The God Breaker's Ruin

by Billy Spencer

  “Will Wisp, what in the hell is that?” Nick said looking at Abigail as they both shrugged their shoulders. He heard of ghosts, possession, spirits floating in the streets, but a will wisp was something he never heard before.

  “They are a ghost that stays in the human world, unable to pass on. Some of these ghosts are harmless and usually haunt a house or human. The other type though, they have hatred in them that they keep from their past lives. They have been used as assassins. Their only contract is they are nearly impossible to get rid of after being used. Whoever used one must have been desperate, especially if they used it to murder an aerion. Someone is asking for trouble,” Cameron said closing the book and pushing the table to the side of the room with a small swipe of his arm. Nick could only think about the way an aerion would be killed by basically a spirit, he wondered how their cold grip felt, how they murdered an angelic being topside.

  “Shit, the Draken police aren’t going to like this. I’ll let office Bran know about this will wisp later. This still doesn’t explain the magic powder that we found, and why it was there,” Nick said looking at the magic vial that Cameron still held in his possession. Magic was like drugs to him. The way that it could be pure or made with some enhancements, and how humans loved to try and profit by making it. Use to, you could buy a can of coke for one dollar and eighty-two cents before tax, now triple that and you can buy yourself two ounces of magic powder, not a lot, right? Enough if you were addicted to the shit.

  “It’s strange to see it topside, Lucidian wouldn’t allow something as magic out of his realm. He probably doesn’t know about it, but once he does find out, well, I’m sure he will be as reasonable as ever. Who wouldn't like for someone to piss in their face? I think It would be a nice change of pace to see that smug on his face disappear, even for a moment,” Cameron said looking at the vial, smiling.

  Nick grabbed the vial and took his vial out from his coat pocket and looked at them together. “Very potent magic, interesting,” he said starring at the vials rubbing them with his fingers. Addicted, something many fight every day. He knew what it felt to have the urge to use something, to get that feeling of calm and euphoria instilled in his brain, like a lover softly rubbing their hand over your head and massaging your back and privates gently, a hard mistress to give up.

  “Oh no, don’t you even think about using that magic,” Abigail said grabbing the vial and handing it to Cameron. She always knew best, like a sister sticking up and protecting their brother. When he fell, when life threw hardballs at him, she was the one who made it feel the world wasn’t tearing apart at the seams.

  Cameron put the vial in front of Nick and stared at him like the sun on a cloudless day. “I get why you don’t want to use your magic boy. Hell, I wouldn’t want to use it either, but you need to stop relying on someone else's magic. These supplements you use only help you for a short amount of time, what happens when they stop working and you are in danger?” Cameron said tapping one finger on the table.

  “What happens when you use your magic?” Abigail said looking at Cameron and then back to Nick.

  “It’s nothing, I don’t want to talk about it,”

  “Come on, tell me. Why are you so scared to use it?”

  “Look Abigail I don’t want to talk about it so just drop it, and I’m not scared. I just don’t want to use it.”

  “Maybe if you use it you can learn to control it and then you wouldn’t have to rely on using someone else’s magic. Hey, Cameron maybe you can help Nick control it?”

  “Just drop it already! I already said I didn’t want to use it. Why do you have to keep bugging me about it?” he said to Abigail. His body was trembling, he never got that angry at her before. He bit his bottom lip so hard it started to bleed. He grabbed the vial looked at Abigail as his mouth started to open, and silence. He turned around from them and darted out of the room as fast as his feet could take him. Nick bumped into shelves as he stumbling his way out of the shop. Hypocritical, he knew he was being one, but at the moment, in the spur of his dumb-ass thinking he felt running away was the best course of action, like to fight another day and all that.

  Cameron sighed and shook his head.“I really shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “Oh no. I pushed him too hard on this, why do I always do that? It’s all my fault, I should have stopped but I didn’t. I just wanted to help him,” Abigail said with tears running down her face. She stood there stunned and slowly moved her body to sit down, shaking and starring at the ground, her hair shielded her face from view as tears wrapped around her fingers. “ I’m fucking stupid. I fucked up again.”

  “Don’t you go beating yourself up. It was my fault I shouldn’t have said anything, it wasn’t my place to. Nick's been through a lot since losing his parents. The boy is just trying to navigate his life the best he can, he’s just having a bad time of it, but he only wants to help those in need, just like his father. He has that drive to help those that can’t help themselves. He’s a protector just like his mother. He doesn’t know yet, but he is a shining star in a world that continues to grow darker, and so are you, my sweet Abby,” Cameron said to her, massaging one of his shoulders as he stared at his armor.

  4

  Veronica Von Versushada swung her fist in front of her, aiming at Jake who was tall, thin, and wore a blue vest and black pants. She liked to be fancy with her moves, to try and impress. Being a fighter wasn’t something she thought of doing, but her father insisted. Jake wore his mask, the mask that vorpal had to wear in public. Her father the lord Grendil insisted on a mask being on their skin, to hide from the lesser folk from the undercity. He dodged her flurry of attacks with ease. She could feel how strong he was, by the pushback he had against her. Like waves crashing against rocks, and thunder rolling onto the ground. He used his agility to make wind that would push her away with the ease of a kick. Every time I go high, he goes low. I go left, he goes right, what the hell man. She had been sparring for what felt like hours and could not understand how Jake was able to know where exactly her attacks would land, it made her frustrated to no end. I guess I’m just going to have to try harder, be faster, and make sure he stops dodging. she thought. Her hands shook, she back-peddled. She examined his posture. She saw him stand in front of the trees, saw the blood moon behind him, peaking from the side. She imagined Jake smirking from behind the blank white stare that shielded him from her embers. “That’s all you got? You’re not going to attack me?” She said motioning for him to come closer to her. “Are we getting a little soft now? Are we afraid to hit a lady? You’re probably just being a coward.”

  Jake rolled up his sleeves and let his gloves fall to the ground, light as a feather. He darted toward her. “Offense isn’t key to battle, it’s studying your enemy. You let them hit, you see their movements and then you engage with them. You were so focused on hitting me and look at you now, you’re tired. You think fighting is some sort of game where you can come back the same, it isn’t, you lose a piece of yourself every time you fight to the death. So take what I say to heart. Guard your heart because it is the only thing that keeps you from turning into ashes,” Jake said grabbing her shoulders and using them to vault and land his blade close to her throat sniffing the scent of cherries. “You let this happen in a real fight your enemy can take a knife and lunged it into your back, or slit your throat. You want to survive, you need to act like every day is your last.”

  Shit, he’s so damn fast. How is he so damn fast, dammit. She was as surprised as ever when it came to the house butler son.No time to second guess, just react. She thought. She squatted down and swiped one leg behind his, knocking him to the ground like a large rock falling into the sea. A moment for her to take glee in, to feel like she slew the dragon, even if it was lucky, but luck was the side she always hoped to play on.

  A large thud echoed in the room. Bats flew away into the distance and the sound of groans flew out of the large windows. If an audience was present there would be cheering
. The world paused and was silent for a brief moment.“Damn, that hurts, can’t believe you got me,” Jake said to Veronica jumping up from the floor as if nothing had happened. It was an earned momentarily victory for her. Her fawn, light yellow-brown fingers dragged through her jet black hair, the sweat dripping from her body to the ground, she felt her body ease up from the tension, for a moment she could rest herself.

  “You got cocky, you should have known better Mr high and mighty. Next time you put a knife to someone's face you better be ready to use it,” She said smiling and rubbing one of her hands into his skull.

  “You just got lucky. If this was a real battle I would have killed you ages ago.”

  “Come on, you have to give me some credit. You have to admit I got you good,” She said shrugging and sticking her tongue out. She knew how to press Jake’s buttons, how to make him upset. It was immature the way she went about teasing him, but as brother and sister, it was natural. He wasn’t her brother, not by blood, but he was the closest thing she had in a long time.

  “You still got some learning to do, but you’re getting better. At least now you can get in arms reach of me. If you ever want to be a part of the undercity guardians though, you’re going to have to get a killer instinct if you want to have any chance of survival, especially when it comes to the hunters of dawn.” The hunters were a group, like the god breakers, but they were more fierce, more deadly, and didn’t hide their lack of belief in god. She still believed though, every day she prayed, and every day she hopes that God had a purpose for her life. Many nights she wondered could a vorpal believe in the afterlife if they gave up life to be eternal?

  “I know, I know. You and father tell me the same damn thing every single day it feels like. That I have to train more, get used to every weapon, know the creatures in the undercity and fear humans. I don’t fear humans, they just make my blood boil by the way.” She saw humans as enemies, even those that were once her friends. When she became vorpal, her life before was a mix of heartbreak, and abuse, two that she didn’t like to talk about, but could come out here and there. As a book, she kept herself closed, unless it was someone she truly trusted, her father Grendil was one of them. He always had her best interest at heart, when they would go out to watch movies together, he knew what she wanted to see, what she enjoyed eating. At times though, he could be a bit suffocating, like a kid clings to a puppy.

  “You know he only wants what’s best for you. We live in a different world, with new dangers. The old ways that vorpal use to live by, are gone. We can’t feed like we use to, we can’t hide in the shadows and hunt humans anymore. We’re all trying to understand our new way of life, just like the humans, just like the gargoyles, and many of the other clans. We are the ones that lead the undercity. We have to be better,” Jake said to her, putting his gloves back on and adjusting his vest. To be better, all to just fattening people’s coin purse, to not rock the boat in the ocean.

  It’s hard to stay mad at him. At least I saw his ass fall to the floor, at least there’s that. She had practiced fighting with Jake for months, and every time she lost. She felt this time was different, she could feel herself getting better...At least now I know he doesn’t usually watch his legs, and next time I’ll make sure to break that mask in half. She thought. The only thing that matter was making sure he embarrassed himself.

  “Precious daughter, where are you?” A woman's voice said from outside the room Veronica and Jake were in.

  “No, not now. Please Lily, why are you here right now. Jake, I thought I told you to tell her we were at the club hanging out with your fish friends?” She said to Jake wiping sweat from her forehead, pacing back and forth wringing her hands. Having a conversation with lily was like having a conversation with an aunt that liked to party at night, who didn’t have any responsibilities aside from someone penetrating them.

  “Oh look at the time. I should be going, father is going to need help in the gardens soon,” Jake said clapping his hands. He floated into the air and began to transform into a bat.

  “Don’t you fucking dare Jake,” She said grabbing onto his ankle with both hands pulling him back towards her. Oh, how she hated being alone with her mother, not her real birth mother but one that acted like one.The long boring talks about her night out with other men and women. The way she wore her clothes, leaving little to the imagination, made her feel shame to no end. All Lily wanted from her was to use her statue as an advantage, but using people was just something she was never into. She didn’t even date, and she sure as hell didn’t let someone else touch her in affectionate ways.

  “I want to stay and see your mother, but duty calls. I can’t leave my father doing the castle work all by himself, he could fall and hurt himself. We wouldn’t want that now, would we? I’m sure you have this all under control but if you need me, try tapping your feet together and see what happens,” Jake said escaping from her hold, floating towards an open window.

  “You rotten tree humper.”

  “Let's do this again sometime, maybe somewhere more secluded. It’s been fun Veronica, ta-ta,” Jake said waving at her goodbye. He turned into a bat and dashed out of the window and into the night.

  “That bastard,” she said grinding her teeth. She pressed her fingers into her palms, waiting for doom to come bursting in to greet her. “I can’t believe he would just leave me here.Asshole.” All the times that she stood by him when he got hurt in a fight, or when he fell a well into a pit of rats, he decided to leave her to be bored to death by Lily.

  The door swung open with Lily standing in the doorway, she was wearing a white robe and nothing else. “Oh, there you are daughter. I have been looking for you all through this damn castle. You didn’t hear me call out to you? I would have called you, but you never have your phone,” Lily said to her, leaving a trail of blood dripping behind her as she made her way forward. Some would think her mom was curious, maybe a slut, but she had to push those thoughts back into her mind because she didn’t want to judge. It just wasn’t something she found comfort in, hearing her mother moan through the walls, and the screams of the males and females that clashed against the castle walls day in and day out, especially on the weekend. They always gave their consent though. Some humans had this fascination of being fed on, something about the rush at the end when you are close to death. Luckily Lily was good and did not kill them so much as scare them, maybe for life, but it was their choice and all Veronica could do was put in her earplugs and listen to some Mars Volta.

  “Lily, please tell me you didn’t invite more humans into the castle? You’re just a mess to look at, you ruined the robe father gave you during the day of the dead,” She said to Lily avoiding the smell of death from entering her nostrils. “You remember the last time you had humans over, and how you almost lost control.” Human blood gives vampires the energy boost like ten armies, but feed on enough and you can find yourself hunting. In the world they live in at the moment, that can’t be something that gets back to the undercity, it would ruin all the processes that Grendil had been making with the humans.

  “Oh, sweetie let's not bring that up again. I changed my diet, don’t worry about it. You heard the doctor, it just has to do with my bloodline. You shouldn’t be so unkind towards the humans dear, they are pretty fun and delicious to taste. Oh how they make the sweetest noises when they are begging for it to stop,” Lily replied clapping her hands lightly, smiling at her and revealing her fangs and tongue that slithered like a snake. “You would think they would learn, but they always come back for more. You know I don’t kill them. You know we are not allowed to feed until death, but they love getting close to it that’s for sure.” Just looking at how her mother talked when speaking about humans and blood disgusted her to no end. Seeing her rub her hips, massaging her legs, and kissing the air like she was imagining a human right in front of her. It made her blood boil like water in a kettle.

  She always does this. She wants people inside the castle because it makes her fe
el less alone. Father is busy dealing with the issues of the undercity but she just wants to eat her candy from humans when she could get the blood from the aether fountain. Looking at their naked bodies, their soft spongy skin makes my skin crawl. To think I use to be one of them. Veronica never had a kind thought about any human. To her, they were always animals trying to suck anything and anyone dry. She saw them as the worst. That the world grew darker and all they constantly did was destroy anything that they touched. Every time one would come into contact with her, she would end the conversation quickly and walk away from them. A mouse running from a cat. To her, they were the low of the low, and the only reason why they got to live in the daylight was that the spirit king ruled topside. She tried not to let it bother her but there were so many advantages to being topside. There was the open sky, alternative electricity, different avenues of blood, and much more. In the undercity, she never felt like she was part of the vorpal. She didn’t get their customs, why they wanted to hide their faces aside from making lesser people feel even more inferior. The vorpals in high status even looked down on those that were the same, but only a different part of their clan. She felt bad for vorpals that had nothing, and the husk they eventually turn into. Her family was more secluded, boxed away, like on their own island. It was something that never quite felt right. Maybe next time Lily brings one of those disgusting humans to us they can take her away. It’s not like she cares about anyone else. She thought.

  “Honey, they aren’t all bad and you know it. They come from different walks of life, you can learn so much just by being around them. Their wants, their happy memories. You get to be around them and remember how it’s like,” Lily said looking at the floor, her voice trailing off. Lily closed her robes and starred into Veronica's eyes. “Your father is always busy with his work, and I get it, he has an important role. I just miss him, miss, how we use to be. He would be so fun to be around. He used to get excited when he saw my face, he would tackle me like an excited puppy. I just wish he would come back to me, even if it was for a brief moment. I still love him though. I still remember when we made sweet love on the roof of the castle, and he would lick alcoholic blood off my chest,” Lily said smiling wickedly. “You will know love one day. Maybe you and Jake can get together. You do spend a lot of time with that boy.”