Steel

Chapter 32

The moment my feet hit the asphalt, part of the street cracked open all the way down to where the multi-headed reptilian Demon was barreling towards Siena and I. I could smell the burning of buildings and bodies in the air, and white ashes had begun to fall from the sky. The Angels and Pledged mortal souls around Siena and I had all fled to the sides of the streets, not wanting to be caught up in a battle with upper Demons. I didn't blame them. This 30 foot tall Hydra looking shit wasn't exactly my cup of tea either.

But I was invigorated with the thrill of battle, with the sudden realization that yes, this was what I was designed for. So as I rose from my kneeling position, extending my wings out like an invitation, I couldn't help the sadistic grin that curled on my lips.

"Let's get this party started," I challenged, earning a masochistic chuckle from Siena as she whipped her sword around in her hand next to me. I pulled the sword Grey had given me from its sheath between my shoulder blades and tested its balance. Perfect, just as I remembered. I glanced briefly at the two jewels at its hilt, my eyes lingering on the darker of the two, trying to assure myself that Grey would be okay.

However, the attention-whore of a hydra interrupted my yearning with a snarl from one of its heads. The thing was covered in huge white scales, each of its eyes a bloody red. Hundreds of dagger-like teeth lined its jaws, with long winding necks descending from the heads to the stout body atop thick little legs.

"If this is anything like the Greek hydra, we can't cut off its heads. We have to go directly for the heart," I mumbled to Siena, who huffed impatiently.

"Great, do you happen to know the anatomy of the Greek hydra?" She shot back sarcastically with a roll of her eyes.

"Nope. Just stab everywhere below the neck and pray you hit something," I shrugged as we both charged forwards towards the beast.

It roared as it snapped a head down towards Siena, who rolled out of the way and sliced through its underbelly. It squealed in annoyance, directing three of its heads towards her and the other two to me. I met it's gaze, a little startled to find intelligent eyes staring back at me. One of the heads tilted slightly to the side, as if it were interested in me as well.

"You're the one he wants," a feminine voice hissed from the throat of the interested head. The way she spoke sounded entirely serpentine, and entirely too creepy for me to fuck around with.

"Yeah yeah, I get that a lot," I snapped back, earning a snarl from the interested head and sending the other head at me jaw open. I slammed my sword into the roof of that heads mouth, a sickening squeal erupting from its throat as I quickly yanked the blade out and leapt atop its head. The head thrashed back and forth in agony, and I held on tightly to a pair of bony horns that sat atop it. The other head snarled and swung towards me. Luckily, I saw it in time and leapt down the neck of the head I stood on, resulting in one of the heads biting the neck of the other. The beast thrashed it's heads in anger and confusion.

I landed on the back of the Demon, pressing my hands against the thick scales that lined its spine. I only had a few moments while the monster reoriented itself- I needed more time.

"Sie! Go for the left underbelly!" I shouted out blindly, unsure of where Siena actually was. However, the resounding roar from the Demon told me that she'd heard me.

I felt along the scales, trying to hone in my senses towards any sense of a heartbeat, like Grey had taught me to do when sympathizing. The Demon was full of thick muscle and fat, coiled like a taut rope. I continued searching until at last, beneath all of that blubber, I felt a slow thud thud underneath the left front leg.

That was all I needed to know. Quickly, I slid off the back of the Demon, quickly rolling out of the way of several snapping heads as I made my way over to where Siena was fighting.