Achievement: Restore the Hallowed Host has been completed.
You gain 10% Legitimacy with the Heaven faction.
37
“I’m not sure why Belial and Belphegor would want a Mirror of Transference,” Michelle said rubbing her chin as she stared at the grail clutched in the statue’s hand. “Could Dred be trying to gain an achievement as well?” She looked to me. “It stands to reason that if there is a Heaven based one, there would be a Hell based one as well.”
“Why now?” I asked, hoping that wasn’t true. If Dred was completing achievements, that might make my gains moot. “Why wouldn’t he have done them over the last thousand years?”
“He did not have demonic armaments before,” Michelle said, and the coldness in her voice surprised me. “Dred is nothing if not methodical. He spent a lot of time trying to get my mark and armament, but now that he has it, and presumably Gabriella’s, well, that just leaves Hell’s armaments.” She took a deep breath. “Think about it. Why else would he let your friends live? He could have killed the archangels when he attacked, but he didn’t. That must mean he needs them alive for some reason.”
“Maybe he didn’t have time. Gwen did shove him back into the portal.” Even as I said it, I wondered if it was true. Dred was strong, and if he wanted me dead, I’d have been dead. It hadn’t been like with Nadine where I was pretty sure she’d done everything in her power to let me win. No, this was different, and the sad thing was, I believed Michelle.
“Could be, but we also do not know what Dred has been up to this entire time, nor why Belial and Belphegor have stolen the Mirror from the Princess of Mirrors.” Michelle turned her gaze back to the grail. “It could be something else entirely, but if anyone does know, it will be Lucifer.”
“Lucifer?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “Why would she know?”
“Lucifer has been in Hell while you have been here. I know she has been actively rebuilding it, so if something happened down there, she might know something Sathanus does not. In fact, it’s likely. Sathanus is, well, kind of dumb when it comes to big picture things. Lucifer isn’t.” Michelle took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Furthermore, she’ll have better insight into what Belial and Belphegor are doing. She might even know why they want the Mirror of Transference.”
“You’re starting to sound like you want to go talk to her.” I watched Michelle very carefully as I said the words, but she gave no discernible reaction to having heard them.
“I have already spoken with Raphael,” Michelle said after letting the silence hang in the air for a moment. “She does not know why they would want the Mirror, nor much about it.” She took a deep breath, giving me the impression she was keeping something close to the chest.
“But?” I asked, trying to prompt her on. “None of that would make me think we should go talk to Lucifer. I mean, I will, but for you to suggest it seems off. Is there something you’re not telling me?”
“What I do know is this. During the war that sundered Heaven, Lucifer sought a mirror, but there were none available at the time.” Michelle met my eyes. “I never found out why she wanted it, but I suspect it’s time to find out.”
“Ah.” That made a lot more sense. If Lucifer had wanted one, she likely knew what the two archangels would use it for. Or at least would have a good idea. “Let’s go speak to her.” I glanced at the city. “Otherwise our options are to stand around and wonder while other people rebuild the city, and even with the bonus granted by the grail, we’ve got at least another month before Heaven will be rebuilt. Who knows what they’ll have done if we wait that long.”
“You are correct.” She bit her lip. “Let us go see my sister.” With that, she began walking toward the rift at the far side of the city. Part of me had expected it to have been healed when I’d restored the Grail to Heaven, but it still looked the same as ever.
This time when Michelle offered me her hand, it was trembling. Was she scared? It seemed unlikely because she was the least scared person I’d ever met.
“Is everything okay?” I asked right before she leapt from Heaven.
“Yes,” she replied as we landed. “Everything is fine.”
“See, when girls say things are fine, that usually means they are not.” I smiled at her, and she frowned.
“You are very perceptive, Arthur.” She didn’t elaborate further as we headed toward the Graveyard of Statues. While I wasn’t sure if Lucifer was there, I was willing to at least check before I tried to call her with my mark. That might piss her off, especially if she reappeared and saw Michelle. While the elder archangel had definitely been protective of her sister, Michelle had been pretty hammered at the time. Who knew how their reunion would go with Michelle acting more, well, like herself.
“Something feels off,” I said as we entered the gates. “For one, the gates are opened, and I don’t see any guards.”
“Indeed.” Michelle inhaled sharply causing her nostrils to flare. “I smell magic in the air.” She licked her lips like she was tasting the air. “Belphegor. This is her doing.”
“Is she here?” I asked, looking around but seeing nothing out of the ordinary. Even still, worry crept down my spine. If Michelle thought Belphegor was here, and she was aligned with Dred, well, what if Dred was here too?
“Yes, I think so.” Michelle nodded. “Can you call my sisters?”
I shut my eyes and tried to open my marks, but as I tried, I found it incredibly difficult to do. If trying to call Sathanus while I’d been in the Void of Desperation had been like screaming down a long hallway, this was akin to screaming from across a continent.
“Something is interfering,” I said, shaking my head. “I can use my powers and the like, but I cannot reach any of them. At least not easily.” I met her eyes. “What do you want to do?”
“I think that is Belial’s magic. She has a way of making true communication impossible. They must both be here. We must find them.” Michelle nodded fiercely. “Let’s go.” She pulled out her whip-sword, and as it blazed to life, she began moving through the town like she knew exactly where to go.
“Do you know where they are?” I asked as I drew Caliburn and followed behind her. “Because you seem to be heading toward the other side of town awfully purposefully.”
“The scent of Belphegor’s magic is stronger that way.” Michelle looked at me. “What is in that direction?”
“The barracks, mostly. Some other stuff, but mostly just barracks.” As I spoke, Michelle nodded once.
“That makes sense, Arthur. As Archangel of Sloth, Belphegor can make entire cities fall asleep. No doubt she has done that.” Michelle sighed. “No doubt your townsfolk are all tucked in their beds fast asleep.”
The idea that the archangel was strong enough to make our entire city fall asleep was maddening, and it made me wonder why they had come. After all, it was obvious none of the other Archangels were here, but then again, I had no idea why they wanted the mirror either.
“That’s probably for the best,” I said, glancing at the barracks and finding Michelle was right. I could see soldiers, merchants, and everyone in between all fast asleep in their beds through the still open doors and windows. “It means none of them have died.”
“True.” Michelle let out a slow breath, and for a second all I could hear was the snap-crackle of her weapon. “Then again, neither of them ever really liked getting their hands dirty. So it somewhat surprises me their running around like this.”
A loud crash to my left stopped me from replying, and I turned to see two women burst out of one of the barracks.
One had long auburn hair and was so tanned I thought she might have fallen asleep in a tanning booth. She was pretty, but only in that, “I’m kind of curious what you look like naked” way.
The other one had short black hair and was, quite frankly, large, but not in a bad way though. No, while she was chubby, it was definitely all in the right places.
Both of them were dressed in armor that m
ade me think of what the lizard men commonly wore, which seemed a touch strange since I could see wisps of Darkness coming off them like it was burning away.
“Belial, Belphegor stop!” Michelle cried, surging toward them.
The two women turned, and as they did, the thin one held out her hand. “Michelle, it is you who will stop.” Green light burst from her fingertips, and as it struck Michelle, it wrapped around her like several sets of chains before shattering into etheric shards.
For a second, I thought Michelle had broken the spell, but then I realized she was only moving as fast as she had been a moment before.
“This is perfect,” the bigger one said, turning her sparkling blue eyes on me. “Builder, where is the room that Gabriella occupied?”
“Why would I tell you that,” I said, letting loose a blast of sapphire light at her. I don’t know if it was because she was surprised, or what, but by the time she seemed to comprehend my attack, the blast hit her in the chest, knocking her off her feet. She flew backward, crashing through the wall of the barracks and hitting the ground.
I surged forward as her sister turned to look at me. As she raised her hand, presumably to slow me like she had with Michelle, I flung a gob of Hellfire at her. It smashed into her outstretched hand, and she screamed as fire engulfed her flesh like it was made of tissue paper.
As her arm disintegrated into a pile of ash, my knee smashed into her stomach. The blow sent her flying backward across the ground. She bounced like a broken mannequin as the spell surrounding Michelle shattered, and the Archangel of Justice sped up to real-time.
“I’ll get Belial,” she said, turning on her heel and heading into the barracks after the larger girl. “You get Belphegor.”
“Okay!” I said because I’d been going to do that, anyway. I mean, I wasn’t sure what Belial’s powers were exactly, but Belphegor’s slow could get us all killed. That definitely needed to be neutralized.
The Archangel of Sloth was starting to get to her feet as I came up beside her and drove Caliburn through her back, pinning her to the ground like a macabre butterfly. Part of me wanted to try to stop her without killing her, but at the same time, I’d been fighting Wrath for a while now. While I had no way of knowing how strong Belphegor was in comparison to Sathanus, I didn’t want to take any chances. No. I was going to use maximum strength and hope I could keep them off-guard.
Belphegor screamed as my sword tore through her body, and as she tried to twist, I wrenched the blade sideways. Her eyes went wide with pain right before I kicked her under the chin as hard as I could. The blow snapped her head backward with a crack, and she slumped to the ground, eyes rolling up in the back of her head.
“Wait, are you unconscious?” I asked, somewhat surprised that had worked. It would never have against Wrath, but then again, Belphegor didn’t really seem as formidable. Maybe what Michelle had said was true. Maybe she just wasn’t as good?
A loud crash tore my attention from Belphegor, and as I turned, I saw Belial explode through the wall in a cloud of debris. The Archangel of Gluttony bounced once before coming to her feet. The left side of her face was battered and bloody, and as Michelle strode confidently from the broken building, the Belial glanced at me.
“Belphegor,” she murmured, and as she stepped toward me, I reached back toward Caliburn. It was still buried in Belphegor’s back, and while it held her in place, I’d definitely pull it free and use it if Belial came at me.
“You can’t win, Belial,” Michelle said, and her voice held that same edge of command I’d often heard on the battlefield. “Concede, and I’ll let you live.” Her whip-sword crackled as she raised it. “You couldn’t beat me on your best day, and I doubt you could beat the two of us. Surrender is the only way you’ll live.”
“No.” She bit her lip. “It is not.” Then before I could blink, she spun on her heel, tearing a hole in the space beside her and disappearing inside it.
“Dammit!” I cursed, taking a step forward because I needed the both of them. “Did you know she could do that?”
“No.” Michelle shook her head. “But the power smells like Dred’s. No doubt the Darkness has augmented her ability to flee.” The words made a slight frown curl Michelle’s lips downward. “We will have to be more careful with that one.” Michelle gestured toward the unconscious Belphegor. “Good job taking her down.”
“It was a lot easier than I thought it would be, honestly.” I looked back at the archangel.
“That is because you avoided her spell. If it had hit you, your speed would have been greatly reduced, and she would have crushed you with ease. Beyond that power, she is not much. I remember telling her she relied on her magic too often.” Michelle smiled. “I suppose her arrogance worked in our favor.” She knelt down beside the archangel. “Now remove your sword so I may bind her.”
“You will do no such thing!” Lucifer boomed, and as her voice filled my ears, I realized I could feel all the archangels again. Was that because Belial had retreated? I wasn’t sure, but I was willing to do so.
I turned and saw the Devil marching toward us in full battle regalia.
“Wait, what’s going on?” I asked, suddenly confused. Lucifer had never had a problem with Michelle being in Hell before, why did she want to stop Michelle from subduing Belphegor.
“She means to take Belphegor’s powers for Heaven.” Lucifer gestured at the fallen archangel. “That is not acceptable.” Lucifer’s power began to fill the air as sparks of purple energy leapt from her skin. “You think you can take what’s mine after I have given you so much?” Lucifer narrowed her eyes. “You would dare?”
“I don’t, and I wouldn’t,” Michelle replied, standing and gripping her whip-sword like she was ready to throw down. “You always think people are trying to steal from you sister, but it’s just not true.” Michelle glared at her sister. “You would do well to remember we’re supposed to fight side by side.” She pointed one finger at me. “I was just trying to help Arthur.”
Lucifer’s gaze flicked to me, and while I got the impression she wanted to argue, as I nodded to her, she relaxed a smidge. “I want to believe you, Michelle.”
“Then do.” Michelle crossed her arms over her chest. “Stop making everything into an issue of me versus you, and think of the cause. For once. Just once. Think of the cause.”
Lucifer bristled and her eyes narrowed. Her entire body pounded like a cat about to spring, and as she opened her mouth to no doubt scream at her sister, I spoke up.
“Actually, Michelle suggested we come down to talk to you about them. She thought you would be the most knowledgeable.” Lucifer’s gaze flicked to me as I spoke. “We just happened to find them looking for Gabriella’s room.”
“Why were they looking for Gabriella’s room?” Lucifer asked, features softening as concern filled her voice. “What are they after?”
“I’m not sure,” I said, glancing at the fallen archangel. “But I, for one, aim to find out.”
38
“Okay, here’s how this is going to go,” I said, pacing back and forth in front of Belphegor who was too busy being tied to a chair with enchanted ropes to do much more than nod at me. I was angry at her, and angry at Dred, and angry at myself, but this was different. If I couldn’t get her to tell me what I needed to know, who knew what would happen to Gabriella?
“I’m going to ask you questions, and if you don’t respond the way I like, I’m going to stab you. Considering you’re still bleeding from the Mortal Wound given to you by Caliburn, that should concern you.” I paused. “Be a good girl, and I’ll heal you?”
“You’re going to stab me more?” she asked, looking at me. “That doesn’t seem very creative.”
“I work with what I have,” I said, unsheathing Caliburn and pointing it at her. “And I have a sword.”
“Geez, maybe you need to take a fucking chill pill.” Belphegor rolled her eyes. “You know, catch more flies with honey, and OMG, did you just stab me?”
“Why do you keep stabbing me?” she cried, bucking against the magic ropes to no avail. “Ask me a fucking question.”
“Oh, I will,” I said, right before I stabbed her again. “But I have to get all my stabbing out.”
“Arthur, are you fucking mental?” Lucifer asked, interrupting me while I was interrogating Belphegor.
“No?” I said, looking at the Devil as she stepped inside the room. “Why?”
“You’re just stabbing her for no reason,” Lucifer replied, grabbing me by the shoulder and pulling me away from Belphegor. “Have you even asked her why she was here or why they want the Mirror of Transference?”
“Is the Devil really the good cop?” Belphegor asked, eyes flicking between us.
“See what I’m dealing with?” I said, pointing at the archangel in frustration. “She’s been totally unhelpful.”
“Yes.” Lucifer snapped her fingers and flame shot from the floor, burning the archangel to a near cinder. As her screams filled the air, Lucifer snapped her fingers again, and the flames extinguished, leaving a flash-fried archangel sitting there screaming because her flesh had been melted off.
“I changed my mind,” I said, glancing from Belphegor’s charred husk of a body to Lucifer and back again. “I am nowhere near that much of a psychopath.”
“Which is why you need to let me do this.” She patted my cheek. “Preserve your innocence. Being the evil torturer doesn’t quite suit you. Me on the other hand.” She grinned. “It’s my jam.”
As she spoke, I realized she was probably right. After all, she was the Devil. She was supposed to be the master of torture.
“Okay.” As I spoke, Lucifer flicked her wrist, causing Belphegor to miraculously heal, which was something I’d not thought possible.
The Builder's Wrath (The Legendary Builder Book 4) Page 21