A Dance Of Gods ✓

Preface

Blood flows freely from his face as he tries to inch away from me. The space is small and there are much faster ways to do these things but I've developed quite a large amount of patience these past six thousand years and the fucker deserves it.

I lick some of the red stuff from my left thumb, grimacing.

"Bitter-" I say to no one but myself. "Tell me something, why'd you do it?"

If he were smart, he'd confess right here and now.

"I...I...I....."

"Words please."

"I...."

"Let me spell it out then: You have two options here. Your first is to come to terms with the sick shit you did and burn for all eternity. Trust me when I say that is a cakewalk compared to the things that could happen to you here. I am a busy man- though I'm sure you've figured that out by now, and my demons usually do the torturing for me, but every now and then I stop in to perform my own special punishments for the worst of the worst. That would be you. I also have a good friend- my second in command; who would love to get her hands on someone like you and she would not give you the options I have-"

"NO!" He yells, reopening the wound on his neck. "Anybody but a woman... please oh god...."

"God will not help you here. Say the words." I grab him by the wrists and pull, using every bit of strength I have. Nerves, muscles and bones rip like the flesh around them, stretching out first. He screams. I smile. Being here, he has an endless blood supply he can lose without dying. Limbs grow back painfully and the fires in the pits do nothing but burn them forever- I made sure of that a few thousand years ago. The smell in that area is..... interesting to say the least. "Oh come on, don't be difficult. You and I both know this is nothing compared to what those poor girls went through."

"They were easy targets, what else was I supposed to do-"

  My sigh interrupts him. Now, his blood pools so much I leave footprints when I shift positions to lean over him so he has no choice but to look into my eyes .

  "You could have started with actually giving them the rides home you suggested. Not slipping GHB in their drinks and locking them in your basement for months."

  "What kind of stupid bitch takes a drink from a stranger anyways-"

  "One who is already drunk." I roll up my sleeves. "But we aren't big fans of victim blaming around here. I'm sure you've heard Lilith's story at one point or another. I can get her down here with a snap of my fingers if-"

  "NO! FINE!! I'LL..... I'll say it."

  "Jessi Saifullah. She was your first victim- so different from the others.Why?"

  "I'd known what I was going to do for a while.... just not who. I was sitting...."

  The monster has the nerve to pause as he talks through the pain he deserves.

  "I was sitting outside of her mosque in New York, no intention of doing it... that day. I was just.... picking up some chocolate covered dates for my pregnant sister at the market next to it and...decided to take the bus. When she walked out and sat as far away from me on the bench as possible it was almost instant. She was just so beautiful.... anyways I didn't realize for weeks because of how loose her clothing was but she was also pregnant. I spent hours watching her and her husband sleep every night through their security cams. I'd try my hardest to get injured as often as possible- She worked sixteen hours a day four times a week in an ER. Near the end of her pregnancy she did start normal hours so.... I quit and went through certification to become a patient care assistant. By the time I graduated her maternity leave was up and I'd killed the other candidate to make sure I'd get the position closest to her. We would talk platonically at work but it...." His face contorts in pain again as I kick his chest.

There's so much more I could do to him- but she'd be pissed if I didn't save the best part for her.

"I didn't give you my fucking permission to stop talking." I casually pick dried blood from under my nails, laughing at his expressions. He can't seriously be acting like the victim.

"It.... it wasn't enough. I made plans for months but... I didn't have the guts to carry any of them out-"

"Until you did." I raise an eyebrow, my hold on him strong.

"Until I did. She almost always took an Uber with a female driver or the sub at that point- said most of the men who took buses constantly looked like they were gonna hate-crime her. The outside security cams were down for maintenance and... oh it was just so perfect! It was dark, we were just about the last two people to leave for the night and.... well I just did it and we could finally be together... uninterrupted. The basement was soundproof but I did end up having to kill her when she came close to escaping. I settled on drunk women after that because they were easier to deal with."

  As he finishes his story, the pain fades back in. Confusion washes over him and he looks at me like I'm the crazy one. I open my mouth to say something - but don't get a single word out before the dominant, feminine voice interrupts.

  She is the only demon that can say Lucifer himself listens to her. Part of it is her beauty, yes; but because of what she went through near the beginning of her life she has a useful perspective on everything.

  "I'll take care of this one, Lucy." She places a hand on my shoulder. "Michael wants to see you. He said there's been a problem on one of the earths that requires your attention."

  "Since when were the earths our problem- wait a minute is he here?!" She hesitates for the first time in a few hundred years. "Lilith? What happened?"

  "Just... go talk to him."

"Fine." I sigh. "If this is a waste of time-"

  "It's not. Now go-" She smirks. "I'm sure we could both carve out some free time after you deal with the problem."

  So I leave her alone with just one of the countless monsters doomed to spend eternity in the torture chambers. Outside, I pause for just a second. His scream sticks out above the rest.

  I extend my wings and think of the castle.