Legacy of the Watchers Series Boxed Set: Books 1-3
Page 17
As Lilith approached her village the weariness finally set in. But the grime and filth of the previous night remained on her like a heavy skin. It was around mid-day, which meant most everyone would be resting. This allowed Lilith to slip unheeded into the public bathing area that was designated for the women of her village.
The bathers were sparse this time of day, but there were a few women, mostly older, scattered about. Lilith greeted all of them cheerfully, even the gossips who tended to be the most unkind to her. The women returned her greetings warily, cutting her a wide berth as she happily splashed about in the water. But the slave girls rallied around her to offer assistance, knowing of her generosity when she was in one of her good moods. Lilith giggled ticklishly as they tended to her, oblivious of their confused glances at one another when she wasn’t looking. But their thoughts and impressions meant nothing to Lilith. She was entirely absorbed in speculations over her next encounter with the not-so-high-and-mighty leader of the Kalag-ga.
All at once her attention was caught by a conversation she overheard between two of the women.
“They’re saying it was a phantom,” exclaimed one of them. Lilith moved closer to listen.
“To simply lay open the city and leave it like that! It must be the work of demons.”
Lilith’s heart beat faster as she listened.
“First the flooding of their fields and now this. They must have angered the gods when they …”
Lilith couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled forth. The women stared at her in surprise. She moved away from them, hardly able to control her mirth. If the news had already reached their little village she was sure that it had reached the city of Uruk. But even her pleasure over every detail working out exactly as she planned—even better, really—could not keep her from yawning. She was suddenly very tired. She needed to sleep before contemplating her next move.
Lilith dried herself off and then wrapped her body in one of the many colorful scarves her mother had made for her, securing it over her left shoulder as was the custom. She’d had enough of warrior’s garb for the moment, and was suddenly pleased by the sight of something pretty. Her thick hair settled luxuriously over her shoulders and back, drying quickly in the hot mid-day sun. The older women stared at her with admiration.
“How beautiful you look!” one of them couldn’t help remarking. “Why Lilith, when you dress in women’s clothes you’re really quite stunning.”
Lilith smiled sweetly. “And you’re really quite sweet,” Lilith replied, shocking the woman with her meek, girlish response and surprising even herself because she actually meant it. She must be more exhausted than she thought. She meandered home and tiptoed through the house to her room. All was quiet in the spacious dwelling. She would not be bothered. She approached her bed with a yawn and was just about to fall into it when she froze. She was suddenly fully awake, all of her senses tingling with living energy. She felt more invigorated than when she first set out on her adventure the day before. Holding her breath, Lilith slowly turned around. Her eyes had not deceived her.
There, like a phantom, sitting casually in a chair mere inches from Lilith’s bed, grinning from ear to ear like an overfed cat, was none other than Asmodeous himself!
Chapter 18
Lilith gaped at Asmodeous as she struggled to collect her wits. The expression on his face wasn’t at all what she was expecting. She sat down on her bed and waited for him to speak.
“You’ve caught me off guard yet again,” he said when he finally spoke. His voice was so husky with lust that it made the hairs on Lilith’s neck tingle and rise. “I expected you to be indignant upon finding me here in your private room, yet you sit there like a queen whose been expecting one of her loyal subjects. And…I had completely underestimated your beauty.”
Lilith couldn’t prevent her eyes from roaming hungrily over his body. Her heart felt as if it was about to burst. She could think of no reason to put up a pretense of not wanting him. What were the moral codes of the sons of men to her?
She wondered how he managed to reach her village before she did. A thought occurred to her.
“Did you come straight from Uruk?” she asked.
“No. I was returning to Uruk from Kish when suddenly I found myself here, in your bedchambers, like a man bewitched.”
Lilith gasped when she heard this. So, Asmodeous wasn’t aware of what she’d done! Even if he heard about what happened in Lagash he would have no way of connecting it to her. Yet.
But why, then, was he here? Had he changed his mind about letting her into the Kalag-ga?
“I couldn’t get you out of my mind,” he explained as if reading her thoughts. “And seeing you now…” He left the thought unfinished as he studied her with a determined gleam in his eyes. “You will be my wife and we will populate the earth with such a race of giants that …”
“Your wife!” exclaimed Lilith, jumping up from the bed. “You mean you didn’t change your mind about me being a Kalag-ga warrior?”
“Change my mind?” A laugh burst from his lips. “Lilith, forget that crazy notion and listen to me.”
In that instant Lilith made her decision. She approached him like a cat, coming so close that the laughter died on his lips. She was pleased to see that she had momentarily silenced him. His expression told her that he was wary. No doubt he was expecting her to attack him again but she had something entirely different in mind.
Lilith had never been with a man before. But then again, until the previous night she had never killed a man before either. Her lack of experience hadn’t affected her performance then and it wouldn’t affect her performance now.
Her hands trembled, but she didn’t falter. She would seduce Asmodeous, proving her ultimate superiority over him here and now. And she would continue to prove herself, again and again, for as many times as it took until he gave her the respect she deserved.
Lilith decided to keep silent about Lagash. After making love to him, she would reject his insulting offer of marriage and send him away. Returning to Uruk with his tail between his legs, he would then be hit with the full weight of her victory over him. It was even better than she originally planned!
Lilith placed her hands on Asmodeous’ arms and gently moved her trembling fingers over every rippling muscle. Her fingertips tingled with each point of contact. Lilith’s large, curious eyes stared defiantly into his while she explored his body, first caressing his arms, then moving up over his shoulders and chest, and then brazenly probing even lower. Asmodeous still looked wary, but it seemed as if her touch had paralyzed him. But when Lilith’s hands moved under his skirt he suddenly came to life, grasping hold of her wrists and jerking her arms behind her back. He held her there while his eyes searched hers, as if seeking an explanation for her erratic behavior. Lilith’s gaze never strayed from his, although she trembled like a leaf in his arms. She was never more aware of his superior strength, and she submitted, for the moment, to his absolute domination of her. It was as if she was melting, becoming softer. It seemed like Asmodeous was softening too. She could see the sudden shift—a slight relenting—in his eyes. A sharp thrill of desire shot through her when his lips finally claimed hers. Her breasts tingled and hardened beneath the thin material of her robe, chafing against the assault of Asmodeous’ crushing embrace. Lilith smiled inwardly, luxuriating in his temporary dominance of her while basking in the knowledge of her own secret triumph.
But then all thoughts left her, and Lilith was only aware of the startling pleasure in what Asmodeous was doing to her. She was so dazzled by his lovemaking that even her carefully laid plans were cast aside and scattered, like fallen leaves in a storm.
Chapter 19
Lilith’s victory was bittersweet. No word came from Asmodeous or the Kalag-ga warriors. There was no one with whom to share her triumph.
Lilith thought about Asmodeous every day, and in spite of his silence, she was convinced that he was thinking of her too. How could he not be?
There was only one thing that Lilith knew for certain. Her actions had effectively squashed any designs the Kalag-ga might have had on Lagash. According to the merchants who came from there, the city’s officials had finally called upon the ‘gods’ for help. They had enlisted the aid of Enlil, an angel who ruled in nearby Nippur, and succumbed to the necessity of having their own giants installed in their city. An alliance was made with Enlil’s sons, who promptly moved into Lagash to ward off whatever evil had befallen them.
Lilith had truly dealt the Kalag-ga a devastating blow. She recalled how she had called each and every one of them out as her enemy. They had found it amusing at the time. Yet, in one fell swoop, hadn’t she gotten revenge on them all?
Lilith couldn’t help being pleased with herself. This was what men understood; this was what made them take note. It took loss, injury and sometimes even death for them to accept an idea that was different from their own. She had wanted to prove that she was their equal and she had gone one better. She had virtually conquered a city while only killing a handful of men, using mostly her wits and their fears to do it. Like all of the men Lilith encountered—excepting her father—the warriors of the Kalag-ga were too dependent on size and strength. She had made them see that cunning could be just as valuable a weapon, if not more.
So Lilith waited, confident that Asmodeous would eventually come to her. But as the time slowly passed, she wondered if her hasty declaration had come true. Perhaps the Kalag-ga warriors did consider her their enemy.
It was two very long months before Lilith got any response, and then it was Og, not Asmodeous, who came to see her.
Og was the youngest of the Kalag-ga warriors at only fifteen years old, but he was by far the largest giant Lilith had ever seen—which was unusual, because Og was the son of a Nephilim, not an angel. It generally occurred that second and third generation giants were smaller than the first. Og was clearly the exception. He was bigger even than his father, Ahijah, who was one of the first Nephilim to walk upon the earth. Ahijah was the son of Semehaza, the infamous leader of the fallen angels. It was Semehaza, along with another angel called Azazyl, who instigated the dissension of the two hundred Watchers. Ahijah was no less renowned than his father as a prominent king in the Syrian empire. From such lineage, one would have expected yet another ambitious leader to have sprung forth, but despite his size, Og was the most mild-mannered giant Lilith ever encountered. He could dissuade any enemy with his sheer size, but it was his sweet, faithful manner that usually won people over.
Standing next to Og, Lilith had a faint idea of how the sons of men must feel. But she wasn’t intimidated in the least. She’d sensed his gentleness the moment they met, when he’d been the first to step forward and shyly introduce himself to her. She watched him with interest, wondering what he had come to say.
Not one to mince words, Og got right to the point. In fact, he could hardly contain his joy as he asked if Lilith would honor them by becoming a Kalag-ga warrior. He began questioning her on strategy almost immediately, admitting that their heavy-handed methods were becoming less effective with every day that passed. And of course, he wanted to know how she had managed to get in and out of Lagash without being seen.
“Could Asmodeous not come himself to discuss this with me?” Lilith asked as casually as she could manage. Her excitement over what Og was saying was tempered by her irritation that Asmodeous wasn’t the one saying it. Perhaps he was still against her being a Kalag-ga warrior.
“Asmodeous is no longer with us,” said Og, and Lilith felt herself go pale. Og continued, oblivious of her distress. “He’s a king now. He’s got a city of his own called Kiriath Arba. It’s west of here, past the great desert, near the Red Sea.”
Lilith couldn’t believe her ears. She’d made discreet inquiries during the months of waiting, but there had been no mention of Asmodeous leaving the Kalag-ga. And yet, it was inevitable that he move on, once he found a city of his own to rule. One only had to look at Asmodeous to see that he was destined for great things. Lilith couldn’t help envying his confident, relaxed manner as head of the Kalag-ga army, and she knew that he would slip into his new role as king with the same ease. He was a natural leader, the first-born son of Azazyl—the angel who masterminded the means for transforming the Watchers into flesh and blood. Under Azazyl’s guidance, the angels emerged in the perfect likeness of man, each a flawlessly designed specimen that was irresistible to women. But although they looked like other men, it didn’t take long for people to realize that they were different. Their extraordinary knowledge, combined with the peculiar influence they seemed to have over all things—including their fellow creatures—left little doubt of their superiority. And when issues arose, spurned by jealousy, it quickly became evident that these creatures were virtually indestructible. They were the immortal ones, infallible and unforgettable. But they were not oppressive—although they could have been—nor did they appear to possess the tyrannical nature that seemed to be inherent in the sons of men. They ruled, but only when their leadership was desired and the people would benefit from it. They showed no fear, jealousy or anger. They seemed only to want to live on this earth as men do. They did as they pleased, and made it clear that they had no wish to prevent others from doing the same. Whenever they went away their protection remained, and they had an uncanny ability to appear whenever their offspring were in need. Their protectiveness over their children was their only weakness. It was only when defending their families that these angels showed any real capacity to harm, and even then, they preferred to use alternative methods to achieve their goals—bringing forth a great storm, creating a new weapon, or even changing the intentions of an enemy by approaching them in a dream. The angels did not fight or kill in combat. They had neither the desire nor the need.
The angels’ offspring, however, were a different matter altogether. The Nephilim were endowed with all the emotions of man, both good and bad, which they inherited from their mothers. Their enormous size and superior strength was a kind of mutation that occurred from the father’s side, due perhaps to the fact that the angels themselves were mutations. For although the bodies they created appeared perfect, they were only imitations.
There were, occasionally, other mutations in the Nephilim besides just their size. One of the more common ones was for the giants to have extra extremities, such as fingers and toes, additional limbs, or in rare cases, a second head. The more sever the defect the less frequently it occurred, but there existed Nephilim who were so disfigured as to be labeled monsters, even by the other giants. There were behavioral abnormalities as well. Some of the Nephilim had a higher propensity for violence, and a few even exhibited a disturbing inclination to feed on human flesh. These monsters, or “terrors” as they were dubbed, generally kept their distance from the rest of society and little, therefore, was actually known about them aside from the rumors. When Lilith was a little girl she asked her father about them but he quickly changed the subject, pretending to be a monster himself as he chased her around the room and then tickled her until she cried. Shortly after that her father went away, and it wasn’t until he was gone that Lilith realized he hadn’t answered her questions.
And now Asmodeous had gone away too, leaving her with even more unanswered questions.
Lilith had been so sure that she and Asmodeous would meet again. She’d anticipated it as an inevitable pleasure that awaited her. It had become one of her favorite pastimes to spec
ulate on how that meeting would occur. She made up scenarios in her mind, imagining what he would say and how she would respond. Her inexperienced heart ached at his apparent rejection of her. It hurt more, even, than when her father went away.
Was she to be like other women, after all? Lilith thought being a Kalag-ga warrior was what she wanted, yet she wasn’t nearly as happy as she thought she would be. She couldn’t help comparing herself with her sister, Ninsun, who, at the age of ten, fell madly in love with Lugalbanda, the angel who ruled Uruk. They had gone to see the city, but Ninsun spent all her time with Lugalbanda, trailing him like a forlorn puppy and following his every move with her large, expressive eyes. Years later she could still draw forth his image in great detail, calling to mind his unfathomably dark eyes, his smooth, velvety skin, his sumptuous lips and his lean, splendid form. She insisted that he spoke to her in her dreams. Nothing could dissuade her from wanting to be with him, not even her being a giant. He was, after all, an angel who could take any form he liked. She clung tenaciously to her dream and, years later, when Lugalbanda finally came for her, it seemed as if Ninsun would explode with joy.
Lilith wondered why the realization of her childhood dream wasn’t as satisfying as Ninsun’s.
She was a Kalag-ga warrior. Yet as Lilith discussed strategies with Og, resentment against Asmodeous simmered hotly beneath her cool exterior. So! The mighty son of Azazyl, former leader of the Kalag-ga, couldn’t face her! A small part of her wondered if he might have simply forgotten her, but she couldn’t accept that she’d meant so little to him. He had, after all, asked her to become his wife. For her part, Lilith regretted all the wasted months spent thinking about him.