by J. P. Rice
This little episode showed that Dweezil had a softer side that we could exploit. If I could convince him that the people of Pittsburgh didn’t deserve to feel the fury of the Ice Monster, perhaps he would help me find the flute. I had to walk a fine line considering I was supposed to hate humans.
But if I could get the flute, I could call on the Morrigan to send a crow to deliver it to her, and then she could use it in Pittsburgh or give it to Mike Merlino to use. That would help, but it wouldn’t stop the never-ending winter of death. For that, I still needed to secure the Dagda’s Harp. An item I had yet to see on this visit.
With the Gallery on permanent lockdown, I still hadn’t figured out the exact plan of attack to secure that item. And with all this going on, I was being sent into a dangerous mission as a bulletproof vest. I had to think of a way to get Cheryl and myself out of it. If it came down to it, I had plenty of magical power to survive against anyone, but she would be helpless.
Girlfriends. Friendship. The Morrigan’s words of warning rang in my head. I was changing. My heart was getting softer and warmer, chiseling away the icy exterior. A few years ago, I would have said, ‘to hell with Cheryl’. Now I wanted to protect her and make sure no harm came her way. Perhaps my dragons were rekindling my maternal instincts.
I focused on the task at hand. My time at the Red Cavern had been unproductive to say the least. I wasn’t any closer to stealing the Dagda’s Harp than when I’d entered through the portal. In fact, with the Gallery being watched constantly, I was even further from achieving my goal.
Dweezil seemed ripe to turn on Bruceras. I needed to find out how I could use that to my advantage. And the revelation that Bruceras was ready to give up seemed like it was something that could come in handy. How could I use these pieces to solve my puzzle?
I wished an easy solution would emerge, but it was never easy. I’d normally solved mysteries as I went along, but time was running out. People were dying from the Ice Monster and the weather in general.
Perhaps I could get Dweezil to let me into the Gallery?
But first, I had to come up with a plan to get Cheryl and me out of going on the mission to reclaim the Devil’s Glove.
Later that night, I waited until Cheryl was snoring lightly to send a message. I pried open the skin on my wrist and held my thumb over the Raven’s Eye. A few seconds later, it glowed red. I tapped it three times to leave a message and moved my wrist closer to my face.
A computerized voice said, “Please record your message.”
“I’ve made contact with a ripe target,” I whispered. “I might be able to get the flute. But unless you can send any of your crows to get it, I’m not sure I can get it out of here. I’ll send more information when it becomes available. Junipher out.”
My head whipped around to make sure that Cheryl was still snoozing. Her snoring had quieted down, which was suspicious, but the rhythmic movement of her body indicated she was asleep. I still didn’t know what to make of her. I didn’t believe she was a down and out human. But I also hadn’t smelled any magic on her.
That meant one of two things. Either she didn’t know magic or she had such an advanced understanding that she could hide it. I’d been hiding mine so it wasn’t an insane stretch, but why had she struggled with a simple magic act to get into the Red Cavern?
I wanted to find out more about her but I also needed to remain focused on the main objective. How could I avoid being used as fodder on this mission to reclaim the Devil’s Glove?
Chapter 21
As we walked up the street under the cover of darkness, I realized we were close to Mike’s house. We continued up the road and a sinking feeling started to set in. Bruceras approached the house before Mike’s, and I prayed that he would take a right down the driveway. Instead, he walked right by it and continued up the slight incline.
Fook. Maybe we were going to the house past Mike’s. In this rural area, the houses were spread out, so going to the house after Mike’s seemed like a stretch. When Bruceras slowed down in front of the next driveway, everything hit me at once.
Bruceras had said that the demon had left the Red Cavern with a human. Mike had busted into the Red Cavern. But why would he leave with a demon? He’d never told me anything about his son, just that he had a son.
I didn’t want to attack Mike or his family. I considered him an ally. Why would Mike have a demon child living with him?
It also meant this wouldn’t be an easy victory. What if the Sphinx got involved? Or his pregnant girlfriend who looked like me? I couldn’t hurt them. My stomach knotted as Bruceras led the way up Mike’s driveway.
Of all the fookin’ houses in all of Pittsburgh, why this one? I looked over the assemblage of demons. Three devils, Dweezil and a Chieftain. Two normal humans to be used as sacrificial lambs. We were designed to slow down the enemy. While the enemy slaughtered us, the rest of the crew could plan their next move or evacuate.
Bruceras and Aka Manah led the way with the two other devils trailing them. I didn’t know much about Asmodeus or Astaroth other than a bit about their backgrounds. I’d never heard stories of their magical powers, so I didn’t know what they specialized in. Dweezil, Cheryl and I brought up the rear.
The two massive devils in front of me must have each been over eight feet tall. They were also wider than Bruceras, which was saying something. Reptilian skin covered their exposed hands and faces. The only difference was that Asmodeus was brownish-red and Astaroth was as dark as a midnight sky. They both wore leather dusters that matched Bruceras’s.
Cheryl, Dweezil and I were in our thermal suits. I had to hand it to the demons. Even with my fingertips and face exposed, I felt nice and toasty inside the skintight black suits.
As we continued toward the house with a few lights on at the end of the long gravel driveway, Bruceras drew fire to his right hand. I heard a dog barking and recognized the pitch belonged to Darkwing, Mike’s hellhound. Our stealth entrance had been blown.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“We’re not messing around,” Bruceras stated. “I’m going to set the house ablaze and then we can root through the ashes for the Glove.”
“Won’t it burn?” I asked, and Bruceras and his cronies laughed at me.
Bruceras quelled his sniggering and held up an open hand, demanding silence from his associates. They quieted down, and he said, “It will survive. Worry not.”
“What if they took the Glove somewhere else? Or if the authorities come to clean up the mess immediately and you can’t access the site?” I asked, but I wasn’t really sure if it was my place to get involved. In fact, I knew it was a bold move. “I think we need to take them alive until we get the Glove.”
“In your infinite wisdom, what would you suggest?” Bruceras asked, turning to his friends and thumbing toward me.
Oh, shit. I hadn’t expected him to turn it around on me. I pushed my nerves down and said, “No fire. That’ll just attract the authorities too. I think we need to surround the house and make sure nobody escapes. That way, we can get the Glove when they start talking.”
“If they don’t talk?” Aka Manah questioned.
What could I say that would appease them? “Execute one or two people and they will start to talk, I’m willing to bet.” I smiled cruelly.
“Starting to like this guy,” Bruceras said, gesturing with his head toward me. “We’ll surround the perimeter and I’ll rush in through the front door. It should only be a man, woman and child. The guy who lives here knows magic, so be ready.”
Did they know about the Sphinx? Did they know that Mike wasn’t someone to take lightly?
Maybe I could do this. At least, I tried to convince myself. We would be spread out around the entire house and it was a moonless night. I couldn’t flash too much magical skill, or the demons could kill me for being too powerful. That put me in quite a bind. If I held back some of my magical juice, I could die if a fight broke out.
Fook. The thought of
running crossed my mind. I could wait until the action started and then hightail it out of here. It would end the mission for the Dagda’s Harp, but it would get me out of this rotten situation. I wouldn’t be forced to kill people and creatures that I cared about.
I thought about Cheryl, who would be grossly outmatched by Mike or any of his friends. What had the Morrigan said about too many friends? They did cause serious problems as I was finding out first hand. I couldn’t believe the situation I found myself in. Fighting alongside my enemies against my allies.
The barking got louder as we neared his front yard. It was still coming from behind the house, but our cover had been blown. I wondered if Bruceras would set a new plan or just charge ahead like a battering ram. The devil wasn’t going to be able to bust through the front door.
And then the barking stopped with no rhyme or reason. The calm before the storm. I was anything but calm as my rubbery legs carried me into Mike’s front yard.
Using hand signals, Bruceras guided us to surround the house, placing me on the side of the house, next to Cheryl. I was glad I could keep an eye on her during the action. Bruceras put Aka Manah and Dweezil around back, Asmodeus on the opposite side of the house and Astaroth in the front yard.
When I thought about it more, Mike was severely overmatched. I could only assume that three devils and a Chieftain would be a force to reckon with. Unless Mike was holding a supernatural poker night, the Red Cavern would have the upper hand. Big time.
It wouldn’t be an easy win. But on paper, the demons were the favorites. My side of the house only had a few windows so it didn’t appear that it would be a major point of exit. I drifted toward the front of the house as Bruceras was getting ready to make his dramatic entrance.
Dweezil had been right. Bruceras had all but given up. This was one of the most half-assed plans I’d ever been associated with. Even his original plan to burn this mother down was full of flaws. He was expecting Mike to bow down to him and hand over one of the most powerful weapons in the world. Fat chance.
As soon as Bruceras’s boot hit the top step of Mike’s front porch, the door flew open and a ripple of darkness emerged through the opening. A wave of magic hit Bruceras, launching him backward. He sailed through the air, arms flailing, and landed on his back in the snow.
Chapter 22
In an instant, Mike was out the front door and on Bruceras, landing two powerful punches to the left cheek of the devil. More bodies poured out the front door. A tall, dark-skinned man was followed by the faerie named Alayna, who beat her beautiful wings and rose into the frosty air, expelling breath clouds as her head panned the area, trying to take stock of the situation.
“Help. Out front,” Astaroth yelled as he rushed toward Mike and Bruceras. The devil knocked Mike off Bruceras, then the tall black man engaged him in battle.
Aka Manah and Asmodeus rushed the front yard from opposite sides of the house, as I tried to stay off to the side. Aka Manah ran toward us and I assumed he was trying to help us. Instead, he grabbed Cheryl. Using her as a shield, he charged into battle. The Chieftain ran directly at Alayna, who was flying a few feet off the ground.
At the last second, he heaved Cheryl at Alayna, who reached back as glittery bits of golden magic circled her fist. Her little hand sprang forward and punched my new friend right above her eye. The impact jolted Cheryl to the side and she landed on her face in the snow.
Apparently, chivalry was dead. I hoped Cheryl hadn’t suffered the same result as her body lay motionless.
I turned back to the action and Bruceras was engaged with the tall man whom I didn’t know. Mike was tangling with Aka Manah. And Alayna, the overgrown pixie, was trying to hold off the two devils. Good. I hated Alayna and wouldn’t mind seeing her meet her demise.
Then the ground began to rumble and a hollow feeling centered in my gut. I turned to my right, and through the darkness, an angelic white glow streaked across the yard. Her wings started to beat and she took flight, rising quickly into the night sky. Dammit. I’d hoped Kovana wasn’t here.
A hellhound raced into the front yard from the opposite side of the house and entered the fray. The hound bit Bruceras’s leg and the devil howled in pain. The hound continued pestering the devil, and his opponent hit him with magic, knocking him backward.
I watched Bruceras struggling and kept my distance. After Aka Manah’s display of cowardice, I could see Bruceras tossing me to the other side to slow them down. Fireballs streaked across the lawn, lighting up the night and casting strange shadows on the snowy landscape.
I stood on my toes, ready to dodge an errant attack. As I checked out the action, I caught a bright pink light out of my peripheral vision. I whipped my head to the right. Not only had Cheryl made it back to her feet, but she held a compact ball of sparkling energy in her right hand.
Huh. I knew she’d been lying.
She was staring at Mike and Aka Manah and appeared to be aiming at the former. I was shocked that she would help the demon who had wronged her in so many ways. She seemed to be waiting for the perfect moment to launch her attack.
Mike and Aka Manah jostled with each other until the demon started to get the upper hand. He twisted Mike around, so his back was facing us. With the Chieftain blocking her target, I assumed Cheryl would wait until Mike came back into view.
I took a quick peek at the rest of the action and turned back to Cheryl. As I was standing behind her, I didn’t know if she knew I was there. The small woman made sure no one else was watching. Her right hand slung forward and she launched her attack.
The pink flames with silver particles streaking through them careened across the yard and made contact with her intended target. Aka Manah’s back. The feminine fireball crashed into his thermal suit and tore right through it, then it broke through his ribcage and burrowed into his chest cavity.
As the demon fell to his knees, the pink fireball busted through the front of his ribcage, exited his body, and grazed the top of Mike’s shoulder as it continued on its treacherous path. Aka Manah’s final screams were followed by his limp body collapsing into the snow. Buckets of black blood gushed from his ghastly wound, staining the snow below.
Mike grabbed his bleeding shoulder, but he looked like he would survive.
I turned back to Cheryl, who was nodding with her eyes narrowed and a vengeful grin on her face. My girl. Good for her. Good for her.
It hurt our cause. Sort of. I wasn’t used to wishing death upon the people I was fighting with.
When I turned back to the main attraction, all hell had broken loose. The hellhound kept disappearing in the dark shadows and reappearing just before he attacked. Darkwing reanimated right in front of Bruceras with his mouth wide open.
The animal sank his teeth into Bruceras’s calf. The devil bellowed into the night sky, then focused his attention on the hound. He dropped a closed fist that hit the hellhound right between the eyes. He stunned the hound, who backed away, then charged at him again.
This time Bruceras was ready. He lifted his foot back and booted the lunging hound on the side of the head. The animal flew through the air, spinning around like the propeller of a helicopter. Darkwing landed in the snow and didn’t move. As an animal lover, I wanted to set Bruceras on fire, but I would have to wait until later.
Cheryl and I had to jump into the fray at some point. The demons were busy enough that I’d bet they were unaware if we were even still alive. It wasn’t like they were going to call for us to help. As far as they knew, our magical skills were so limited, we wouldn’t be much help at all.
Mike ducked a fireball from Asmodeus and ignored it as it sailed by. Then it crashed through a window on his house and he whirled around, eyes wide. Another fireball hit the side of his house, sending wood splintering in every direction.
The flames stuck to the house, and like napalm, the fire ran slowly down the siding. First smoke billowed from the initial impact, then the fire started to spread.
Mike ran up to his
porch and screamed at the open door, “Get Dante and get out here now.”
Dante? My mind immediately went back to the waste dump at the Red Cavern. After Vlad the Impaler had come back to life, he’d warned me, “Hug the ground or Dante will kill you.”
Was Mike’s son named Dante? He’d never told me the boy’s name, but Dweezil had said that the child was a bugul. A full-fledged demon. Why did Mike have a demon at his house? I still wasn’t exactly sure what Vlad’s cryptic message about Dante meant, but I stashed it away in the memory bank for later.
I focused back on the insanity. Bruceras unleashed a wild right punch that connected on the chin of the tall black man. The impact lifted the human off his feet, his head snapped to the side violently and he fell face first into a pile of shoveled snow.
Mike rushed in to avenge his fallen comrade, engaging Bruceras in battle. Alayna and Kovana were pestering the two other devils. Aka Manah was dead, Mike’s friend was knocked out and the hellhound hadn’t moved in minutes. Cheryl and I stood on the sidelines, biding our time.
Three on three with two watchers. A large woman raced out the front door with her hair on fire. I’d seen my daughter’s hair do that before in the Red Cavern when we were practicing magic. I became mesmerized as she ran right at me. She ran slowly because of the pregnancy and I thought she was crazy for getting involved.
I wasn’t going to fight her, but I also wasn’t going to let her kick my ass. She heaved a wave of magic at us, but I saw it in plenty of time. Before it arrived, something blasted me in the shoulder, spinning me around. How had she camouflaged her magic?
Enough of this bullshit. I heard her heavy footsteps closing in over the grunting and cursing coming from the men. Even though she was running slow, she was so close that I didn’t have time to turn around. With my back to her, I planned to unleash a high leg kick and smash her in the nose to put a stop to this.
