Fallen (editing)

Chapter 29

I push open the door, the knife tucked under my shirt.
Dimitrio is sitting up in the rafters, his head tucked under his wings.
Pops is sitting at the dining table, sipping from a mug. He's wearing a ruffled shirt and trousers.
When I walk in, he turns around and smiles.
"We're going out to eat today."
I blink. "What?"
"We're gonna go to a restaurant to eat dinner today!"
He stands up and claps me on the back.
"C'mon son, you deserve a reward."
I grin. "Ok, sounds good."
Dimitrio ruffles his feathers and and swoops down.
"Leaving without me?"
I roll my eyes and he perches onto my shoulder. "We good?"
He bobs his head. "Yeah man."
Pops leads us out the apartment and down the street to a building suite.
Large chandeliers hang from the ceilings, red velvet coated the walls. Men walk by in suits and shirts like Pops'.
I shift on my feet. I feel underdressed in my hood and jeans.
Pops steps forward to a desk where a man stands, holding a binder.
Pops smiles. "Hi, I'm here for a reservation."
The man frowns. "Name?"
"Bernice."
"Table 13."
Pops nods his head and gestures toward a table near the back of the building.
I follow and Dimitrio flies slowly under tables over to where we're supposed to be sitting.
I plop down onto the velvet seat and pick up a thin book on the table.
I scan the lists of food and my mouth waters.
"Waiter!" Pops calls over the table.
A uniformed woman comes over with a notepad. "What would you like today?"
He lists off what he wants then turns to me. "What do you want, son?"
"Uh, I'll take the chicken Caesar salad."
She nods and walks away.
I slouch in my seat and Dimitrio hops down next to me.
"You're sharing that food, right?"
I roll my eyes and flick his beak.
"Fine."
I scan the tables around us. Men and women wear impressive suits, smiling and talking to each other.
I look over at the door, emblemed with gold designs on a wooden frame.
The door pushes open and an angry looking man walks through, dragging a woman behind him. His expensive suit is pressed and a dark blue.
Her black hair is pulled back into a tight bun. The woman glares at the people with harsh, black eyes. Her green dress is tight and bright against her pale skin, making it seem like her skin is glowing.
A girl with long blonde hair walks in next. The blue ends of her hair glimmer.
I squint and look at the girl's face. Ash.
Her face is completely blank and emotionless, almost lifeless.
A small girl holds her hand. Her pale hair shines in the light and she says something to Ash.
She bends down, smiling gently, and says something softly.
They follow the angry man and woman and sit at a table on the other side of the building.
I smile softly and look down at the table.
The waitress comes back, holding our dishes in a tray. I hungrily grab my dish, setting it down on the table. The waitress starts to smile-
A flash of light pierces the waitress' chest. She screams silently and more shafts of blistering heat split apart her body. Ghastly arms jut out of her torso, scraping against the floor.
Her legs rip away, showcasing a spider's mega-sized body. Her face contorts, huge fangs overtaking her mouth.
A huge spider with the woman's face stares back at me, huge pincers dripping acid.
Humans scream, pushing past each other to get out.
I lunge forward, pulling the knife free from under my shirt.
I hear Ash. "Sylt?"
I whirl on my feet, Dimitrio swooping over me.
The people run past me, pushing and shrieking.
The spider demon jumps forward, spitting acid from its mouth. It flips over onto its back and spinning webs shoot towards me.
I jump out of the way, slicing the air with the knife.
The webs fly past me, splashing against the wall. Steaming acid slides off the webs and into an outlet in the wall.
Sparks fly from the outlet, setting nearby tables on fire.
The humans scream outside the building, shrieking for everyone to come out of the building.
The spider demon runs towards me, gnashing its pincers.
They scrape my arm, acid burning it.
I grit my teeth. I can feel the tension of the people outside. The chaos flows into the building, suffocating as smoke.
I take a deep breath.
I feel their thoughts. Fire. Fire. DEATH. WE-DIE. WE NEED TO SURVIVE! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!!
Energy pumps through my lungs, making me stand straighter.
I grin wildly. Horns jut out of my skull, muscles building under my shirt.
My jacket tears, fraying in the fire.
I bare my fangs at the spider demon and lunge forward.
I grip the knife tightly and slice it at the demon.
It passes through it.
"ARE YOU DAMN SERIOUS?!"
I yell and stab the knife into the demon again.
It passes through it.
The demon spits acid at me and I spin out of the way.
I growl under my breath and kick forward, building energy in my foot.
I catch the spider in the stomach and it flips over.
It snarls and jumps back up. It jumps onto my chest, pinning me down with its legs.
I struggle under its grip, trying to push it off.
It leers at me, its pincers hovering over my face. Acid drips onto it.
I grit my teeth.
What the Djinn am I gonna do?
I try to draw more power from the people outside. The spider presses harder against my chest, making it hard to concentrate. The bruises already there scream in agony.
The acid on my face burns, a sick haze around my face. I suck in a breath and close my eyes, trying to concentrate.
A blur of black smashes into the spider, knocking it off me.
The black blur grins at me. "Miss me?"
My jaw drops open. "Damn, what happened to you?"
Dimitrio turns around. "Energy, bro."
Huge black feathered wings sprout from his back. His black hair is wild, the edges scraping his very human(like) neck. His black shirt and pants are stark against his pale skin.
He's holding a massive scythe, tipped with red. His arms and legs are wrapped in steel gloves and boots, glinting in the fire. His black eyes glitter, and he stares at the spider.
It lunges towards him and Dim flies out of reach, swinging the scythe at its head.
Black blood gushes out of its wound, steaming against the floor.
The panic of the people outside flows through me, power building up in my chest.
I lunge forward, smashing my fist against the spider's head.
I hear cracks and the spider staggers on its feet.
I punch it again, gripping the knife tightly.
Dim swoops down, slicing his scythe against the spider's stomach.
Energy builds up in my hands, burning where my hand touches the knife.
I grin and stab the spider's chest.
It lets out a scream, acid pouring out of its mouth. It froths and pools under its mouth like a waterfall.
Its figure flickers and goes see-through.
Its lets out a hiss, its spit hitting my face. "Your father says helllllooo."
The spider fades away, a puddle of steaming acid and soot left behind.
I take a deep breath and look at the knife.
Acid and black blood coat its blade, clumping in disgusting bubbles.
I wipe it away with what's left of my jacket, grimacing when it touches my arm.
The blade is glowing red.