Treachery : book 2 of Codex Elysium

Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Present time: Midgard

Lucifer was beyond exhausted, she stood soaking wet and wearing nothing but her underwear. Water dripped off her and pooled at her feet. Smashed glass surrounded her and some of it had cut her feet but she didn't notice. The princess of hell was looking down at the body of the shop keeper that lay before her. His head had been twisted almost one hundred and eighty degrees. What have I done?

Lucifer had flown nonstop from Nidavellir to Midgard. It was not a short Journey and had left her so exhausted that she could barely stand. Worse, she had a raging to fly through and there was no place in the world sea to land and rest. As her journey had become more perilous and tiring, Lucifer had been forced to first discard all her battle gear and them her clothes. Trying to reduce the weight as much as she could. She hadn't minding losing the armour, there was something oddly satisfying in watching the crimson pieces dropping deep into the world sea below, never to be found again.

The whole time, her destination was this very shop, she was fascinated by it. A sports shop that had a specialist section for hunting. Lucifer didn't know what the mortals were meant to be hunting but the shop contained all the vital supplies she would need.

The storm had raged relentlessly across Midgard, by the time Lucifer reached Glevum city she was truly spent. She had been aiming for the shops doorway but a strong gust of wind had caught her and she was too tired to fight against it and control her landing. The princess of Hell ended up crashing through the window instead.

To say that the shop keeper had been surprised would be the understatement of the century. As Lucifer wearily rose to her feet, the man began to panic and began shouting about how the angel of death had come to claim him. Lucifer had tried to calm him down, she had insisted that she was here to kill him and that she certainly wasn't the angel of death. The man just wouldn't listen, he kept going on about how it wasn't his time yet, he was too young to die, and there was so many things he still had to do. He swore that he would become a better person, he would learn the bible word for word if she would only spare his life.

To say that Lucifer was tired, irritated, desperate and completely out of patents would even come close to describe how the princess was feeling. It wasn't even the begging and pleading which pushed her over the edge. It was the look in the shop keeper's eyes. Even though he was fearing for his life and begging not to be killed. He still found time to allow his eyes to roam over the princess's wet and slender body. They way those eyes greedily took in every detail of her body was the final straw. Lucifer saw red and her anger flashed. Before she could even think about what she was doing, the shop keeper was already dead at her feet. The irony wasn't lost on her as she stepped over the body and moved deeper into the shop.

Lucifer selected a pair of cargo pants from the rail and slipped into them, they in a camouflaged style and had multiple pockets that would be very handy. She picked out a black long sleeved top and made some alterations with a sharp knife. She cut two long slits down the back of the top to allow her wings to pass through. There was no use in trying to be subtle or hiding now. She was an outcast, Satan would banish her as soon as he learnt of what she had done. She walked over to a glass cabinet that displayed a large selection of hunting knives. Looking at the size of some of the blades, Lucifer again wondered what the mortals thought they would be hunting. She selected two particularly long and vicious looking ones, she strapped their sheaths to either thigh and then slid the blades home. On the back wall she found two even longer blades that could almost pass for swords, these went on either hip. Lucifer tied her wet hair back in a simple pony tail and then went over to a mirror to check out her reflection. She barely recognised herself. The huge bruise on her cheek and jaw was a horrible sight, dark circles under her eyes. Now she could see why Jason had been looking at her with such pity. She was naturally pale skinned but now she looked deathly white, enhancing her bruises even more. The wound across her chest throbbed and reminded her of her final encounter with Jason. It wasn't deep or fatal, her armour had taken the worst of the blow but it would probably leave a scar. It same with the wound in her thigh, although it did leave her limping slightly. She thought back to how as soon as Jason realised who she was, he had stopped fighting. What if she had revealed herself straight away? Would they have fought at all? Why didn't he strike? Did he like her? Did he just feel sorry for her?

Lucifer continued to muse on that as she pulled on a pair of black combat boots. She thought about Jason's strange gold ringed eyes. She had once known another man with eyes just like that. Was it possible that the two of them were related? She shook the thoughts off. Now wasn't the time for these thoughts. She needed a plan.

The golden light still continued to burn like a fire inside her, her heart and mind were still consumed by it. Again that name came to mind. Omael. What have you done? The princess of Hell began concealing more blades about her person then paused a she thought. No, I am no longer a princess of Hell. The realisation was both freeing and disturbing. She could never return to Helheim. She was an outcast now, on the run with no home. Satan would never stop hunting her. He would send beasts and demons after her, she would get no rest. Did he know yet? She was convinced that the demon commander was somehow communicating with Satan during the battle. How much of a head start did she have? Lucifer was unaware that the Demon commander was actually Satan in disguise, she didn't know that she had less of a lead than she thought or that Satan had already began hunting her.

As she continued to gather supplies and turn herself into a one woman army, a hunting bow caught her eye. She took it and a couple of quivers of arrows. Of course carrying it was going to be problematic. Her wings didn't make it easy to carry stuff on her back. Satan's cold mocking voice filled her mind. "See, you should've cut them off just like I did. You wouldn't have these problems then"

"NO! Never!"

Lucifer's voice rang out through the empty shop. Why did she answer that? Satan wasn't here. She was clearly way too tired and not thinking straight. She gathered up the last of her supplies then made her way back to the broken window. She didn't even spare a glance for the dead shop keeper.

Outside it was still lashing down with rain, the wind howled through the empty street. Lucifer made to leave the shop but then froze in mid-step as she realised that the street wasn't empty.