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The Codex: An Angel's Guide To Seducing A Human

Page 22

by Joe Duck


  The Codex tsked, and her pages vibrated, jolting me. Remember that letter filled with flattery and undying declarations of love? You know... the one that called her the 'gentlest soul'? That’s probably from him. Face it, Narius. The way they hugged each other proves that they have been together for years. In fact, I'm sure she prefers someone with a bit of experience over someone so inexperienced like you. Look! They even wear similar clothes like a couple.

  I clenched my fists at the thought of her leaving me for him. But I can get experience! What... what should I do?

  Hmm… if you want to win her back, you should prove to her how much she means to you.

  How?

  The Codex sniggered then exited my mind without answering. Left to my own devices, I thought hard for a way to bring Emily back to me. Then I remembered what she had made me promise earlier, and a brilliant idea formed.

  I walked up to Emily and tapped her on the shoulder.

  Her black hair swished as she turned to face me, and she held up her hand. "What? Hold on a second Narius, I'm—"

  I pulled Emily towards me. Her lips met mine, and I enjoyed the soft sensation. She let out a muffled cry but didn't pull away, choosing to close her eyes instead. I squeezed her in my arms and covered her with my wings. When I pulled away from the kiss, I growled at the wide-eyed man.

  "An angel? Here?"

  I snorted at his attempt to distract me. "Emily's mine! Shoo!"

  The surprise in his eyes evaporated, replaced by burning rage. His fists clenched, cracking the vial. "What the hell are you doing to my sister?"

  I tilted my head. “Who?”

  Narius

  After Emily calmed her brother, she stuck her head out into the hallway and ordered a passing manservant to bring us three cups full of liquid that smelled like roses.

  Once we were all settled in our seats, Nathen grinned. "Sorry. I just never expected something like that to happen."

  Emily took a sip from her cup and let out a satisfied breath. She placed her glass down onto the table next to the poisoned pigeon who lay on its side, belching violet bubbles.

  Unwilling to watch it suffer, I placed my hand against the creature and healed it. The pigeon cooed its thanks, flapped its tiny wings and flew towards freedom, only to smash into the window and crash back onto the table.

  You know, the Codex said, now that I think about it, the two of them do look like brother and sister. Funny how "we" didn't notice that.

  I glanced at the Codex, slightly disappointed with her. I am not listening to you until dinner.

  Emily raised her eyebrow at me just as the Codex replied. Then you did not hear it from me that they might be performing incest.

  Incest?

  That's when a brother and a sister get together and do naughty things.

  Naughty things? Why would Emily do that?

  The Codex snorted. If you don't believe me, rip open Emily's shirt and see how he reacts to it.

  What?

  Do it!

  But if I do that Emily might get mad.

  Emily poked my cheek and made me twitch. "Narius? Are you all right?"

  I grabbed hold of her hands and made her look me in the eye. "You're not doing naughty things with your brother, right? Like holding hands in a special way to make a baby?"

  Emily scowled and struck me in the head. "What's wrong with you?"

  Grasping my head, I moaned. "But the Codex said that you might be lovers of some kind."

  Emily slapped her hand against her forehead and sighed. "You are dumber than a brick, aren't you? Don't listen to her if she is telling you something weird."

  Nathen coughed into his fist. "So! Emily, you finally met someone you like." He faced me and smiled. "Did you know she scared away all potential suitors after she beat up a Baron's son because she thought he was trying to steal her coin purse? Such a shame. He was only picking it up after she dropped it."

  Emily winced. "I really thought he was a thief."

  "Needless to say, after that little incident, no one ever went near her. Of course, as her loving brother, I sent her kind-hearted letters to encourage her to find someone and escape her fortress of solitude—"

  Emily swung her staff against Nathen's head.

  The wood struck true and hard, but he continued as if nothing had happened. "Anyway, I knew that praying to the gods would work one day. But who knew they would answer a prayer so literally when I asked for an angel to save her?"

  "Stop!" she hollered, her fists planted firmly against the table and her face completely crimson.

  Nathen laughed and waved his hand in dismissal. "So, tell me. How did the two of you meet?"

  Emily sank back into the seat and cleared her throat. She held her cup with both of her hands, the edges of the glass frosting as she spoke. "We met in a rose garden, on a warm sunny day. I was just taking a break from my travels to get rid of the dragon and decided to pick some flowers, thinking about how I could help the world with my kindness. Then, Narius appeared, his dark, chestnut hair swaying with the wind. He looked at me with his brown eyes. Closing his pristine white wings, he descended to the ground, his armor glowing in the sunlight. He grasped my hand and flashed me his perfect teeth. 'By the gods,' he said, 'You are the most stunning creature I have ever seen. Even the flowers here pale against your beauty.'"

  I tilted my head, wondering what she was talking about, while Nathen raised an eyebrow and sipped his drink.

  Emily continued, "'I am enchanted by your gorgeous eyes and the curves of your form. Will you let me be in your heart for all eternity?'

  "To which I answered, 'Thank you for your kind words, but alas, I am just a simple girl looking for a special someone to—'"

  Nathen raised his hand, his face calm. "Stop. Narius, what really happened?"

  Thinking back on our first encounter, I answered, "She helped me get my butt out of a hole then forced me to draw a naked picture of her while wearing all her clothes."

  Nathen closed his eyes and sighed, then started to laugh like someone who had found one of the funny books in the library. He continued until a pained expression flashed across his face. "This is too much," he said, struggling to catch his breath.

  Emily paled, and her mouth widened. She waved her hands wildly and spoke rapidly. "W-well... that could be how it all started. But then, after some introduction, he said, 'I cannot let a young, attractive, virgin maiden go fight a dragon. I do not want those pretty azure eyes to lose their innocence—'"

  Nathen let out a long breath and regained his composure. "Really? I think you tricked him into helping because you were too scared to go fight the dragon by yourself."

  Panic blossomed on her face. "No! He didn't help me at all. I did all the work."

  He crossed his legs and smirked. “Interesting. That's not what Pannaxx told me."

  I edged forward on my seat. "Pannaxx?"

  Nathen nodded. "A week ago, a dragon came into the city carrying a wagon full of gold, demanding that he be led to a bank to make a deposit. But, long story short, the dragon, calling himself Pannaxx, got hired on the spot to guard a vault for a meal and a pile of gold to sit on. People asked him questions, and he explained that an angel, accompanying a rude little girl who did nothing but try to kill him—" Nathen pointed at Emily. "—convinced him to get a job.”

  He flicked the tip of his nose. "Speaking of which, quite a brain on that one. He managed to convince the banks to store the majority of their wealth in a single bank with him guarding. He claimed that it would ensure its safety from any burglars and be an effective marketing campaign to convince people that the banks are a much safer spot to store money than their mattresses."

  "Really?" Emily asked, sipping her tea. "A dragon guarding all of the city's wealth?"

  "Most of the time, anyways. Sometimes he leaves the vault to give rides to those willing to pay him decently." Nathen stared at the ceiling. "I do wonder what that feels like." He gave Emily a smug look. "Of course, I'm sure you
already know. Probably the first thing you did since meeting Narius was to ask him to carry you like a princess through the air. How was it? Did you giggle and bat your eyes at him?"

  I shook my head. "She puked. Then fell face-first into it."

  Emily turned scarlet and covered my mouth with her hand. "Quiet, parrot."

  Nathen gave Emily a stern look and wagged his finger. “You should be glad someone decided to court you. Mother and Father were quite worried that no one would ever have the courage.”

  I pried at Emily's arms and shook her fingers loose. “But Emily said there was a line of humans waiting to be her mate.”

  Nathen edged forward, placed the palms of his hands together and tapped his fingers. "Interesting. Go on.”

  "It's true." I bobbed my head. "She also said she could seduce hundreds of men without a problem.”

  He covered his mouth, suppressing a laugh. “Someone thinks highly of herself.”

  Emily tried to say something, but Nathen raised his finger again. "But I am getting sidetracked. Narius, what's an angel doing travelling with my sister?”

  "She's helping me search for the Grimoire."

  "Grimoire?"

  "It's a demonic book that I need to destroy to prevent a demon from being freed."

  "I see. Well, I'm sure you will do a great job of preventing it, but..." He squinted. “Demonic books aside, I wonder why Emily decided to help you. Did you offer a mountain of gold or some holy artifact?”

  I scratched the side of my head. “Well, we made promises.”

  “Promises?”

  "Well... the one we made yesterday was that Emily is the only one I can—"

  Emily banged her hands against the table, spilling the flower smelling water from my cup. "Nothing important. I get paid. That's it."

  Nathen frowned. “Is that why you are here? To search for the book?"

  I nodded. "An elf carrying half of the Grimoire was headed to the city."

  Nathen leaned back and tapped his finger against the side of his seat. "It's possible. That book's fragment is this season's prize in the arena."

  I bobbed my head. "Emily mentioned something about that place before. What happens there exactly?"

  “Something? She never explained to you about our capital’s greatest tourist attraction?” Nathen rested his hand on his brow and shook his head. He looked at Emily and said, “Let me guess. Too busy trying to rub your face against his wings and have your way with him?”

  Emily let out an adorable laugh. Her lips moved up into a smile, but her eyes were filled with rage as she gripped her staff. I couldn't understand why, so I laughed as well, hoping I didn't miss out on a joke.

  She rewarded me by smacking me in the head.

  Narius

  Shortly after finishing our drink with Nathen, Emily led me through the busy streets of the capital city and to a giant circular structure of arches from which the sound of cheering leaked out. Once inside, we navigated the maze of corridors until we arrived in front of a door with a small picture of a silver-lined cloud drawn onto it.

  “Emily, what's behind the door?” I asked.

  She laid her hand on her hip and grinned. “The guild balcony, and, with everyone so busy, it'll just be the two of us watching the game in there.”

  Producing a small metal key from her pouch, she opened the door and pulled me through, dragging me onto one of the balcony's cushioned benches.

  Tearing my eyes away from her beautiful face, I studied the circular stadium. It was packed with humans, shouting towards the ground where a few dozen of them waited by one of the two massive gates. Some of the people on the ring were young, others were old, but they all glanced at each other nervously.

  “There it is,” Emily muttered.

  I followed her gaze to the center of the Arena. There, the missing half of the Grimoire was trapped inside a glass dome, black smoke swelling against the glass, trying to break out.

  Just as I was wondering if I could smash the glass and take the remnants of the book, a man’s voice echoed through the stadium. “Remember, folks: this is a clean-up match to pick the cream of the crop. The last few standing will be qualified to enter the tournament with the rest of our worthy contestants. Let the game begin!"

  The crowd screeched with excitement, and over the clamor came the roar of a beast from the arena. I looked down and saw a huge grey-skinned creature, easily five times taller than me, emerging from the gate across from the cluster of humans.

  The troll appeared identical to what I had imagined from the books: a scaly beast without any hair and stubby legs that supported a larger upper frame. It also made me wonder why any human would want to drink its milk. The creature picked his nose, then rubbed his mucus-covered finger against the wall of the Arena. Immediately, the transparent protection spell on the walls made a ripple of energy and disintegrated the booger.

  “And now a round of applause for our brave entry level contestants!”

  "What?" I gripped my seat, my stomach growing uneasy. "They are going to fight? I thought they were here to play a game."

  The troll grinned, revealing rows of rotting teeth. He stomped towards the cowering figures, stirring up a small cloud of sand with each step.

  The humans, huddling together for safety, looked like a small pile of books next to a giant grey tree.

  Three humans broke away and tried to skirt around the troll. Light reflected off their armor and weapons as they ran towards it. The troll took a swipe at them. Two of the humans disappeared from sight, then reappeared, crashing against the Arena wall and coloring the sand red.

  The beast reached out and closed his fist around the last of the trio. His victim slashed his sword against the troll’s fingers, only for it to bounce off the skin. The creature laughed and tightened his fist. The human screamed until a red mist exploded out from the troll's grasp and silenced the cry.

  The troll smiled and opened his blood-drenched hand. Hunks of flesh escaped his fingers and plopped against the sand.

  The spectators roared with delight.

  What is wrong with them? I gazed at the happy spectators around me. Not a single horrified face could be seen. “This... this is crazy. I... I feel sick.”

  “To them, it's entertainment,” Emily said, holding onto a brown bag that seemed to have materialized out of nowhere. "I didn't know it would be this bad today. Narius, I think you should close your eyes and wait until it's over. There's nothing we can do."

  I summoned my halberd and spread my wings. “We need to put a stop to this, right now.”

  Emily grasped my hand firmly. “No. Not if you want to see that half of the Grimoire again.”

  "What? What does the book have to do with anything?"

  "It's the prize for winning the tournament. If you ruin the qualifier, you won't be able to set foot in the Arena ever again, let alone reach the book."

  Before I could tell her how wrong she was, the contestants ran to the gate behind them and pounded on it. "Get us out of here! This is insane!" one of them shouted. "We can't fight a monster like that!"

  The gate remained closed. Some of the humans sank to the ground and watched the troll lick his bloodied hand. Others slammed against the gate even harder, screaming curses or pleading for their lives.

  The onlookers booed, and, perhaps encouraged by the sound, the troll swept his hand through the group of humans. He knocked down several of them, sent a few flying, then grabbed a young female.

  She shrieked. Her screaming unnerved me, but my promise to accomplish my duty held me back. If I don't save her, will someone else step up? Emily tightened her grip on my hand, and, for a moment, I saw an image of her in place of the woman. Everything became clear.

  I brushed Emily's hand aside. “I’ll get the book some other way.”

  Emily latched onto my arm and held me in place. “This isn't easy for me either! I don't want to see them die, but if you interfere in a fight you will get banned... wait... if you can't get the..
." She frowned for a moment then nodded. "No. Narius, you are right. You should go. I won't stop you."

  Confused by her sudden change in heart, I returned my eyes to the coliseum's floor and readied myself for flight, only to see a familiar figure there.

  A male human, wearing richly-decorated, bright white clothes, stood on the troll’s arm. It was the prince who had made the rude comments to Princess Yuriana. His blade sunk into the grey skin of the troll and created a small fountain of purple blood.

  The troll howled and dropped the woman.

  Emily bit her lip before muttering, "At least everyone is going to be safe from the troll."

  "At least?" I wanted to ask more, but, at that instant, the prince pulled his blade from the grey skin and ran up the troll’s arm.

  Alarm flashed across the creature’s face. He slapped at the intruder but missed. He tried to back away, but it was too late.

  Prince Kale jumped onto the troll’s shoulder and plunged his blade into the troll’s left eye.

  The beast screamed, rumbling the ground with his cry and forcing me to cover my ears.

  Appearing immune to the noise, Kale pulled his weapon out and dropped to the ground. Meanwhile, the troll grabbed his bleeding eye socket and stumbled back across the Arena, crashing against the wall and slumping to the ground.

  Safe for the moment, the prince sheathed his blade and rushed towards the female lying on the ground. He got down on one knee and offered his hand. The spectators applauded as he brought her to her feet, unconcerned about the injured troll.

  Kale said something to the women, but before she could respond, the troll roared.

  The sound deafened every other sound in the stadium. Removing his hand from his bleeding eye, the troll rose to his feet and burst into a sprint towards the prince, creating a sandstorm with every pounding step.

  Seemingly unfazed by his impending death, the prince sent the maiden away and calmly drew his blade. The edge of it glowed white with magic that looked and felt more familiar than the magic humans used. Though I did not like the man, I silently prayed for the prince, hoping that he would save the rest of the humans.

 

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