“Yes.” I half-moaned as she stroked along my length with one hand. “I want it all. Everything.” I shut my eyes as a wave of pleasure wracked me. “Give it to me.”
“Give it to you?” she asked, and when I opened my eyes, I found her staring at me curiously. “I will give you nothing.” She released me, and stepped away, causing her hard nipples to cut through the air. “Real men take what they want. They do not ask for it to be given.” Her stupid smile was back again. The one that she wore when she played me.
“Is this where you ask if I’m a real man?” I quirked an eyebrow at her as I moved forward, grabbing her by the shoulders. She didn’t struggle, but even if she had, it wouldn’t have mattered. I was so much stronger than her it was a joke.
“Perhaps.” She stared up into my eyes. “But what I offer may be too much for even you. Dred could not do what I wanted, and you fear him.”
“I fear no one.” I met her eyes, and as I did, I saw something dark and angry surge behind them.
“You are a liar.” She looked me up and down. “And you’re not going to take me right here, anyway.” She nodded toward my hands where I gripped her. “We both know you won’t.”
“Why is that?” I asked.
“Because we have more important things to do now.” She smiled at me. “I know how your mind works. You can fuck me right now. I can’t stop you.” She smiled. “Hell, I actually want you to do it. I want to ride your length, have you show me what a man like you can do to a woman like me.” She licked her lips, and the motion made my heart nearly explode with need. “I crave it, Arthur, but we haven’t the time now.” She drew her head back toward the exit. “We must meet with Dred in the wastelands, so we can stop Ten before he recovers.”
“Oh?” I asked, releasing her enough for her to slip from my grip. She turned on her heel, heading toward the exit. “And what makes you think I’d trust Dred?”
“I have faith in you.” She looked back at me over her shoulder, and the way she shifted her body let me know exactly what she’d look like if I took her from behind. Fucking amazing.
“It is misplaced.” My words made her stop, and as confusion filled her features, I stepped forward, one hand going to her hip as my other guided myself inside her.
“Oh!” she gasped, face awash with both pleasure and surprise.
“Does this feel like a real man to you?” I asked as I thrust into her again, and another cry tore from her lips.
“Yes,” she half-cried, her back arching upward as I reached around with my free hand to cup her breast.
“I thought you said we needed to go?” I asked, leaning toward her so I could murmur into her ear. I punctuated the sentence by nipping at her ear. “Do we need to stop?”
“No, I mean … I don’t …” Her voice trailed off, eyes shut as I withdrew as far as I could without slipping out.
“Are you sure?” I asked, and as I spoke, she thrust herself back along my length.
“Yes. We have time.” She swallowed hard, looking back at me and meeting my eyes. “Please.” She wiggled forward before shoving herself back on me again. “Don’t stop.”
“Well, if you insist,” I said, dropping my hands back to her hips. “I do so enjoy hearing the cries of pleasure from my enemy’s women.”
19
“While I greatly enjoyed that, it’s rather hard to walk now,” Jophiel said as we left the city and headed toward where we would enter the Darkness and meet Dred.
“Sorry about that,” I said with a shrug.
I wasn’t really sorry though. I hadn’t even realized how much I needed to blow off some steam, and while part of it was that Jophiel had been in the right place at the right time, I was really glad she seemed to have enjoyed it. I wasn’t sure why, but I really wanted her to be impressed by me in a way I couldn’t quite explain. Fortunately, by my count, she’d been impressed at least six times.
“Don’t be sorry.” She turned and touched my face, and the emotion that flashed through her eyes at that moment surprised me. “I’ve never been taken like that before. It is good to know how pleasurable it can be.”
“Wait, you were a virgin?” I asked, suddenly really confused. “I’d thought…”
“Dred was never man enough to take me.” She smiled. “I always said I’d gain more than him from it.” She laughed. “I’d say that was true of my time with you as well, but perhaps later I can help even the score.” She gave me a smile as she nodded toward my crotch.
“Wow, okay …” I took a deep breath. “I didn’t even know girls had orgasms their first time …”
“I didn’t either.” She looked me over. “But again, you’re not most men, are you, Arthur?”
“No.” I shook my head, and even though I knew it was just a silly little compliment, I could tell she meant it. Something about what had happened in the shower seemed to impress her in a way all my fighting hadn’t. It was a bit strange, but I was beginning to wonder if, with Jophiel, the way to her heart was through her vagina.
“I didn’t think so.” She smiled again before turning away and staring at the horizon. We’d ventured deep into the forest surrounding Heaven, and with each step, the shadows grew until we were nearly shrouded in Darkness.
That’s when I saw what we were looking for. A blood-red tree as big around as a swimming pool stood a few meters away, and as we approached, I realized there was a man-sized entrance beneath the gnarled root closest to us. I couldn’t say why, but I could feel power emanating from the spot. Cold, dark, angry power.
“What the hell is that?” I asked, pointing at the tree.
“Our destination. You have surely heard of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” She nodded up to the boughs which seemed miles above.
“Is this where you try to get me to eat a forbidden apple?” I mused as I squinted my eyes, trying to see one of the famed apples that Eve had offered to Adam.
“The tree has not fruited in millennia.” Jophiel’s tone caused me to look at her, and I found her looking at me with surprising serious. “And even if it had fruit on it, eating from it would be the last thing I’d ever want you to do.”
“Oh?” I asked, suddenly curious. “Why is that?”
“The moment when Adam bit into that apple shattered everything. It caused the Darkness to be born, caused Lucifer to fall, and caused that and so much more. That moment was so strong it twisted the past and warped the future. The Darkness itself sprang from the seeds of that fruit, nourished by the rotting flesh of those it destroyed in this time and the next. In the past, present, and future.”
“Wait, you mean to tell me everything is happening because Adam ate the apple?” I stared at the tree and rubbed my chin.
“Yes.” She sighed. “There is something to be said for ignorance. Something to be said for not knowing how deep the rabbit hole goes.” She touched her temple. “There are things I do not wish to know, things I cannot understand. That is how it is meant to be.”
She shook her head as she reached out and ran her fingers along the bark of the tree, causing the whole of the world to shudder.
“I don’t follow,” I said as she held her fingers up to me, and I realized she was bleeding. Not a lot, but enough to let me know I didn’t want to touch that tree.
“You do not need to follow.” She smiled at me. “All you need to do is defeat the Darkness. You must scourge it from existence.” She gestured up at the tree. “This tree is the key.”
“I’m really not following now.” I shook my head. “Didn’t you just say this tree was evil incarnate basically?”
“No.” She shook her head. “This tree only provides knowledge. Good, evil. Both, neither. Knowledge is not inherently bad.” She looked to me. “This is why I think you will win, Arthur. You understand this.” She gestured at me. “Not in precise terms perhaps, but right now you combine nearly the full might of both Heaven and Hell, do you not?” She looked me up and down. “Alpha and Omega. Good and evil.”
“Okay, I kind of get what you’re saying, but I don’t see why that matters.” I shook my head. “I just wanted to get strong enough to help my friends.”
“And to do that, you embraced both Heaven and Hell in a way no one else had. You became a beacon.” She nodded to the tree. “Dred tried to take that power, but you did not. You earned that power, which is why only you can put the world back together again.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, now more confused than ever. “And I’m not asking about Dred.”
“This tree has splintered the world, and can no longer bear fruit.” She smiled darkly. “But that is easy enough to fix because it must simply be nourished, and the way to nourish it is with the blood of the Generals.” She held out both hands, fingers spread wide. “Ten Generals, each more powerful than the last. Each springing forth from a seed from the fruit of the tree.” She nodded once. “If you can defeat them, rip out their essence, and return it to the tree, it will bear fruit once more.”
“So, we need to restore the tree?” I asked, and as I spoke, a tooltip for an achievement popped up in my vision.
Achievement: Restore the Tree unlocked.
Restore the Tree – Destroy the Ten Darkness Generals and return their Essence to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Below the achievement description were ten checkboxes, and as I stared at them, I realized it was a mark for each of the Generals.
“I’m guessing the achievement has appeared for you.” She nodded. “It has for Dred as well, or at least it did when I told him this millennia ago.” She sighed. “I’d thought him strong enough to do what you did, but he could not. He fell to fear, and that fear turned him to the Darkness.” She shook her head as she met my eyes. “Now, he is little more than a tool, though he does not see that.” She touched my arm. “You must be more than that. You must be the beginning and the end. Destruction and life. Beauty and horror. Passion and wisdom.”
“I’m not sure about any of that,” I said, waving my hand through the achievement window, dismissing it. “But I do agree that the Generals must be stopped.” I nodded to her. “Let’s do that.”
“Excellent.” She looked at me for a long while. “I am glad you trust me, Arthur. It has been a long time since someone has.” She sighed. “Often, most think I am trying to outmaneuver them, to pull one over, even when I am not.”
“Michelle trusts you.” I looked at the angel. “It’s just hard for people to deal with someone smarter than them.” I smiled. “Me, I’m used to being dumb, so it’s easy for me.” I forced a laugh to my lips. “Besides, if you betray me, I’ll kill you.” I frowned. “That would upset me because you’re really great in bed.”
“I am?” she asked, surprised. “Even though it was my first time?”
“Yes.” I nodded to her, even though, in retrospect, she hadn’t been all that good compared to Gwen or even Maribelle. Hell, even Annabeth knew what I liked since we’d slept together so many times, but Jophiel didn’t need to know that.
“That pleases me.” She nodded to herself. “I always thought I’d be good at it.” She looked up at me. “Perhaps we can try more things next time. I would love to learn.”
“I would like that.” I pointed past her to the tree. “As soon as we do whatever else we came here to do, I’ll be happy to fuck your brains out.”
“Right.” She flushed, eyes flicking from me to the tree and back again. “Sorry, I don’t know what’s come over me. Usually, I can focus really well, but right now all I can think about is you.” She giggled, actually giggled. “Look at me, Archangel of Wisdom, and all I can think about is sex.”
“Hey, we all need to live a little once in a while.” She looked at me as I spoke, chewing on one lip. “You know, blow off steam, pretend nothing matters.”
“I suppose.” She tore her eyes from me, and it seemed like the toughest thing she’d ever done. “Let us proceed so that we can finish and I can fuck you again.”
With those words still ringing in my ears, she stepped into the cave. There was a flash of dark light, and a blast of cold air exploded from beneath the roots, bringing gooseflesh to my skin. It was a little strange because as I rubbed my arms, I realized it’d been a long time since I’d really felt cold. Only I’d felt that, and it wasn’t just cold. It was the unceasing, endless hunger of the void.
“I hope this works,” I mumbled, taking a deep breath as I followed the Archangel of Wisdom into the breach, so I could meet with my sworn enemy to figure out a way to stop the all-consuming Darkness from ravaging the land.
20
“Hello, Arthur,” Dred said as I stepped through the portal and found myself within the Darkness. The tree loomed behind me, big and imposing, only now it was the color of ash. Worse, it looked sick, and as I stared at it, I realized the bark was flaking away from disease.
“Hello, Dred.” I stared at the man, my eyes raking over his ugly yellow eye, and his horrific scar. He stood there wearing his ethereal armor, and even though he had to know I could wipe the floor with his pansy ass since he wasn’t glowing with stolen Dark Energy, he seemed calm.
“Jophiel says you have come to talk.” He nodded toward the angel. She stood just a few feet away, her eyes cast toward the distance.
“That’s what she said, eh?” I smirked. “Funny, she told me you wanted to talk to me.” I reached up and touched the charm around my neck. Already I could feel it starting to heat, and while I had no idea how long it’d be able to hide me from the Darkness, I didn’t want to waste time on pleasantries.
“She is a wily one.” He nodded to her. “Always seems to know what to say or do.” He sighed and ran a hand through his silvery hair. “I’m guessing you know why I did it, why I tried to take their power.”
“Because you’re scared.” I met his eyes, and he nodded once.
He gestured back behind him at the swirling darkness. Nothing but miles and miles of endless black sand stretched behind him. Every once in a while, I could see a twister touch down and rip apart the landscape before it dissipated into nothingness.
“That is coming for all things, for everywhere.” He rubbed his temples. “I tried to fight it, to do my best, but it was no use.” He smiled. “The Builder was stronger then too. Did you know that?” He waved off the comment. “Not strong like you, Arthur, but stronger than me, and a real evil son of a bitch.” He laughed then, staring at Jophiel like he could burn a hole in her back with his eye. “Did you know then?”
“Yes,” came her only reply.
“Figures.” He turned his gaze back to me. “He had joined the Darkness. When I killed him, he said I’d understand some day. Only I vowed he was crazy, that I’d win.” He laughed, but there was no mirth in it, only pain. “Funny how history repeats itself.” He touched his chest. “I tried for a long time. For centuries, and we could make no headway. That’s when I learned of the marks, of the Generals, of it all. I formulated a plan to get the marks, and it worked.” He jerked a thumb at Jophiel. “Of course, it did. It was hers.”
“Wait, you were responsible for giving Dred all the marks?” I looked to Jophiel, but she merely shrugged.
“It seemed a good idea at the time.” She turned her eyes to Dred. “But he wasn’t strong enough even with them, and I realized I’d miscalculated.”
“Miscalculated.” Dred touched the scar on his face. “I took that angelic power, attacked Ten, and he beat me like a naughty puppy. It wasn’t enough, and worse, once that happened, I could not return.” He shrugged. “How could I? What would I say after what I did?”
“So, you turned to the Darkness?” I asked, shaking my head.
“You’ve only fought Ten.” He swallowed. “One is a whole different matter.” He shivered, visibly. “He made me an offer. I could fight and die, or live and serve.” He looked at the ground. “And I realized I’d rather kneel.” He looked up again. “The same choice I gave Nadine.”
“Yeah,” I said, remembering the demon queen who Dr
ed had enslaved to serve the Empress. I’d killed her, and she’d seemed happy when it had happened.
“Now, it’s different.” He looked right at me. “You are what, seven and six?” He smiled. “Far stronger than I ever was.” He offered me his hand. “Let us kill Ten and restore the tree.”
“Here’s the thing.” I looked at his hand. “Why do I need you?”
“How do you kill a General?” he asked, meeting my eyes. What I saw in his surprised me. It was acceptance, of what, I wasn’t sure, but of something.
“You hit him really hard?” I asked, shrugging. “And when he gets up, you hit him again?”
“Thought you’d say that.” He smiled. “Jophiel, how do you kill a General?”
“You absorb his essence and claim his core.” The Angel turned then and look at me. “If you take his essence, it will corrupt you.” She pointed at Dred. “He is to be the sacrificial lamb, to absorb the darkness. That way you will remain pure and able to complete your mission.”
“And … won’t that make him stronger?” I pointed at Dred. “I’ve used Dark Energy before, and I always get stronger based on how powerful the creature I’d killed was.”
“He will, and that will aid us.” Jophiel nodded. “This is the best plan.”
“The best plan is to trust Dred with ultimate power?” I asked, incredulous. “That sounds like fucking crazy talk.”
“That’s the thing, Arthur.” Jophiel came toward me. “You are not anywhere near as strong as you will be.” She waved a hand at Dred. “He has stepped off the proper path of progression already, so for him, this is the only way. In the end, he will not be able to stop the Empress, but you alone will.”
“Even if I believed that, something has been bugging me.” I stared right at Dred. “Why did you want the key?”
“To unlock the Ark of the Covenant.” Dred touched his chest. “It requires two keys, one from Heaven and one from Hell. I can get the one from Heaven, but obviously, I need an Archangel of Hell to get the other one.”
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