Sweet Burden (35 page)

“Shut up.” Obi nudged him and went over to the table. He scrawled out a quick note and left it lying there. “I’m going now.”

“Alright.” Guri shrugged.

Obi fixed his gaze on the bedroom door. “Do you think I should wake her? Just to say goodbye.”

“Aww, Obi’s got a girlfriend,” Guri teased.

Obi rolled his eyes and started for the front door, but changed his mind and went into the bedroom. He moved around the bed and leaned down. “Hitomi?”

“Hm?”

“I’m leaving now.”

“Be back soon,” she whispered with her eyes still closed.

“Before dark.” He leaned down closer and planted a light kiss on her lips. He hastily pulled away and hurried out of the room.

Rediisu was the only death god Obi knew of that had a house in the Living World. Death gods were not to fraternize with humans, but Rediisu was always one for breaking the minor rules. And somehow he never got caught, or the council just didn’t care. Rediisu acquired the house from a woman who was on one of his lists. He basically seduced her into signing over her house to him before she died. Seduction was definitely one of the things Rediisu was best at. He usually kept human lovers as well. He was able to keep two or three at a time.

Guri and Obi had been to the house a few times before, usually on an errand to find Rediisu. He was usually found hung over in his bed with a cigarette in hand. Obi prayed that he would at least hide a little of his ways from Hitomi’s mom.

Obi landed safely a few blocks from Rediisu’s house. His wings tucked away and he pulled on a sweatshirt leaving the hood covering his head. He kept his senses alert as he walked to Rediisu’s house and up to the front door. He barely even had a chance to knock before the door opened and Obi was yanked inside. Rediisu slammed the door behind him and turned all the various locks and then switched on the security system.

He turned around and smiled. “Hi Obsidian.”

“What’s going on Rediisu?”

“Well, I can’t keep barriers up all the time.” He headed for the first room on the right and Obi followed behind him. “Would you like a drink?”

“No.” Obi crossed his arms as Rediisu moved over to a bar. He dropped a few ice cubes in a glass and poured himself some liquor. “I want to make this visit as quick as possible. I don’t like Hitomi being…”

“You mean, you don’t like being away from her,” Rediisu interrupted with a smirk. “And how is that tasty little morsel?”

Obi’s jaw clenched. “She’s fine. And I would prefer that you don’t talk about her like that.”

“Oh, lighten up Obi.” Rediisu moved over to one of the couches and sat down. “I know your situation with her is different than…well, my many situations.”

“It’s very different.”

“I know. I saw you two together.” Rediisu smiled and pulled a cigarette out of his jacket pocket.

“Can you get started with why you needed me to come here?” Obi asked impatiently.

“We need to prepare for war,” he replied calmly and took a drink.

“War?”

“Yes, war.” Rediisu sighed and lit his cigarette. He took a long puff while Obi waited. “There are those that don’t agree with the absolute control of the Afterworld. There’s no balance with the Heavens now gone. But there is an opportunity for the Heavens to be restored.”

“I know most of this.”

“This is bigger than you know. Obviously some in the Afterworld are enjoying their power too much.” He took another long drag on his cigarette and blew the smoke out. “They do not want balance.”

Obi sat down across from him. “What exactly are you getting at?”

“Obsidian, if there is no balance the Living World will be plunged further and further into darkness. The Afterworld needs the Living World to survive. And the Living World needs the Heavens to survive. Some of us see this, some don’t.”

“But how can the Heavens be brought back?” Obi inquired as one of Rediisu’s mortal girls came walking in. Clad in clothing that didn’t leave much to the imagination, she sauntered across the room and sat down with Rediisu.

“Hello my dear,” Rediisu greeted as he grabbed her chin and kissed her.

Irritated with his behavior, Obi looked away and focused on the front door.

“Who’s your friend?” she asked.

“This is Obsidian. Obsidian, this is Brigitta.”

“Nice to meet you Obsidian,” her voice practically purred.

Obi gave a nod and turned his attention back to Rediisu.

“Alright darling, why don’t you go cook something up for our guest?” he motioned for her to leave.

“Whatever you want,” she smiled and kissed Rediisu again but Obi saw her eyes fixated on him. She got up making sure that more skin was showing as she left the room.

“I think she likes you. You could always go upstairs and get some practice…”

“Rediisu, enough. Don’t you take anything seriously? I can’t believe you are continuing your ways with Hitomi’s mother here.”

“Oh calm down. I only have one girl here. Besides Regina has the entire third floor. She barely comes downstairs.”

Obi rubbed his forehead. “So, how are the Heavens going to be brought back?” he tried to get back on subject. “And why has Hitomi been put in the middle of this?”

“Well…” Rediisu took a long puff of the cigarette and another swig of his drink. “…that is yet to be revealed. Are you sure you don’t want a drink?”

“Rediisu, why the hell can’t you tell me what is going on?” Obi raised his voice as he got frustrated.

“Laws of the worlds. I could tell you, but I know you would not react well. You will have to wait until the right time to find out.”

“What am I doing here then?” Obi smacked his hands on the couch and stood up. “All I want to do is protect Hitomi.”

“And that is exactly why I wanted you to come.” Rediisu crushed his cigarette and got up. “Follow me,” he said seriously. He led Obi out of the room and down a hallway. They walked past a few doors and stopped in front of the one all the way at the end. He pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked the door, and then quickly tucked the key away. Obi followed him down the stairs and into a dark room. They walked across the room to another door that Rediisu punched in a code into a keypad. The door unlocked and it opened as a metal door slid open behind it. As soon as they walked in Rediisu flipped on the light and the doors behind them automatically closed.

Obi’s eyes widened as he stepped into the middle of the room. Lining every wall were weapons of every kind. Swords and daggers took up one wall; another wall was covered in crossbows and arrows; and the wall straight ahead displayed any type of gun imaginable.

“I don’t…” Obi shook his head. “I don’t understand. Where…? How…?” He couldn’t quite figure out what he wanted to ask.

“When I became a death god I began developing weapons. It’s hard to admit it, but a lot of these weapons killed protectors and angels during the extermination.” Rediisu let out a sigh. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.”

Obi walked over to one of the cases and ran his fingers along a long silver blade. “Why did you keep them all?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. “I guess I figured I might need them again someday.”

Obi walked over to another case and stared at the guns. They ranged in size from the length of a forearm to fitting in the palm of a hand. “Can they kill a death god?” he asked.

“Not yet. But they can be modified.”

Obi turned around and faced Rediisu, who was leaning against the back wall looking at something in his hand. “Rediisu?”

He quickly tucked whatever it was into his pocket and looked up. “Hm?”

“Why are you helping? I mean, why are you choosing to side against the Afterworld?”

“Personal reasons. Redemption maybe.” He grinned. “We should pick out some things for you and Guri.”

“And Hitomi,” Obi added.

“Of course,” Rediisu nodded. They started to look through all the weapons trying to decide what would be best. As Obi would grab something, Rediisu would explain how it worked. Obi tried a few things out but decided he preferred a longer range weapon. They picked out a few of the guns and carried them into an adjoining room. Obi could hardly believe that Rediisu even had a firing range in his basement.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me about all of this?” Obi asked referring to the weapons.

“It’s not something you go around bragging about.”

Obi gave a nod and fired off another round. He put the gun down and picked up a larger one. He loaded the bullets and pointed it at the target. “So, how exactly does a gun kill a death god?”

“I’ll show you.” Rediisu smirked and walked out of the room. Obi fired off more shots until Rediisu came back. When he walked back in, he grabbed Obi’s hand and dropped a bullet into it. He held it up between his fingers. It looked like a small vile of blood encased in a bullet. There were three strips of metal running the length of the bullet to the metal tip and the end. The strips securely held the red liquid inside a clear coating. “Bullet of blood,” Rediisu said. “I don’t have any with the blood of the living. You will have to make your own, but I can show you how.” Rediisu took the bullet back and then dropped something else into Obi’s hand. “For Hitomi.”

Obi inspected the bronzed metal. It looked like an oversized ring, but Obi noticed the bullet chambers. The small gun looked like an antique.

“I don’t see her as the type to wield a sword,” Rediisu added.

“This is perfect,” Obi agreed. “I’m hoping it never comes to her having to use a weapon, but I want her to be able to protect herself.”

“Absolutely. You can make bullets for that as well.”

Obi slipped the ring revolver into his pocket and fired off a few more shots with the other gun. He decided on a gun Rediisu called “Arcturus”. It was a large gun that did not require much reloading. It was easy for him to wield and its shot was accurate. He picked out a few daggers and a couple things for Guri.

They spent the rest of the day in the weapons room as Rediisu showed him how to make the bullets. It was a very tedious process. They had to separate each projectile from the casing, reduce the gun powder, and file the casing creating the three strips of metal. The clear casing had to be made and fitted inside the metal casing. Once the clear casing had hardened it needed to be filled with liquid and the projectile reattached. Rediisu explained that the clear coating easily dissolved inside a body and the blood would quickly enter a person’s system.