Ethereal - Part One

Chapter 19 - Demon Nest

Adaeon, Thoren and I flew, circling the same area where the demons had attacked us yesterday. After Mira had been infected and fell from my grasp, my main mission was to get her home, but Adaeon, Zeir and Torrin had continued to chase the demons. A fee of them split, so Zeir and Torrin followed them to a beach in a neighboring city , while Adaeon followed the smaller group deeper into the forest.

The den was deep into the Gatrim woods, and a good distance from where Ryelen’s cabin was situated. As we flew closer to the den, I decreased my pace. It was important that no other mortal was around. Kazier reminded us earlier that the mortals often liked running through the woods for an early morning training session. Those mortals did not need to spot or fall prey to any demons.

Unlike us fallen, or even angels, the demons could not glamour themselves to look normal in any kind of way. So having a mortal see them would be – in simple terms – disastrous. I looked to my fallen brothers and signalled to Adaeon and Thoren that we should land.

Adaeon took the first position on the ground, landing against a tree and quickly closed his wings. “It is fairly early, Mammon’s demons will be exhausted from yesterday’s activities, but not the demons of Asmodeus” I reminded them and Thoren nodded his head, settling down on the ground before me after folding his wings.

“The demons of lust are a nightmare to kill, but it will be done” Thoren said. “So, we kill them first and get them out of the way. Mammon’s demons will be too weak to do anything and will not pose a threat to us” Adaeon suggested and we agreed with his plan.

We stepped nearer to where Adaeon had told us they had seen the den. The air was cold and slightly thick with fog, but our destination was clear and close. Between two large oak trees was a darkened pit. The sand surrounding the hole was charred to molten black, with trails of a dark grey thick, acrid liquid – the blood of an injured demon.

“Come on” I urged and crawled down the tunnel, Thoren and Adaeon following closely behind. The tunnel was narrow and dark, barely affording me with any movement as I made my way further inside. I could hear the creatures snarling in the distance and tried to move as quick as I could manage.

As I neared the wider opening of the end of the tunnel, the demons of Asmodeus flew straight into me, attacking at my face with their claws. I gripped my weapon tighter and swung at them, managing to strike two of them across their bellies. That horrible rancid smell filled the air from their blood and I contorted my face in disgust.

One other demon scratched the length of my arm and I sucked the air through my teeth from the pain. But I barely had any time to recover as the demons continued to attack me with rigor. I could feel Adaeon’s arms at my side, trying to poke through with his swords to injure the beasts before me.

I used my uninjured arm to slice the creatures before me and moved forward so that I could enter the den properly. Their underground lair was spacious, and filled with both Asmodeus’ demons and Mammon’s. The demons who followed Mammon were taking rest, as we had assumed.

I stood my ground and felt Adaeon and Thoren stand at my side as we faced the oncoming creatures. Two of them targeted Thoren, another five coming towards Adaeon. I sliced the wings off one of the creatures that flapped above Adaeon’s head while stabbing another one that appeared before me. “Be careful of their tails!” Adaeon warned Thoren as one tried to sting him with his tail. The demon shrieked out as Thoren cut off his tail and kicked him across the den.

Another two left Adaeon’s side and came my way. I immediately struck at the one, giving the other an opportunity to further endanger myself. I hissed out in pain as the demon clawed at my injured arm. Thoren noticed what was happening and stepped in front of me, allowing himself to get struck on the back instead.

Within an instant, I pushed him to the side with such force that he stumbled to the ground, the demon that was on his back, crushing with Thoren’s weight. Another damned creature flew straight into my face, snarling menacingly as it clung onto my hair, about to take a chunk out of my face. I gritted my teeth together and stabbed my weapon into his belly.

The demon cried out in agony, but I noticed something different in his eyes,  compared to the rest of the demons of Asmodeus. Where the other demons of lust usually had black beady eyes, this one in particular had large red glowing eyes.

I took a closer look at my fallen brothers while they were fighting off the last few of Asmodeus’ followers and then at the creature I held in my hand and then scoffed out loud. “Hello, Asmodeus, decided to check in with your creatures and see how badly they were losing?”.

Adaeon and Thoren both looked my way, laughing and shaking their heads. “Tell me this Azriel, how is the pretty little mortal doing?” Asmodeus conveyed through the means of the injured demon. “Do not dare speak of her!”. “Why so much anger, Wrath?” Asmodeus called me by the very reason I was cursed and thrown out of heaven, the audacity this greater demon had was unnerving.

“You want to know what she dreamt of, or rather of whom? Whose name she moaned in her slumber? Which faltering Fallen brother of yours has had a marking effect on her?”. My hands reflexively tightened around the demon’s neck, as Asmodeus reverberated a deep and rambunctious laugh. 

“You will say no more, demon!”. “I do not need to say any more, our actions will be enough answer to you”. My ears pricked up at the word ours. We already knew the greater demons were working together, but we did not know why.

“What have you gained by working together?”. “Something far more valuable than you could ever imagine. Do me a favour, Wrath? Give my love to the mortal”. And with that, the glowing eyes of the demon in my grasp, died out, the creature following after.

I tossed the dead demon aside and cursed in anger. I felt a hand on my shoulder and heard Adaeon. “Let us kill the rest and leave from here”. I nodded my head at him and continued further into the depths of the demon nest, two grenades in hand.