The Naphil's Kiss (17 page)

***

Salome drew in an unsteady breath.

“What is it?” Sarahi asked. “Is your husband…?”

“He's fine. It's not him. It's… oh no! It's my drones.”

“What about them?”

“They're calling me. All around them, their brothers are dying. They're fighting for her, and I'm not there. They want to know what to do.”

“They're asking
you?
I thought they belonged to
her!
”

“So did I. Oh, Sarahi, I can't abandon them! They didn't ask for this. I have to go to them! Rahab, Jael, can't you hear them?”

Jael nodded, her lips compressed and pale. “Mine are calling too.”

Rahab wiped her eyes and agreed.

“Can't you hear them, Sarahi?”

She shook her head. “I've never made a drone. I couldn't. It was unfair.”

They all stared at her.

“Well,” Salome said at last, “I can't leave them like that. I have to go to them.”

“What?” Sarahi gasped. “You're going back to Mother?”

“Of course not,” her sister replied. “I'm going to set them free. They shouldn't have to fight and die for her.”

Salome crossed her arms over her chest and disappeared.

“She's right,” Jael said, following suit. A moment later, Rahab was gone too. Startled, Sarahi decided to follow her sisters, to discover what was going on.

***

As the remaining succubae and drones approached the line, Lucien sent a telepathic message to his commanders. “Move forward. Focus on the leader.”

He could feel the reluctance in their acknowledgment. He couldn't blame them. The towering demoness was incredibly intimidating. She looked like beautiful death. But the thought of what would happen to his Sarahi, his bride, if this creature rose to power unchecked overcame his nerves and propelled him forward. Pulling out the two thin blades from their crossed sheaths on his back, Lucien pressed into the fray, dodging and slashing.

A naked woman, beautiful and seductive, slunk towards him, radiating lust. Lucien scowled and swung one sword, reducing her to a shower of golden dust. His lady had been right to urge intimacy the night before. Bathed in Sarahi's love, the power of the succubae had no effect on him. A quick glance showed his fellow soldiers equally unmoved. Seeing their favorite strategy ineffective, the girls switched to claws and fangs. They were damned fast and strong, their lean bodies honed by millennia of training and skirmishes.

A drone with a broadsword which would have suited a medieval knight came at Lucien, swinging his blade with an overhand movement meant to cleave the Naphil's skull. Lucien sidestepped and the sword sank deep into the earth. Lucien ended the poor fellow's miserable existence with a quick slash to the throat. The body fell to the earth with a heavy thud, raising a cloud of desert dust, and decomposed instantly. Perhaps he really had been a medieval knight.

Lucien moved forward again. This time, a smaller, slightly-built man engaged him. He had an Asian cast to his features and moved like a cat, thrusting and jabbing with a light, maneuverable sword. Lucien met him parry for parry, holding his own, not pressing the attack, giving no advantage. If this man had not been a soldier in the enemy's army, he would have been a pleasure to spar with.

But this was war. With a sigh of regret, Lucien dodged past the whirling blade and opened the warrior's belly, spilling his entrails into the sand. The man fell to the ground shrieking, until Lucien delivered a coup de grâce through his heart.

Movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention and Lucien turned. On the hillside, four slender figures were silhouetted against the horizon. Three made beckoning motions with their fingers and a few dozen drones abandoned the battle and walked towards the rise.

Another succubus darted into Lucien's space, claws slashing, and he rejoined the battle with a sigh.

***

Sarahi looked down from the rise over the scene of battle. Pride swelled her heart as she saw how the brave company of angels and men held their own against a much larger force of demons. She could see Lucien, the connection between them telling her the tall dark figure cutting a swath through the melee was hers. It occurred to her she might use that connection to help him. She was full to overflowing with the loving he'd given her last night, and she sent some of the energy back to him, not in a distracting burst, but a thin stream. In the heat of battle, he might not even notice.

Beside her, her sisters reached out towards the scene before them and called, beckoning with their hands. All through the mass of soldiers, men lifted their heads and turned, heedless of the enemies they'd been engaging. They marched as one away from the battle and stood, shoulder to shoulder, in front of the women who'd created them.

“Well, Salome,” Jael said, “they're here. How do you figure on releasing them?”

“Rather simply, I think. We made them by draining away their life force, their will. I don't know about you, but I have enough excess energy to launch a rocket. Watch this.”

The black-haired succubus closed her eyes. Sarahi gasped. A cord like a golden string lay across the desert sand connecting her to one of the men, a young blond. She sent a pulse of energy though the cord and back into the man. Awareness dawned in his blue eyes.

“I'm sorry for what I did to you,” Salome said softly. She made a slashing motion with her hand and the bond between them severed, the cord shriveling and disappearing. “You do not need to fight. Go in peace. There's a town a few miles in that direction.” She indicated the north, away from the battle.

Interestingly, as the connection between the two faded, the man seemed to age visibly. No longer a handsome youth, he suddenly appeared to be in his mid-thirties. He nodded to Salome and turned, walking slowly away.

“How did you know what to do?” Rahab asked.

“I'm not sure,” Salome replied. “I never thought about trying it before. I always thought the drones belonged to Mother.”

“Did you see how he aged,” Jael asked? Some of these men are centuries old. If we release them, they will die.”

Rahab nodded. “But they are human, and that is their destiny. I think, at least for mine, they would prefer to die as men than live as slaves.” She sniffled, visibly steeled herself, and pulsed. A dozen thin cords flared and then shriveled. A moment later, three men were walking towards town. Sarahi felt a pang of sympathy for the others, lying in various states of decomposition on the sand. But the flare of gratitude in their eyes as they regained their souls helped… a little.

***

Lucien fought his way through a pocket of drones. He really did try to avoid killing them. Some were staggeringly bad soldiers. And all were acting on the will of others. He knocked them out and pushed them aside, always pressing forward, always trying to get to Lilith. He should have been feeling tired by now, but he still bubbled with fresh energy.

Another warrior rose up between him and his target. Lucien ground his teeth in frustration. Long blond hair straggled down a powerful back. Blue eyes glittered with bloodlust. This one wasn't fully engulfed in the will of the succubae. He fought at least in part because he wanted to. Lucien recognized the furry loincloth and heavy weapons of a Viking Berserker. The man was splattered from head to foot with blood and other, less mentionable things. He swung hard at Lucien, who dodged the blow and aimed low with his own sword, trying to take out the fellow's knees. The Viking jumped over the thrust and shot out a meaty fist, catching Lucien under the jaw and sending him sprawling in the dust. The battle ax fell and Lucien scrambled back to avoid it, placing his hand squarely on something soft and wet. He risked a glance and regretted it. His hand had landed in the split-open chest of a dead cleric. The boy's intestines tangled around his fingers and he shook them loose. His moment of distraction came at a heavy price. With a wild yell, the Viking pounced, ready to land on Lucien with all his massive weight. Lucien braced for the blow, but serious injury was unavoidable. He closed his eyes.

A blast startled him back to awareness. The Viking lay sprawled on his back several feet away. The Assassin stood over Lucien, a shotgun braced against her shoulder, a wisp of smoke rising from the muzzle.

“You need to be more careful.” Annie's amused voice came from behind the mask. “It's dangerous out here.” She dropped the weapon and extended a hand, helping him to his feet.

“I didn't call for you, Assassin,” he teased.

“I know,” she replied. “You didn't have to. Now come on. There's an evil bitch over there who could use a bit of humbling.”

Lucien nodded, reclaiming his sword from where it had fallen. Together they stalked into the fray once more.

***

“You know something?” Jael said from their perch above the battle. “Our men are doing better than I expected. They really are holding their own.”

“They are,” Sarahi agreed. “But Mother isn't fighting. She's just standing by. They'll be hard-pressed to take her after fighting through that lot.”

“And she stands there,” Rahab added darkly, “like the overgrown leech she is, letting her own daughters die so she can have an easier time of it.”

“Is there anything we can do?” Salome wanted to know.

Jael thought for a moment. “We could call our sisters. See if any of them are willing to walk away. Even a few could make a difference. Especially if they take their drones with them.”

“Good idea,” Salome said. Joining hands, the four concentrated on calling their sisters, touching each heart with a summons.

***

Lucien blinked in surprise. Whereas the path before him had previously been clogged with fighters, suddenly large empty patches had opened up. With careful maneuvering, he and The Assassin wended their way through until they stood on empty ground, with nothing between them and the oversized form of their enemy. The enemy and her much smaller companion.

Lucien closed his eyes against a wave of pain. His son stood to one side and slightly behind Lilith.

“Josiah,” Annie breathed beside him.

He nodded. “We can't worry about him now. We have a job to do.”

“I know,” Annie said, but her voice was unsteady.

“Don't go girly on me now, Assassin. Put Annie away a little longer.” Then he called to Josiah, “Son, you don't have to do this. She has no power over you. You can leave at any time. Walk away.”

“Son?” The demon laughed in her hissing, snake-like voice. “So you're the one? Ah yes, you do look like my little darling.” She turned and ran one long black claw down the center of Josiah's cheek. The boy did not react in any way.

“You know something,” Lucien said, feigning bravado, “You are, without a doubt, the worst mother-in-law the world has ever known. Fortunately for me, my wife will not be angry if I kill you.”

Lilith raised an eyebrow. “Wife?” She shook her head. “What a pathetic succubus that Sarahi is. I should have eaten her when she was a baby. All right, angel, you want to fight? Have at me.”

She stepped forward and her claws grew longer and longer until they became ten swords in the sunlight, black like the tarry darkness of her aura. Lucien drew his own blades. The two warriors regarded each other in silence, each weighing the threat. Then Lilith shot forward like a striking cobra, her claws flying straight towards Lucien's heart.

***

“What do you traitors want?” Cali demanded. “Why are you calling us away from the battle?”

“Why did you come?” Rahab retorted, answering the question with a question. “Jezebel isn't here. Neither is Herodias. Those truly loyal to Mother ignored us. You came. Why?”

“Maybe we're just curious. Why aren't you fighting?”

“Our husbands don't want us to,” Sarahi replied. “They don't even know we're here.”

“Husbands?” Cali asked, thunderstruck. “How can that work?”

“They're Nephilim. They're so deliciously strong,” Jael cooed.

The sixteen succubae on the hillside stared at their sisters.

“That sounds rather like sleeping with the enemy,” Cali said.

“Well, it depends on your definition of enemy,” Rahab replied. “Mother sends you up against men and angels to protect her own hide. Our men are down there risking themselves to keep us safe. My husband…” She sobbed. “He died so I could be protected. Tell me which one sounds more like an enemy.”

Cali acknowledged the truth of that with a curt nod. “And you too?” She turned to Sarahi, not quite believing that the lowest of the sisters would have managed such a prize.

“Oh yes,” Sarahi replied, looking over the battlefield. “Mine's the most magnificent one of the bunch. Just look.” She indicated the area where Lilith stood. Before her Lucien's midnight skin gleamed with sweat in the desert sun. His muscles bulged as he held his swords at the ready. “My Lucien. Josiah's father. Isn't he glorious?”

“Are you saying we could have… all that?”

“Just imagine,” Jael said. “A life without fear, without…” She waved her hand in Lilith's direction. “A husband who loves you. Even a child. It's all possible, sisters. But first you need to step out of Lilith's realm. And take your drones with you. They're dying for you, not for her. They don't care about her. You know that. She'll just kill them anyway.”

“So what do you want us to do? Fight against her?”

“No,” Salome said. “Just leave. Release your drones and go. Let the men save their strength to deal with her.”

Cali looked out across the desert, considering the options.

***

Lucien blocked the talons of the attacking demoness with his sword, and then dug his feet into the sand and shoved, managing to push her back enough to get clear. He whirled to parry another deadly thrust of those terrifying claws. He wasn't going to be able to maintain this forever, Annie saw. Lilith had the advantages of size, strength and outright meanness. Lucien wouldn't be able to win. But at this close range, the shotgun was more of a liability than a help. She dropped it to the ground and pulled the .44 Magnum from her hip holster, following the fight from side to side, desperate to get a clear shot. What had they said? A head shot, sever the spine, or take out the heart. But all without hitting Lucien.