpets that let me know the Darkness was attacking. I leaped to my feet, and as I did, I wobbled unsteadily. Having Takumi as a drain on my power was making me weak, but even still, I had to help.

  “What do you want me to do, Arthur?” Takumi asked, her eyes settling on me. “Do you want me to fight?”

  “No. I want you to eat.” I touched my mark with one hand as I took a deep breath, trying to
center myself. “The more you eat, the less you’ll weaken me.”

  “Oh.” She frowned. “I don’t want you to get hurt because of me.”

  “I’ll be fine.” I smiled. “Now feed your face for Heaven and Hell.”

  “Okay.” She gave me a resolute nod right before spinning on her heel and heading into the kitchen itself.

  Leaving her to it, I drew Caliburn from its sheath and charged outside to find the sky filled with those weird lich dragons, like the dungeon guardian I’d encountered with Jophiel. The horizon was an endless mass of darkness, pressing against the edge of Heaven and as I moved toward our gates, the sky lit up like a fucking fireworks display. Reds, blues, greens and every other color of the rainbow burst through the air as the darkness peeled itself apart, the light coalescing into a portal.

  Dred was standing there, in the middle of the battlefield that stretched between the Darkness and Heaven’s massive walls. He looked weaker, diminished, but his face held something I’d not seen on it before. Fear. No, not just fear. Defiance and fear. He was scared, but somehow that fear was driving him, but to what, I wasn’t sure.

  Not that I cared. If he was here, I could put him down once and for all.

  “Dred, prepare to die!” I cried, calling my ethereal armor into being. Only as I did, I stumbled. The Mark of Gluttony flared brightly on my stomach and cast a crimson hue through even my armor.

  Before Dred could reply, the forces of Darkness screamed and turned as one, flying straight at him en masse. As he stepped out of the swirling portal of energy and crashed to the ground, the whole of the attacking army seemed to forget entirely about us as they attacked Dred. Well, that was new.

  His sword, Excalibur, lashed outward like a striking serpent, slashing through the closest monsters, and as their bodies exploded into splashes of darkness, Dred reached out, grabbing the Dark Blood cores within them. Then he shattered them, absorbing the strength in the same way I’d done from time to time.

  Lightning flashed overhead, and sparks flew as he cut his way through the Darkness’s army, his eyes dead set on me. With each step, he absorbed more of their dark energy.

  This was no good. While I knew I was stronger than him, I was weak because of Takumi, and what’s more, that Dark Blood would power him up. No. I had to meet him in battle.

  I raced forward, leaping into the fray, and as I did, the boss of this wave, a massive lizard-like kaiju with giant eyes along its torso, finally stepped forth. At its appearance, the army of Darkness seemed to finally realize why it had come. A huge number of the combatants turned to attack the forces of Heaven who had been busily hacking into them from behind.

  “Let me handle Dred. You get the boss,” I called as Michelle stepped into the battle beside me, her whip-sword lashing out to kill one of the dragons. Its body crashed to the ground, right on top of a beholder, splattering it like a particularly gooey egg.

  “Okay.” Michelle nodded to me. “I’ll take care of the rest.” With that, she stepped away from me, her eyes narrowing as she raised her whip-sword. Fire danced along its length as her massive white wings unfurled. She leapt into the air, heading straight toward the kaiju.

  Turning my attention back to Dred, I found the Destroyer was nearly to me. He was facing off against one of those giant crab scorpion monsters, and as he effortlessly slipped by its tail and sank his sword into the creature’s side, my eyes widened.

  Nearly all the big monsters between us were down, and while the little ones scurried about like ants, I knew why.

  Dred plunged his hand into the wound, gripping the core and tearing it free. As the monster’s corpse collapsed to the ground, he crushed the Dark Blood, causing more power to fill him.

  “Give me the key, Arthur.” Dred held his hand out to me, and emerald sparks leaped from his outstretched fingers. “If you do, I will help you.” He gestured to the boss. “Michelle cannot defeat it, but together we can.” He smiled. “Together, we can defeat them all.”

  “Or I just kill you.” I nodded to him, and he shook his head.

  “I’d told Jophiel you were too dumb to listen to reason.” He sighed as I launched myself toward him. He took a step backward, Excalibur moving to block my blade. The force of my sword bouncing off his rang down my arm, and I realized that thanks to all the power he’d absorbed, he might actually be stronger than me right now.

  “Too dumb? You’re the fucking bad guy,” I said right before he decked me. His fist slammed into my nose, snapping my head backward and causing me to wobble a bit.

  “If I wanted you dead, you’d be dead, Arthur.” He slashed at me, and as Excalibur came around, I realized I wasn’t fast enough to dodge it, let alone block it. Only, I didn’t have to because the blade stopped just short of my ear. “Now give me the key. If you do, I’ll give you this.” He tapped his chest piece, and I realized it was the Armament of Gluttony.

  It seemed like a good deal. The armament would give me a power increase right now, and I didn’t know what the key did. Of course, that was exactly what why I didn’t want to give him the key.

  “You first,” I said, and as I spoke, he surprised me by laughing.

  “Fine.” He grabbed the chest plate and tore it free of his body before tossing it to the ground at my feet. “My mark is gone, and it does me no good.”

  I stared at the fallen armament for a long time, and as I did, I realized I believed Dred. I wasn’t sure why or how, but I did think he wanted to help me. Only, that didn’t make sense.

  “Arthur, no!” Michelle’s voice rang in my ears, and as I turned toward her, I saw her whip sword flash outward. The glowing, fiery blade wrapped around Dred’s torso, jerking him backward off his feet.

  He hit the ground hard as the massive kaiju in the background lumbered toward us. I could see Gabriella, and the others pounding at it to no avail. Their attacks slid off its body, and as I narrowed my eyes at the creature, I realized why. They too were weakened because of Takumi.

  “Get off me, Michelle,” Dred snarled, right before he flexed. “The men are talking.”

  Power exploded out of him, turning the sand beneath his feet to glass and shattering her weapon into a billion pieces of fiery gold that rained down around us.

  Michelle screamed, and I felt her pain through our mark. It hit me like someone had taken one of my limbs. No. It hurt worse than that.

  I staggered backward, the pain of it nearly overwhelming, and as I did, Dred got to his feet and brushed himself off.

  “They are not at our level, Arthur.” He shook his head as he walked over to me. “Hold up your end of the deal.” He held out his hand to me. “Give me the key.” He nodded toward the kaiju. “I’ll leave so you can deal with that.”

  “Don’t do it, Arthur.” Michelle tried to climb to her feet, but as she did, the kaiju behind her swatted Gabriella out of the air. The Archangel of Love crashed into Michelle, sending both of them skidding violently across the battlefield.

  “Enough, Michelle. Speak again, and I’ll rip out your tongue and beat you to death with it,” Dred snarled, meeting my eyes for a second before the sky exploded into color. The General I’d fought three times now stepped from the breach, and as he did, the kaiju exploded into bits of paste that swirled past him into the horizon.

  “So, it has come to this.” His eyes met Dred’s as the rest of the minions of the Darkness evaporated, and the dark smoke that made up their bodies flowed back toward the breach the General had stepped through in what seemed like an effort to stabilize it. Even still, I could see the Darkness start to flit away. He wouldn’t be able to stay here long. That much was obvious.

  “Ten.” Dred pointed his blade at the General, and the way he said the word made me think it was his name. “So, Arthur has grown strong enough for you to finally show yourself here.”

  “And you’ve finally shown your true colors. I knew it wouldn’t be long.” The General came toward Dred, and as he did, Dred began to backpedal. He’d faced down an entire army
effortlessly, but he was scared of the Dark General.

  Only, as I looked around, I realized everyone had stopped moving on my side. They all stared slack-jawed at the General, and a quick look at Michelle told me why. They were all affected with a debuff.

  Unrelenting Aura – Causes all beings within the presence of the user to be overcome with fear. Can be defeated upon successful intelligence check. Each enemy affected causes the user’s strength to increase by ten percent. (Additive)

  There was just one problem. I was staring at Michelle who was pretty much the most powerful of the Archangels, and she was petrified because even though she had an intelligence stat of one hundred, the ritual with Takumi had been temporarily reduced it to only seventy-five. That was bad. It meant no one could help, and with Michelle still reeling from Dred shattering her sword, I knew we were in trouble.

  “Ten seconds.” The General mused. “That is how long until the breach pulls us both back in, Dred. Do you think you will survive until then, or will you flee like the cowardly mouse you are?” He gestured toward the portal. “This is your chance to do it, assuming you think you’re fast enough to get by me. With all that power you’ve stolen, you just might be.”

  “Or I could kill you.” Dred pointed Excalibur at the General as I picked up the Armament of Gluttony he’d discarded. The Incessant Hunger of Gluttony flared in my hand like moon fire as I pulled it over my head.

  Incessant Hunger of Gluttony

  Type: chest plate

  Durability: 15,800/16,000

  Defense: 3D10

  Enchantments: Armament of Gluttony

  Ability: Negation – Allows the user to absorb the energy of attacks and use it to increase defense.

  “You cannot hurt me.” The General flicked his eyes to me as the power of the final armament met with my mark and strength surged through me. “You are too weak, Dred.” The General charged, his body a blur. “Let me remind you of that.”

  Dred dodged, but barely. As the General’s attack slid by him, I realized something. I’d been able to see the General move. Only, I hadn’t been able to do that before.