Into the Void (The Godhunter, Book 10)

by Amy Sumida

  “Have you done anything with it?” Luke focused on me intently. “Changed the terrain, the buildings, anything?”

  “I've added little touches but I...” I paused as I realized what he was asking.

  “Vervain,” Luke started looking excited. “Don't you realize that you've hit the gold mine with that territory? You're a Goddess who doesn't owe her power to sacrifice. You simply reclaimed the energy that humans gave the gods, so you have no obligation to human myth. Then you claimed a territory and by doing such, you gained the power to alter it. Normally, I'd instruct a god on ways to work with the myth to create the territory they want to live in but with you, there are no restrictions. You're not bound by human belief because you are human, yet you can create whatever you want in your territory because you're a goddess. It's brilliant!”

  “I've never even thought about changing the territory,” I frowned as I thought it over. “I'd have to talk to the Intare first, get their input on it.”

  “I would love to be there,” Luke's eyes were bright. “To see a territory change without constraint, it would be fascinating.”

  “You're welcome to come,” I automatically invited him. “I could probably use some instruction on just how to alter things.”

  “And that's the important part,” Luke nodded. “You need to practice until you get the feel of it. All you have to do is focus on something you want to change, say a tree or a lake or a couch, whatever, and then picture it as something else. Start small and when you have that down, you can work up to bigger things.”

  “Just visualize?” I lifted a brow. “It's like learning witchcraft.”

  “Well it's all magic,” Luke shrugged. “But you must be able to manipulate the energies that make up our realm before you can even contemplate going into the Void. Without the power to manipulate the Void, you could be lost there yourself.”

  “Okay,” I shared a concerned glance with Azrael. “I'll start practicing.”

  “When you're done with that,” Luke nodded in approval, “I'll teach you how to astral project.”

  “Astral project?” I admit, that surprised me a bit.

  “You don't think you can enter the Void of Souls with your body, do you?” Luke scoffed. “You'll need to leave it behind, like the demons do when they possess someone.”

  “Demons astral project into people?” I leaned forward towards him across the table.

  “Dad,” Azrael shook his head.

  “No, I'd like to know,” I patted Azrael's leg. “I had a recent conversation with Kirill and Trevor over demons and neither one knew for sure how possession worked. I'm curious.”

  “Well, come with me,” Luke got up and gestured that we should follow him from the room. “I'll show you.”

  Chapter Seven

  Luke led us out of his lavish dining room and down the hall. Then we went down some stairs to the basement. At the bottom of the stairs there was a door with a sign above it which read: The Repository. Luke opened the door and we walked in.

  Lighting was limited to a few dim lamps, they gave just enough light to see by but it was a warm light, welcoming and relaxing. The carpet was deep blue and very plush, the walls were dark wood paneling, and there was fabric draped across the ceiling in varying tones of blue. It was quiet, not a sound could be heard besides the light rasping of steady breaths.

  There were two rows of beds going down the length of the room. They looked very comfortable even though they were only twin sized. There were big fluffy pillows and thick comforters tucked in around the sleeping demons, making them look more like children in a boarding school. Everything was very peaceful.

  “What is this?” I whispered, not wanting to disturb the sleeping children- er- demons, as I walked a little further into the room.

  “This is where my friends sleep when they're inhabiting humans,” Luke followed me in. “They astrally project into the Human Realm and look for people who are open to possession. While they're gone, I look after their bodies.”

  “What's the purpose of possession?” I studied the relaxed bodies, clawed hands resting across scaled chests, barbed tails sticking out from beneath the covers. “And why stay in these forms? Surely it doesn't matter if they're astrally projecting themselves.”

  “There are several reasons for possession,” Luke sighed. “People expect it first of all, second, it keeps the myth alive. A lot of the gods have been forgotten but it's hard to forget there's a devil when your husband is possessed. It brings in a mass amount of energy and the demon who possesses the human collects the most of it, drawing directly on the energy of its host. As far as their demonic forms, it translates somehow and people can sense it.”

  “People expect it?” I looked from Luke to Azrael. “I have a feeling that means more than you're saying.”

  “We tried stopping once,” Azrael grimaced.

  “Demons started collapsing all over Hell,” Luke's face settled into hard lines. “It took us awhile to figure out that they were being taken against their will, pulled astrally into bodies of believers. The power of belief affects us so strongly, we must give humans what they expect or it will be taken forcibly and we won't be able to manage it into something a little more comfortable.”

  “Do they resent having to do this?” I looked around with new eyes.

  “Some do,” Luke nodded. “I can't blame them for their resentment and I can't fault them for finding joy in harassing humans because of it. Force someone to do something distasteful for long enough and they'll find a way to make it more palatable. We may not be human but we have the same emotions and very similar ways of dealing with them.”

  “Well, I think you've ruined all exorcism movies for me,” I gave a little laugh and Luke smiled sadly, looking so much like Azrael in that moment, that my heart jumped a bit. It was one thing to physically be the same but even faces that look alike can be very different, simply by the nuances of emotion that fills them. There's a reason why people say a corpse looks nothing like the person who once inhabited it. It's only a shell, it's the emotions of the soul that really comes through and animates the body, that's what we see when we look at someone, not their facial features. That serious look on Luke's face, sharp intelligence touched with sadness and a hint of hope, was pure Azrael, and now I knew where he'd got it from. “So you can teach me how to do this?”

  “Yes.” Luke's face broke free of the Azrael expression and became his own again. “It may take awhile but it shouldn't be a problem. Take a close look at them,” he waved a hand at the demons. “I want you to remember how peaceful they look. This is what you'll be striving for and this is the type of environment you'll want to be in when you attempt it. You must be someplace safe, someplace comfortable and soft on your senses but first, you have to learn to manipulate your territory.”

  “Right,” I nodded, “care to elaborate more on that?”

  “It helps to be in a meditative state for that as well,” Luke considered it. “It's been a long time since I've changed anything around here but come with me. I'll give it a try so you can see how it works.”

  “Great,” I followed him back up the stairs, Azrael bringing up the rear and closing the door behind us quietly, respectfully, and it occurred to me that these demons were probably like family to him. He must have grown up around all of that, seen it as normal.

  We went into the living room and Luke picked up a throw blanket off the back of the couch. He sat on the floor in front of the couch and cradled the blanket to his chest. I took a seat directly in front of him so I could watch his every move. He started moving slightly, back and forth, in the way that insane people sometimes do to comfort themselves. Back and forth, his face set in relaxation, until the blanket started to glow, brighter and brighter. It grew so bright that I had to look away and when I looked back, Luke was holding a beautiful white mink coat.

  “Damn,” I gasped and reached out to stroke the super soft fur. “That feels even silkier than mink.”

  “Bec
ause it's not mink,” Luke laughed and stood up.

  He helped me to my feet and then held the coat out to me, open so I could put it on. I grinned in delight and slipped into it, sighing. I turned to face him again, stroking the fur appreciatively. I'm an animal lover and I really don't approve of harvesting tons of tiny minks just to make them into a coat but I couldn't resist the softness. Wait, he said it wasn't mink.

  “What is it, if it's not mink?” I cocked my head at the Devil.

  “It's magic, Carus,” Azrael had taken a seat on the couch, his black wings cushioning and framing him in the shape of a heart.

  “No animals were hurt in the making of this coat,” Luke laughed.

  “What?” I twirled in it, appreciating it even more. “That's fantastic. I'd have learned how to do this years ago if I'd known that not only could I make clothes but I could make animal friendly fur.”

  “And leather,” Azrael grinned. “How do you think I get my leather pants?”

  “Oh, I love your leather pants so much more now,” I waggled my brows at him. “Leather! I can make my own hunting gear now! This is sweet!”

  “Well first you have to learn how to do it,” Luke gestured to the coat. “You can keep it if you like.”

  “Oh that's good because you were going to have to pry it off me,” I joked. “Thank you.”

  “You're welcome,” Luke nodded. “I never liked that blanket anyway. Didn't really go with the room. Now did you see how I entered a meditative state first?”

  “Yes, does the rocking help?” I took a seat beside Azrael and Luke sat in a chair on my other side.

  “For me it does,” he shrugged, “but use whatever means is helpful to get you into that state. You're a witch, right? You should have no problem with that part of it.”

  “Absolutely, it's the same technique I use to tap into the Aether when I'm working a spell.”

  “Exactly!” Luke motioned at me with his pointer finger. “That's the state you need. So think of it like working a spell, you visualize the result you want and then manifest it in the Aether.”

  “Yes, I project the image of it there and then the Aether will hopefully project it back into the Human Realm.”

  “So instead of projecting it into the Aether,” Azrael took over, “project your intent into the item you want to change.”

  “Hey, who's doing the explaining here?” Luke gave his son an irritated glare.

  “Sorry, Dad,” Azrael chuckled. “Go ahead.”

  “Well it's done now,” Luke huffed. “That's pretty much it. You push your intent into an object, seeing it as you want it to be in your head, and then superimpose that image over the item. If you're in your own territory, you are the equivalent of the Aether. You are the power fueling the territory. So whatever you tell an item to be, it shall be. As long as that item originated in the God Realm, preferably your territory. I mean, you can't bring in something from the Human Realm and transform it. Its basic construct is different. Which is why it's important for you to practice this. The Void is made of the same stuff that the God Realm is. Learn to manipulate matter in the God Realm and you'll be able to do so in the Void.”

  “Seems simple enough,” I nodded.

  “Ah, famous last words,” Luke shared a knowing grin with Az.

  Chapter Eight

  We left only after promising to visit again soon and to keep Luke updated on my efforts at meditation. He also agreed to give Salem some time off so he could visit the Faerie Realm. He said Salem could take all the time he wanted, no one was escaping Hell, but he didn't want us to tell Salem that and make him feel unnecessary. So we told Salem that Luke would find someone to cover for him until he returned and not to worry about it. He was ecstatic and went off immediately to pack. I must admit that I was curious over what a dragon would need to pack for a vacation but I didn't want to offend him by asking.

  “I should go back to Faerie and make sure it's okay that Salem visits,” I told Azrael as we walked up the stairs and into his home on the Southern side of Shehaquim, opposite from the entrance to Hell.

  “Yeah,” Az laughed, “you might want to take care of that before he shows up unannounced.”

  “I'll just be a minute,” I turned and gave him a quick kiss. “You don't mind, do you?”

  “Not at all,” he absently brushed my long hair over my shoulder.

  “Oh good,” I couldn't resist sliding into a hug. “Trevor and Kirill have been getting worried every time I leave.”

  “Why?”

  “They're concerned that something might happen to me and that they'd be powerless to help,” I shrugged. “I get it. I don't like feeling powerless either and I'm not just going to another realm, I'm going back in time. It doesn't get more unreachable than that.”

  “Not to make light of what Trevor or Kirill feel,” Azrael's wings slid around us so that it felt like we were in our own little world. “But that seems useless and a little silly to me. Life comes with risks. Even if you were a normal person, you'd take the chance of something bad happening to you everyday simply by breathing. Anything can happen anywhere at any time, and they can't be with you every minute. The Faerie Realm has nothing to do with it and neither does being in the past. Do they feel worried and powerless when you go to the store? Or go to your home in Hawaii to paint?”

  “No,” I said softly.

  “Then why should you being in Faerie be any different?”

  “Because when I'm in Faerie, I'm not even in the same time,” I tried to reason it out fairly. “If something bad happened, they wouldn't be able to get to me.”

  “But they would know immediately,” Azrael shook his head. “You return in mere moments. If you fail to do so, we know something went wrong and we can go into the Faerie Realm to find you. Plus, it's not like you're lacking protection there. I think you're actually safer in Faerie than you are in the Human Realm. Have they forgotten that the kelpie drowned you in Hawaii? Not only that but no one knew, no one was able to get to you in time. A lot of times, Carus, you have to save yourself and I have confidence in your ability to do so.”

  “You don't even know how wonderful it feels to hear someone say that,” I gave him another kiss, not because he deserved it, which he did, but because he made me feel like I deserved him. “Sometimes I wonder if everyone thinks I'm a powerless wuss.”

  “Trevor and Kirill are just letting their love, and possibly a little jealousy, blind them,” he shrugged.

  “You think they're jealous of Arach?”

  “Probably,” Az shrugged, “I am. Why wouldn't they be?”

  “You're jealous of Arach?” I gasped. “Why?”

  “You're married to him, for one,” Azrael sighed and his wings drooped. “I'm sorry, Carus. Forget I said anything.” He walked into the living room and settled onto one of the couches.

  “Oh hell no,” I followed him in. “Don't apologize. Tell me why you're jealous and how I can make this better for you.”

  “Really?” He watched me take a seat beside him.

  “Of course really,” I took his hand. Damn, had I been that blind? How did I not know my men were unhappy? Maybe I'd been too focused on finding Odin to see that there were other issues at hand. “Tell me, what else? Why are you jealous?”

  “He has you all to himself, all the time,” Az gave a self-deprecating laugh. “And now I've just asked for something I can't have, even if you offered it to me. I can't have you all the time, my work as the Angel of Death won't allow it, but still, I'm jealous that he has that from you.”

  “I understand,” I nodded as a thought occurred to me. “You know what? Maybe you can have it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “My ring,” I held up the hand with the thick gold band on it and the clear cabochon seemed to wink at us. “I could use it to spend more time alone with you. Kirill and Trevor are good at working out time alone with me but you and I have trouble sometimes, finding moments when we're both free for long periods.”


  “Right,” he frowned, his light blue eyes starting to show a bit of the diamond glimmer that comes through when he's focused... or excited. “But how would the ring help us?”

  “Okay, so I can only be in one place, in one realm at a time,” I tried to work it out. “But say we schedule a time, we'll use Fridays at five for an example, all I have to do is make sure Trevor and I or Kirill and I spend that time in the Human Realm together. Then, I can use the ring to go back to five o'clock in the God Realm... here and spend as long as I want with you. Then I go back to the exact moment I left the Human Realm and spend that same amount of time there.”

  “I can't believe I actually understood that,” Az laughed. “And even more unbelievable is I think it might work.”

  “Why wouldn't it?” I grinned. “Then you can have me as much as you want. Would that make you happier?”

  “Much,” he pulled me into his lap. “I should have told you about how I felt sooner.”

  “Yeah, you should have,” I sighed, “but I should have been paying more attention to you. If I had, I might have seen that you were unhappy.”

  “Not unhappy,” he kissed me gently. “Just unsatisfied.”

  “Well we can work on your satisfaction as soon as I return from Faerie.”

  “Really?” His eyes went fully diamond, casting light all over us.

  “You haven't seen my half-form yet,” I tapped his nose. “I thought maybe we could go flying again.”

  “I'd love to,” he grinned wickedly.

  “Okay then, it's a date.” I stood up. “I'll be right back.” I asked the ring to take me back to the last time I'd left Faerie.

  >O<

  I was back almost instantly, at least as far as Az was concerned, and I grinned to see him flinch. “Told you.”

  “That's very disconcerting,” he laughed and got to his feet. Then he took a better look at my face and his smile faded. “What is it? Did something happen in Faerie? They don't want Salem to visit?”