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And the demon stopped him cold.
Wake thou this slave.
A snarl bared the shon:gili’s
teeth. Why? You been wanting me to kill
somebody for you. Now I’m here, and the fruit is going to be dead.
Black flames roared through Carl’s body, and the shon:gili
shrieked, throwing himself away from the judge. Darkness wrapped around Carl,
trapping him from all but the sound of the demon screaming laughter. Fully under
the demon’s power, the shon:gili
crept to a liquor cabinet, clubbing both paws at the glass until they smashing
through the locked panes. Blood running from the paws, he dragged out a bottle.
The jaws bit off the cap. Shards of glass lacerated the gums and tongue of the
animal. Blood drooling from his jaws, he ran back to the judge and dumped half
the bottle over the blanched face.
The judge came out of it pleading for mercy. Nothing new
there.
“Be sss-till,” the demon shouted through the shon:gili.
When Harrison wilted to the floor, it said, “Open thee ein window. Thy master
cometh.”
Harrison leaped to his feet only to be knocked to the floor.
“Crawl, thee, beast, afore a lord of death.”
“Yes, please, only don’t hurt me. Take the kid in the
cellar.” Still weeping, Harrison crept to the window. “She’s young.
She’ll do anything you want. I swear it, or I’ll kill her as a sacrifice for
you.”
“I am a god.” A broad contempt laced through the shon:gili
as the demon said, “Give thee me nothing,
animal, for I steal life and sacrifice where I will. Only Lucifer doth more
evil, aye, and mocks thy creator and all humanity.”
His hand fumbled for the latch. Harrison pulled the window
in. He shot a wide-eyed, trembling look at the shon:gili
and leaped through into the night.
The animal was on him in a flash, smashing Harrison to the
ground and dragging him back over the sill. A quick slap and the blotched face
cracked on the maple floorboards. The shon:gili
put both paws on the man’s back and stood, waiting.
A great horned owl swept into the den. Wings outstretched, it
drifted to the floor to become an angelic being in glowing white robes.
The demon trembled. Aping its emotions, the shon:gili
bowed low, whining and licking the floor as urine pulled under the trembling
hindquarters.
Owl stared down at them.
Harrison, my slave.
The judge peered up at the spirit and whimpered.
“Lucifer, great lord.” Hands trembling, he reached out
towards the darkened sun. “Ascended master of Lord Hitler, why am I so
honored?”
The beautiful face cold and impassive, the Owl opened the
robes. Tommy ducked out grinning at the judge, then the shon:gili.
“Carl, man. Leda always said you were a real dog. Hey, boy.
Hey, mongrel.” Tommy whistled and snapped his fingers. “Want a doggy treat,
Carl?" He kicked the shon:gili in
the ribs. Struggling free, Carl made the jaws snap, but the demon pulled him
away before he tasted Tommy’s blood. Together, they shivered.
Owl muttered a laugh. “Enough.”
Turning to the ascended master, Tommy assumed a humble
position.
“Yes, shining lord; Satan, great and wonderful god of
love.”
“Thou, Harrison. Mine slaves will here abide till sunset
this coming night. You, the beast will take to the house where the wolf’s brat
stays.”
Harrison
shuddered. He glanced at the shon:gili
and then at Tommy. Tommy smiled and Harrison covered his face.
“He’ll kill me. Please, no.” Harrison’s hand crept
out to touch the robe. The window crashed shut and Harrison opened his eyes.
The shon:gili
stared down at him. It snarled, and Harrison shot away shrieking in terror. Tommy
lounged behind the desk, the chair creaking under him.
“Hey, got anything to eat? Like, I had a good meal and a
piece, but I’m bored.”
“Cellar,” Harrison said, his voice tight, whispered.
“There’s a woman down there. If you don’t mind a black touching your food,
I’ll have Maria make something–“
“Nah. The woman will do.”
Grabbing a couple of bottles out of the cabinet, Tommy
frowned at the labels. He held up a stubby dark bottle.
“Drambui? This crap sucks.” The bottle was flipped at the
fireplace, and it shattered on the andirons. Tommy opened the scotch, and part of
it drained into his stomach. Taking another bottle, he grinned.
“Carl? Hey, doggy? What are you drinking these days?”
Tommy held up a bottle.
It was the demon that answered, saying, “Thy foul mortal
blood, son of apes.”
Laughing, Tommy gathered a few more bottles.
“Have it your own way. Hey, Judge Pussy-boy, how about that
entertainment?" To Carl, he said, “I’m for a little action. You want
any?”
“She’s beautiful,” Harrison said, his mouth trembling
as his hands outlined the shape of a woman. “She stole a watch and has to be
punished. Now she’s eager to please. So eager to do the right thing. To keep
the law. To obey the Party.”
“Just how I like ‘em.”
Tommy nudged Harrison on the shoulder. The judge was spun and
given a light kick on the rump. With a small yelp, Harrison staggered and
half-ran to a wood panel in the wall. At his touch it slid out to reveal a dark
hole.
“Lights.”
The ceiling glowed and brightened.
Padding along behind Tommy, the shon:gili entered a concrete stairwell that led down into a bomb
shelter. Rows of store shelves stretched off into the dark recesses of the
cellar.
Row after row was covered with irradiated sacks of beef, of
pork, chicken, fruit and vegetables that still shined with freshness. Then they
came to a cooler filled with beer. Carl made the shon:gili stop and snatched out a bottle. The glass hung by a wire
rim from one tooth. The paws gathered several more and the shon:gili shuffled after the humans on his hind legs.
Harrison stopped at a steel vault. Shielding the lock, he
tapped in a code. Well-oiled bolts whispered back. The door swung open on silent
hinges.
Nostrils flaring at the odor of old sex and a haunting reek
of pain, the shon:gili pushed in. He
shouldered a frowning Tommy out of the way. Tommy started to say something. The shon:gili
and Carl ignored him.
A woman lay huddled under a wooden rack from
another era. The shon:gili aped
Carl’s expression of distaste. A torture chamber. The walls were painted with
angelic cherubs bearing whips, and they began to move. A gentle sun blushed light
over the table. Clouds drifted across a clear blue sky. As the door closed, a
soft music and a gentle scent of flowers drifted through the room, and the woman
began to scream.
©2004 StoriesByEmail.com
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