God of Malice

by J. C. Diem

  With the experiment over, the angels trotted back to the rest of the group. “It would seem the Grimgorg shamans were not alerted by the penetration of their barrier,” Nathan said.

  Nat sniggered at his choice of wording and Lexi elbowed her in the side. “Cut it out, Stiff Death,” she said in a low voice, which just increased Nat’s amusement.

  Brie stared at them both and shook her head. “I will never understand how Fate could entrust the safety of the universe to three such childish beings.”

  “Careful, Brie, you sound a bit jealous.” Nat taunted her. She didn’t like the snooty brat much. “Isn’t envy a sin?”

  Drawing herself up, Brie tried to look down her nose at the taller woman. “I could never be jealous of a monster like you.”

  “Aw,” Nat mocked her and put a hand over her dead and unbeating heart. “That almost hurt.”

  Violet smirked, glad to see someone putting the angel in her place for once. Usually, she was on the receiving end of Brie’s spite.

  “Briathos,” Sophia said sharply when the kid opened her mouth to retaliate. “You are allowing Natalie to rile your anger. You should be well used to that from Violet by now.”

  Realizing she’d been baited, Brie glared at the vampire. “I expect juvenile behavior from someone of Violet’s young age, but I had hoped for better from a mature woman who is reportedly in her forties.”

  Gasping in outrage, Nat lunged for the kid. Brie skipped back a few steps and a glowing blue sword appeared in her hand. Nat drew her swords with shocking speed, but Leo stepped between the pair before they could engage in battle. “Will you two knock it off?” he said with a scowl.

  “She started it,” Nat said with a glower. As much as she wanted to smack the smirk off Brie’s face, she would have to go through Leo to get to her. He hadn’t done anything to deserve being stabbed.

  “If you two are quite done, we have a rather pressing mission to take care of,” Sophia said in a stern tone.

  Bowing her head slightly in shame, Brie made her sword disappear. Nat slid her weapons back into their sheaths. Crossing her arms, she watched as Violet recreated the rune and activated it.

  “Wait here,” Violet said to her friends as Sam capped the blood and put it back in the backpack. “Lexi, Nat and I will check things out.” Lexi took the backpack from Sam, then they trooped through the rune one after the other. They didn’t need to squeeze through it in a group since it would stay open for a while.

  Nat waited until they were several blocks away before speaking. “I don’t look like I’m in my forties, do I?”

  Her tone was so forlorn that Lexi put her arm around her shoulder. “Of course not. You look twenty-five at the most.”

  “You look young and gorgeous and you can kick anyone’s butt,” Violet said to her, then grinned. “I owe you one for baiting Brie like that. It was the highlight of my return to my world so far.”

  “Anytime, V,” Nat said and pulled her in for a brief hug. “Let’s go spy on our enemies and see if they have any weaknesses.”

  Staying in the shadows as much as possible, they travelled deeper into Shale Falls, following the sounds of screams.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  ~~~ Violet’s World ~~~

  PARTING WAYS WITH KING Rho, Loki joined a unit of Grimgorg shamans. All were dressed as warriors and were pretending to be devoid of magic. Their ruler would no doubt eventually spread word that their ruse was up. For now, he found it amusing to see them resorting to using crude methods to corral the humans.

  Feeling hungry a couple of hours later, he took a break to search for a convenience store. It wasn’t difficult to locate one, since they seemed to be on every corner. Spying one across the road, he sauntered over to it. The door and windows had been smashed and the place had been ransacked. Glass and other debris littered the floor.

  Perusing what was left of the food, he picked up a bag of potato chips and opened it. Tasting the contents, he deemed it to be edible. They were salty and left him feeling thirsty, so he stepped over to the fridges and chose orange juice. He’d tried a soda yesterday and had found it to be far too sugary for his tastes.

  Refreshed by his snack, he rounded the building and heard voices whispering in a nearby yard. It was a pair of female faeries and they appeared to be gossiping. Cloaking himself in an illusion of shadow, he used magic to muffle his footsteps and crept closer to the pair. Both were under five feet tall and were inhumanly beautiful even with their pointed ears and sharp teeth. One had pale blond hair and the other was a brunette.

  “Nifirial is growing too strong,” the brunette said in a worried tone. Not even they knew his real name, which meant he didn’t trust his own people. “I fear he will lose his mind again if he continues to siphon magic from the Grimgorg shamans.”

  “You know that the curse is the only thing that will end him,” the blond said. “None of us are strong enough to stop him if he goes insane.”

  “I am aware that only a blessed undead can kill him,” the brunette snapped. “I don’t want him dead, I just don’t want him to drag us all down with him when he implodes.”

  “We were banished from our realm the last time that happened,” the blond sighed. “There is no telling what will happen to us if he loses control again.” They both shuddered, then returned to the hunt for slaves.

  Loki now understood why Nifirial had asked him if there were any undead creatures on this world. As far as he was aware, none existed. Disappointment flooded through him as he realized the fae lord would become unstoppable. Feeling dejected, he trudged through the streets in search of another unit of shamans to join.

  As he passed an electronics store, a news story playing on one of the few televisions left caught his eye. Instead of a report about the invasion, he saw a grainy picture of a crispy corpse lying on a road beneath a streetlight. A young, handsome black angel with pure white wings folded behind his back was crouched beside the body. Loki froze in surprise when the corpse opened its eyes and spoke to the angel. He pushed the door open and strode over to the television just in time to hear the reporter finishing his story. “At least one angel appears to be in New York City. We believe the creature he is speaking to is one of the imps that has left hell and is seeking redemption.”

  Leaning in close to the TV, Loki stared at the horribly burned person. It was a female and she had wickedly sharp fangs. Her chest didn’t rise and fall at all as she spoke to the angel. She wasn’t an imp, whatever that was. He was fairly certain she was a vampire.

  Filled with sudden hope, he straightened up again. His mind was awhirl with possibilities. If she truly was a vampire, then she was his best hope at freeing him from Nifirial’s clutches. Deep down, he knew he’d bitten off more than he could chew when he’d become allied with the faeries. Using the undead creature to kill Nifirial was the only way he could think of to save himself.

  Leaving the electronics store, he allowed his feet to carry him randomly through the city. In order to get to New York, he would either have to use one of the primitive vehicles the earthlings called ‘cars’, or use one of Rho’s portals.

  Contemplating his choices, he saw three young, beautiful women step out from a side street ahead. Instinct made him duck into a recessed doorway and blend into the shadows. Even at a glance, it was obvious they weren’t normal civilians. The brunette stood out slightly more than the other two simply because she wore tight black leather. Twin swords poked over her shoulders and the straps were crisscrossed over her chest. The blond girl was the youngest and wore jeans and a black jacket with bronze buckles in the shape of skulls on her chest. A glowing golden dagger was clutched tightly in her hand. He switched his attention to the girl with black hair to see she was armed with a gun. She wore a blue leather jacket, jeans and carried a backpack over her shoulder.

  Looking around warily, they quickly crossed the road and moved out of sight as they continued down the side street. “How intriguing,” he murmured to himself and decid
ed to follow them. Once the faeries caught sight of the trio, they would quickly become slaves. They were far too beautiful to allow the Grimgorg to make off with them.

  Apart from their stunning beauty, something else had struck him. They hadn’t been afraid. In fact, it seemed as if they were actively hunting for someone. It occurred to him that they might very well be angels in possession of human hosts. The last time he’d been here, the angels had conjured up glowing blue swords. Maybe their weapons had changed after the famed golden ‘Hellscourge’ had appeared.

  Even if these three women were angels, they wouldn’t be able to stop Nifirial, from what he’d just overheard. Curiosity eating at him, he hurried after the trio. He wasn’t sure what their plan was, but it was bound to be interesting.

  Chapter Thirty

  ~~~ Violet’s World ~~~

  STAYING SILENT AND remaining alert for trouble, Violet was flanked by Nat and Lexi as they made their way through the city. The outer suburbs were deserted and had been stripped of civilians and metal. They saw few signs of bloodshed as they worked their way through the side streets.

  A prickling sensation in her spine warned her that they were being watched. Looking over her shoulder, she couldn’t see anyone, but that didn’t mean they were alone. “Someone is following us,” she whispered to her companions.

  Nat and Lexi turned to survey the street behind them. “I can’t hear anyone,” Lexi murmured. Her hearing was so acute that she would have picked up on their footsteps.

  “V’s right,” Nat said uneasily. “I can feel someone staring at us.” Whoever they were, they were excellent at remaining out of sight.

  “Let’s keep going,” Violet said. “They’ll make a move sooner or later. I don’t want to waste any time waiting for them to eventually get around to it.”

  Lexi wasn’t happy having an unknown entity trailing after them. The sniper in her wanted to move to higher ground so she could spot their foes from above. Unfortunately, she’d left her rifle back at the store. This mission was just supposed to be for reconnaissance. They hadn’t planned on engaging any of their enemies just yet.

  With that thought in mind, Violet kept her human form firmly in place. She didn’t want anyone to know she was here. Loki was aware of her, from what they’d seen during the short speech he’d made. He thought she was locked away in heaven. He was going to be in for a rude shock when they came face to face.

  “What are you smirking about?” Nat asked.

  “I can’t wait to show Loki my true form,” Violet replied. “I’d love to squash him like a bug.”

  “We should concentrate on squashing the faeries first,” Lexi said dryly. “They’re responsible for keeping the gates to heaven and hell shut.”

  “Good point,” Violet conceded. “We need to find their leader and take him down.”

  Thanks to the poodle Lexi had used as a spy, they knew what the leader of the fae looked like. Finding him wasn’t as easy as they’d hoped. Shale Falls might have been smaller than some cities, but they still had a lot of ground to cover.

  Keeping to the back streets as much as possible, they turned a corner to see a male faery and six Grimgorg warriors just ahead. One of the warriors turned and saw them and nudged his companions. The faery turned as well and grinned nastily when he saw three very attractive females. He had black hair rather than silver, so he wasn’t the one they were searching for.

  “Let’s move this party somewhere out of sight,” Lexi suggested and ran for a high rise building across the street. Violet and Nat were on her heels as she barged into the foyer. Tossing the backpack aside, she spun around and pointed her Beretta at the door. She stood in the classic shooters pose of her legs shoulder width apart and both hands on the gun.

  “Don’t shoot all of them,” Nat said to Lexi, knowing how fast she was with her handgun. “Leave some for us.”

  “I want the faery,” Violet said as the first Grimgorg stepped inside.

  “And have me you shall,” the faery said as he sauntered inside next. He showed no signs of alarm at their weapons. Even Violet’s glowing dagger barely drew a glance. “I believe I shall sample all of you before I collar you,” he said with a lecherous grin.

  “Sample this, freak,” Lexi muttered and shot him in the thigh. She moved so fast that he didn’t get a chance to use his magic to defend himself. If Violet hadn’t already laid claim to him, she would have shot him between the eyes instead.

  Taking that as the signal to begin their fight, Nat laughed in glee as she leaped at the closest hunchbacked green alien. Bright crimson light blazed from her eyes as her battle lust kicked in. Giving up on the pretense that he was just a simple soldier, he attempted to hurl a fireball at her. She lopped his arm off with one sword and ran him through with the other.

  Ignoring the Grimgorg, Violet headed towards the faery. He’d already healed his wound and was snarling in fury that such a lowly being had injured him. “I will make you all pay for that,” he hissed and readied a spell that would incapacitate the three strange earthlings.

  “No, you won’t,” Violet replied. “Because I’m going to kill you.”

  “You cannot kill me,” he sneered, then faltered when her dagger changed into a double-bladed axe.

  “Sure I can,” she said with a sneer of her own and swung the weapon at his face. He danced backwards and countered with a spell that should have frozen her in place. To his astonishment, she moved with blinding speed to evade it. His spell hit one of the Grimgorg instead and instantly froze him in place. The girl with black hair calmly shot him in the head. Even dead, the shaman was caught by the enchantment and didn’t fall.

  Looking around, the faery saw his final ally fall beneath the blades of the woman dressed in black leather. All three females moved to surround him and dread seeped into his bones. He didn’t know who, or what, they were, but he knew they were going to slay him.

  Seeing the faery about to cast another spell, Violet suspected he was going to try to escape. She didn’t want his leader to know they were here, so she threw her axe at him. It spun through the air twice and lodged in his chest.

  Staggering back, he stared down at the weapon in agonized surprise. He tried to pull it out, but his strength was rapidly fading. “Nifirial will flay your skin from your bones for this,” he said in a bare whisper as he sank to his knees.

  “I highly doubt that,” Violet said dryly as she crossed to him. Kicking him onto his back, she put one boot on his fragile chest and yanked her axe free. “I’m kind of immortal,” she informed him, then brought her blade down again.

  His head rolled free from his body and Lexi put her foot on it to stop it from rolling away. “Well, he’s dead,” she said. “At least we know we can kill these guys.” A shriek of rage came from somewhere else in the city directly after she spoke.

  “Uh, oh,” Nat said nervously, “I think the head faery knows one of his people just died.”

  “Indeed, he does,” a familiar voice said from behind them. They turned to see Loki standing in the doorway. His arms were crossed and he seemed to be completely at ease. He showed no signs of distress that they’d killed some of his allies, which didn’t really surprise them. “I suggest you follow me before Nifirial and his kin arrive,” he added, then turned and began to run.

  “Is he kidding?” Lexi muttered. “He wants us to follow him?”

  Nat forced out a sigh. Her curiosity had always been her bane. “Let’s go after him,” she said.

  “He’s probably leading us into a trap,” Violet pointed out even as Lexi snatched up the backpack and they ran from the building.

  “I don’t think so,” Nat said with a shrug. “He’s running away from the action rather than towards it.” Her blades were covered in purple blood, so she kept hold of them rather than sheathing them as they raced after the man who was supposed to be their number one enemy.

  The uproar was coming closer, but it was emanating from behind them rather than from ahead. Loki kept his
speed to pace a normal human could match as he led the way back to the suburbs. When he finally stopped, he wasn’t even panting for air. He waited for them to reach him, then preceded them into the small house he’d chosen to hold their conversation.

  When the three beauties were lined up side by side, he gave them his most charming smile. “I am sure you are aware of who I am,” he began.

  “We’re well aware,” the blond replied sourly, unimpressed with his charm.

  “Then there is no need for me to introduce myself,” he said smoothly, dropping his smile. Clearly, they weren’t going to be swayed by his charisma. “Who, pray tell, are you three?” They exchanged glances, but remained silent. Heaving a sigh, he knew he didn’t have a lot of time, so he got to the point. “It is obvious that you are angels in possession of human bodies.” Their gazes sharpened and he figured he’d guessed correctly. “You are far too fast and skilled in battle to be mere mortals.” Something the sentient gate in hell had said came back to him. Perhaps these females might even be the mysterious ‘Fate’s Warriors’ that the gate had spoken of. An entity like Fate would undoubtedly choose magical beings to be her champions.

  “Okay, you’ve figured out who we are,” the brunette with the still dripping swords said. “What do you want?”

  Straightening his cape unnecessarily, he didn’t want to come across as being too desperate. “Nifirial has proven to be far less stable than I’d realized when I allied myself with him,” he said as delicately as possible. “He needs to be destroyed before he can cause too much harm to humanity.” He actually meant harm to himself, of course. He didn’t care what happened to the humans. His expression turned grave and he didn’t have to put on an act. “He is stealing the shamans’ power to make himself stronger, which is adding to his instability. Soon, I fear he will become unstoppable.”